The College of Healthcare Information Management Executives has named 254 organizations – including Navicent Health – 2018 CHIME HealthCare’s Most Wired recipients. The honor, which is given to hospitals and health systems that are at the forefront of using healthcare IT to improve the delivery of care, was announced at the 2018 CHIME Fall CIO Forum in San Diego.
 
A total of 647 organizations representing 2,190 hospitals from nine countries submitted surveys. A supplement listing the 254 organizations was released at the forum and published online on the CHIME website as well as on Modern Healthcare Custom Media’s website.
 
“Technology is making it easier for patients and providers to interact, thus improving communication, safety and patient-provider relationships. New tools are helping patients become more actively involved in their care and maintaining their health. At Navicent Health, we are pleased to partner with our patients through the use of technology to better serve those who rely on us for their health and wellness needs,” said Omer Awan, Chief Information Officer for Navicent Health and recent recipient of CHIME’s 2018 Transformational Leadership Award.
 
Navicent Health is continually pursuing technological advances in order to best serve the needs of healthcare consumers, and increase access to care. Whether through the development of mobile apps or advances in telehealth technology, Navicent Health continues to lead the region in providing access to healthcare services in convenient, user-friendly and consumer-focused manners.
 
“At Navicent Health, we are committed to providing consumers access to quality care at the right time and in the right place. In the twenty-first century, that time is now and that place is here, wherever that may be. Through technology, healthcare consumers now have immediate access to the care they need, as soon as they need it. We applaud our IT Team for the measures they have taken to best meet the needs of those who depend on Navicent Health for timely care,” said Dr. Ninfa M. Saunders, President and CEO of Navicent Health.
 
This is the second consecutive year that Navicent Health has been included on the national listing, and qualified this year based on a new set of guidelines. This is the first year that CHIME oversaw the Most Wired program. CHIME revised and streamlined the survey to make sure questions reflect leading practices and successful, innovative uses of technology. Other changes include creating a new scoring methodology, setting a higher threshold to become a recipient, offering a comprehensive benchmarking report to all participants, and restructuring the governing board with no sitting CIOs as members to remove any perceived bias or conflicts of interest. CHIME also published an industry trends report, which was made available online here.
 
“At CHIME, we believe that sharing best practices nationally and globally across the healthcare IT industry will improve patient safety and outcomes everywhere,” said CHIME President and CEO Russell Branzell. “Most Wired will help us achieve that goal, and more.”
 
William Spooner, chair of the Most Wired Governing Board, said that the governing board will reassess the survey questions and recalibrate the threshold each year to drive change in the industry.
 
“This is only the start for Most Wired,” Spooner said. “Most Wired has a new purpose, and that is the relentless pursuit of excellence in healthcare. We won’t quit until we have achieved excellence across our industry.”