Abu Dhabi: Patients will now have easier access to their medical records through a new electronic medical record system (EMR), which will be implemented in 6 hospitals and 12 clinics across Abu Dhabi, announced the Abu Dhabi Health Services Company (Seha).

The EMR system is one of many projects that hospitals are implementing using the registered Cerner Millennium health care information technology computing platform.

The platform includes automated processes for departments such as radiology, pathology, pharmacy, surgery, emergency, and scheduling and registration.

The system will help create a health care computing platform with documented health care and submitted orders across hospitals. The project will be implemented during 2008-2009 in 11 Seha hospitals and 39 primary health clinics in Abu Dhabi.

According to Saif Al Qubaisi, managing director, Seha, the system will be fully implemented in all Seha facilities by the end of next year.

"The new EMR system will help ensure patient information is available when and wherever a Seha provider needs it. This system will noticeably accelerate the creation and management of patient records. It will always be up to date and complete," said Al Qubaisi.

Tawam Hospital, in Al Ain, an affiliate of Johns Hopkins Medicine (JHM), is currently the first hospital to go live with the new system.

Safer health care

Michael Heindel, CEO of Tawam Hospital, said the project reflects the government's initiative in providing a safer health care system through modern technology.

"We are truly proud of the successful launch of this system, and are delighted to see this project implemented after months of studies, planning and hard work."

Seha, (meaning "health" in Arabic) is an independent, public joint stock company created to manage and develop curative activities of public hospitals and clinics across the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. Seha currently operates 11 hospital facilities with 2,472 licensed beds, 39 primary health clinics and has 14,350 employees.

"The implementation of the EMR technology is a great success at Tawam Hospital and it is already showing results, facilitating access to information for physicians and consequently improving the quality of patient care. As these systems are introduced across the Seha system, this successful technological advancement will benefit all our patients in future," said Carl V. Stanifer, CEO of Seha.