DMC Harper-Hutzel Hospitals Unveil Most Advanced 'Smart Rooms!'

Hospital unveils template for the future of bedside patient care.

Event showcases innovative patient unit with the region's most advanced "Smart Room" technology.

DETROIT, March 3, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Continuing its tradition as a leader in advanced technology for patient care, DMC Harper University and Hutzel Women's Hospitals will host a free public open house to unveil the latest innovation in bedside care, featuring Cerner Smart Room™ technology.

What is a "Smart Room?" The Smart Room links clinical software technology to medical devices and workflow solutions for improved quality and efficiency. This new technological approach sends real time clinical data from devices like telemetry and vital sign monitors, beds and IV smart pumps directly into the electronic medical record without delay or error.

The objective of the "Smart Room" is to create an environment that one, connects medical devices to the electronic medical record. Two, it allows caregivers to view, in real time, relevant clinical data from the electronic medical record and medical device outputs such as cardiac telemetry waveforms, temperature and other vital signs. And three, Smart Rooms empower patients and their families by connecting them to their personal health record right at the bedside.

"This project extends the success of our implementation of the Electronic Medical Record, in the way it further enhances patient care and most importantly, our continued commitment to patient safety. Much like the EMR, the project's success is a multidisciplinary collaboration that is patient care-focused, led by clinicians, and supported by information technology experts," said Thomas Malone, MD, President of Harper-Hutzel Hospitals.  "This unit is the first of many renovations scheduled for Harper-Hutzel Hospitals through Vanguard Health System investments. Our patients and employees are excited about this new vision."

To implement this new technology, DMC collaborated with three top technical solution companies that provided the Smart Room's software, hardware and connectivity capabilities: CareTech Solutions, Cerner Corporation, and Spacelabs Healthcare.

"DMC Harper-Hutzel's Smart Room is a great example of how healthcare is applying technology to improve the delivery of patient care," said Jim Giordano, president and CEO of CareTech Solutions, DMC's information technology partner. "As the system integrator for the DMC, CareTech assimilated several of the new Smart Room technologies into 'all-in-one' solutions that reduced work flow steps, and simplified the delivery of information into the EMR."

The open house will take place on Thursday, March 3, 2011 from 4:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. on the medical/surgical patient floor of Harper-Hutzel Hospitals located at 3990 John R. in Detroit.  Official Ribbon Cutting to begin at 4:30 p.m.  The open house will include several demonstrations of the new technology.  

Media should enter via the Harper University Hospital main entrance.

DMC Harper University Hospital is one of nine hospitals and institutes operated by the Detroit Medical Center (DMC).  It is the region's specialty hospital for treatment of the minor to the most complex cases in cardiology, neurology, neurosurgery, organ transplants and bariatric surgery.  The bariatric program at Harper is the first in Michigan to have been awarded disease-specific care certification by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO).  Physicians from across the country refer their patients to Harper University Hospital because it offers their patients Exceptional Doctors.  Exceptional Care. The DMC has a combined 2,000-licensed beds and 2,600 affiliated physicians.

SOURCE Detroit Medical Center