Self Regional Healthcare Selects Allscripts Electronic Health Record and Practice Management for Employed and Affiliated Physicians

CHICAGO and GREENWOOD, S.C., Feb. 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Allscripts (Nasdaq: MDRX) announced today Self Regional Healthcare (Self) has selected the Allscripts Electronic Health Record (EHR) and Practice Management solution for its 59 employed physicians and as the preferred solution for more than 200 physicians affiliated with the health system.

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Self is a major referral and medical center providing advanced healthcare services to a population of more than a quarter of a million people in the Lakelands region of Upstate South Carolina. Licensed for 414 beds, the not-for-profit hospital employs 2,400 health professionals and has a medical staff of more than 200 representing almost every major medical specialty.

Self will offer the Allscripts solution for its affiliated physicians through a turn-key solution that includes hosted delivery over the Internet, a 24-hour help desk, interfaces to ancillary services such as laboratories and radiology, and connections to Self's hospital information systems. The health system's offering to independent physicians is intended to help them take advantage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which provides between $44,000 and $64,000 for physicians who utilize an Electronic Health Record, beginning in 2011.

"When Self decided to take the electronic health record journey with our employed physicians, it seemed natural to focus on strengthening our relationship with physicians in our community by helping them to implement EHRs and qualify for the stimulus incentives," said James Pfeiffer, President and Chief Executive Officer of Self. "Our goal is to be as interconnected as possible so we can provide the very best care to our patients, and we are hopeful that a majority of the independent physicians in the Lakelands region will take advantage of our Allscripts offering."

Allscripts Community Focus

Self, which will replace its existing Electronic Health Record and Practice Management solutions, selected Allscripts for its strong "price-to-value" ratio, and tight integration between its clinical and back-office solutions, noted Chuck McDevitt, the health system's Chief Information Officer. Allscripts also delivers a focus on community-building that competitors lack, McDevitt added.

"Allscripts came to the table with something completely unique – a clear plan to help us build relationships with our affiliated physicians through the EHR and practice management system, and more experience doing this for major healthcare systems than anyone," McDevitt said. In addition to helping Self develop its community EHR offering, Allscripts is providing participating physician groups with volume pricing on its Revenue Cycle Management solution – already used by a large percentage of Lakeland physicians.

Another advantage of the Self offering is the ability of physician groups, most of whom lack a dedicated IT support person, to tap into Self's 56-person IT team when help is needed, said David Isenhower, MD, a physician at Greenwood Ear, Nose & Throat, whose four physicians will implement the Allscripts solution. "Doctors in the Greenwood area have been working toward a cradle-to-grave electronic health record for 10 years but until now the technology hasn't matched our vision," Dr. Isenhower said. "We believe the combination of Allscripts and Self Regional Healthcare as our hosting partner is a winning combination that will help doctors here make the transition from paper to EHR in an economically wise fashion, and take advantage of the federal incentives."

Dr. Isenhower added that Self has built into its standard community contract a binding obligation to keep all clinical and financial data secure and private – putting to rest a concern that sometimes keeps physicians from connecting to hospitals.

"Self Regional Healthcare is a leader among rural hospitals nationwide in reaching out to physicians across their community to help create the connected system of health that we all want," said Glen Tullman, Chief Executive Officer of Allscripts. "We are confident that a large number of Lakeland physicians will join this effort to create an electronic dialogue between the region's caregivers, offering their patients a fully integrated healthcare experience that is richer in content, higher in care quality, and safer."

Allscripts Solutions

The Allscripts Electronic Health Record automates clinical workflow and gives physicians immediate access to critical data from hospitals, labs, pharmacies, payers and patients. Healthcare providers can access the Electronic Health Record at any time, whether they are in the clinic, at the hospital or on-call at home. The Allscripts Practice Management solution with integrated Revenue Cycle Management combines billing and scheduling with integrated claims, remittance and eligibility capabilities in a single package. Together, they are used by thousands of physician groups across the U.S. to process more than 260 million claims annually and 500 million revenue cycle management transactions.

About Self Regional Healthcare

Founded in 1951, Self Regional Healthcare is a regional referral center serving the seven-county Lakelands region of Upstate South Carolina. The hospital's mission is to improve health by bringing advanced care closer to home for the more than 250,000 living in its service area. Self has been recognized the past two years with the Gallup Great Workplace Award, singling the hospital out as one of the 23 best workplaces in the entire world. Licensed for 414 beds, the hospital employs 2,400 health professionals and has a medical staff of more than 200 representing almost every major medical specialty.

About Allscripts

Allscripts uses innovation technology to bring health to healthcare. More than 160,000 physicians, 800 hospitals and nearly 8,000 post-acute and homecare organizations utilize Allscripts to improve the health of their patients and their bottom line. The company's award-winning solutions include electronic health records, electronic prescribing, revenue cycle management, practice management, document management, hospital care management, emergency department information systems and homecare automation. Allscripts is the brand name of Allscripts-Misys Healthcare Solutions, Inc. To learn more, visit www.allscripts.com.

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SOURCE Allscripts-Misys Healthcare Solutions, Inc.