August 20, 2002 – Wangaratta District Base Hospital (DBH) aims to improve patient care with software from Orion Systems International Limited.  Orion’s technology will enable healthcare providers to instantly and securely access the latest information on their patients via web technology, thus improving communications and the coordination of care.

With the click of a mouse, clinicians will soon be able to monitor their patients’ status, check medication information, order prescriptions, get the latest pathology and radiology results and create electronic discharge summaries, 24 hours a day…all without using paper or writing a word.  The system alerts doctors of allergies and drug interactions, helping to reduce medication errors.  With instant access to up-to-the-minute information and decision support, the software enables clinicians to make better decisions and creates a safer environment for patients.

“Orion’s technology will enable Wangaratta DBH to build an advanced, comprehensive electronic medical record for all patients that all providers can access at the point of care,” said Mike Craig, Orion’s Australian Manager.  “The products accelerate and simplify clinicians’ access to patient and drug data, which will improve the coordination of patient care throughout the organization.” 

Wangaratta DBH serves 70,000 people across five municipalities in Northeast Victoria (Australia).  With an extensive network of providers throughout the community, the hospital needed an effective, efficient way to communicate and share accurate information.  The DBH turned to information technology to enable providers community-wide to communicate in a timely and accurate manner and ensure continuation of care following patient discharge.

“Orion is in a position to meet the challenges of measuring and ensuring that clinical care is delivered on time and safely, with links to ongoing care outside the hospital walls,” said Chris Giles, Project Sponsor and Director of Nursing at Wangaratta DBH.  “Orion’s technology provided the functionally we needed within the budget we could afford.  Orion offered a complete system to assist the clinical staff with communication and decision making.” 

Wangaratta Hospital will install Orion’s suite of health integration products, designed to enable instant, universal access to patient data.  Orion’s products, co-developed and tested by hospital clinicians, have been used and trusted worldwide for nearly a decade. 
 
Orion’s Concerto™ Medical Applications Portal acts as an umbrella over all of a hospital’s systems and applications, unifying them into a single, secure system.  It creates a comprehensive online view of patient health or a “virtual patient record”, which clinicians can access from any network computer, 24 hours a day, with a single logon.  Clinicians at different locations can securely share information (medical records, referrals, pathology results, digital x-ray images, prescriptions, etc.), regardless of where it is held, and place orders for pathology, radiology, pharmacy and ancillary services.  Concerto has demonstrated significant return on investment at hospitals worldwide, including 30 percent reductions in costs and administrative work.

Unlike similar technologies, Concerto integrates and retains valuable legacy systems, while new applications can be seamlessly integrated.  Orion’s “plug-in” Soprano™ products fill in the gaps for any missing applications at a hospital.  Wangaratta Hospital will additionally install Orion’s Soprano applications for order entry, electronic discharge summaries and results reporting.     

Soprano™ Order Entry securely connects all key care providers – physicians, pharmacists, nurses and pathology – providing them with medication management and decision support at the point of care.  Ordering prescriptions online streamlines paperwork, saves time and effort, and improves the accuracy and clarity of orders.  Pharmacists no longer have to transcribe data, attempt to analyze illegible handwriting or duplicate lost orders.  The system is a “one-stop shop” for all electronic service requests, enabling clinicians to rapidly create and send electronic orders for radiology, laboratory/pathology and allied hospital services. 

Soprano™ Results Reporting enables clinicians to view a patient’s latest lab results, radiology reports and clinical observations as soon as they are available, on the screen of their PC.

Soprano™ Electronic Discharge Summary (EDS) provides real-time transmission of electronic discharge summaries to primary care physicians.  The system collects and automatically enters vital patient data into a discharge summary, then transmits it directly to a GP’s practice management system via the secure HealthLink network.  Used and proven worldwide, Soprano EDS saves clinicians time and effort, increases the legibility and completeness of patient documentation, and helps GPs make quicker, more informed decisions. 

About Wangaratta District Base Hospital
Wangaratta District Base Hospital has nearly 600 staff (full time equivalent) and serves a catchment of more than 70,000, covering five municipalities.  It has 115 acute beds, 70 nursing home beds, 20 psychiatric beds and 16 rehabilitation beds.  With greater emphasis on shortening hospital stays and treating people at home, it also has an extensive Community Services infrastructure.  More information can be found at www.wanghealth.org.au.

About Orion Systems International Limited
Orion Systems International Limited is a global leader in information access and interfacing technologies for the health sector.  Orion specializes in health integration with software that enhances healthcare systems by improving organizational efficiency and patient outcomes.  Orion’s new generation technology improves the communications and coordination of care among providers, enabling hospitals and clinical staff to securely access, update and exchange clinical information.  Orion’s products have been used and trusted around the world for nearly a decade by clients such as Abbott Laboratories, IBM, Harvard University, Philips Medical Systems and McKesson.  More information can be found at www.orionhealth.com.