Lippincott Williams & Wilkins Launches Electronic Health Record (EHR) Learning Tool to Help Future Nurses Prepare for New Practice Requirements

PHILADELPHIA, July 31, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, part of Wolters Kluwer Health, has launched Lippincott's DocuCare EHR, an educational electronic health record (EHR) program. This innovative tool helps nursing students learn how to electronically chart patient care, and prepares future nurses to meet expanding industry requirements for proficiency in health information technology and patient documentation.  Originally developed by nursing educators at the University of Tennessee - Knoxville, Lippincott's DocuCare EHR has been expanded and customized based on the input of hundreds of nursing instructors and students.  This completely web-based learning tool is supported by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins (LWW) extensive collection of healthcare content and resources, providing valuable links to patient simulation and other point-of-care teaching tools.

"To comply with accreditation standards, today's new graduate nurses must be proficient in health information technology, including electronic health records," said Tami Wyatt, PhD, RN, CNE, Associate Nursing Professor at the University of Tennessee. "Relying on the limited exposure to EHR technology that nursing students get during their clinical experiences is just not enough. When EHR technology is integrated into multiple courses across the nursing curricula, there is continuity in learning and students begin not just using, but relying on EHRs as tools to gather data and anticipate patient care."

Lippincott's DocuCare EHR includes over 70 pre-populated simulated patient records and cases. Each case includes relevant links to Lippincott's Nursing Advisor and Lippincott's Nursing Procedures and Skills, giving students access to diagnosis information, drug monographs, skills & procedures descriptions and videos, and other evidence-based, up-to-date content that is used in over 1,200 hospitals nationwide. Instructors can bring classroom case studies to life by creating simulated patient records, building assignments, and evaluating student documentation performance. The program is designed to better prepare students for practice, in a fully realistic, yet risk-free, simulated environment. LWW will provide faculty with specific training on how to use this new tool and integrate it into their curriculum.

As part of an ongoing partnership with Laerdal Medical, Lippincott's DocuCare EHR also aligns with many of Laerdal's suite of simulation solutions. Students working with these Laerdal patient scenarios can record patient information directly into the DocuCare electronic health record. 

"Today's nurses must seamlessly integrate ongoing patient care with sophisticated electronic documentation and technology resources, which involves a whole new set of critical thinking skills," said Susan Driscoll, President and CEO of Wolters Kluwer Health's Professional & Education division. "This new tool helps students learn how to track care, make risk-predictive care decisions, and document patient conditions. While only licensed medical practitioners can enter data into an actual patient EHR, DocuCare enables students to safely learn documentation skills so they can enter practice prepared for the realities – and requirements – of nursing." 

About Lippincott Williams & Wilkins

Lippincott Williams & Wilkins (LWW) is a leading international publisher of trusted content delivered in innovative ways to practitioners, professionals and students to learn new skills, stay current on their practice, and make important decisions to improve patient care and clinical outcomes.

LWW is part of Wolters Kluwer Health, a leading global provider of information, business intelligence and point-of-care solutions for the healthcare industry. Wolters Kluwer Health is part of Wolters Kluwer, a market-leading global information services company with 2011 annual revenues of €3.4 billion ($4.7 billion).

About Laerdal Medical

Laerdal Medical, one of the world's leading providers of Healthcare Solutions, is dedicated to helping save lives with products and services for Simulation, Airway Management, Immobilization, Basic Life Support, Advanced Life Support, Patient Care, Self-Directed Learning, and Medical Education. Laerdal is pleased to serve all healthcare providers and educators, from the lay rescuer to the medical professionals.

SOURCE Wolters Kluwer Health