Electronic Health Records System Improves Service Delivery at May Pen Hospital

The May Pen Hospital in Clarendon is reporting success in the use of the Electronic Health Records (EHR) system, which was launched at the facility in January 2024, describing it as a “game-changer”.

Speaking at a Jamaica Information Service (JIS) Think Tank on May 14, Consultant Anaesthesiologist at the hospital, Dr. Cecily Thompson, noted that the system has significantly improved service delivery at the facility.

Dr. Thompson, who is also one of the Clinical Leads on the Configuration Management Team of the EHR System at the hospital, said the “one patient-one record” system has increased efficiency at the facility.

“As a neonate, you get your record in and it’s there; your prenatal history is there throughout, and if you become a patient at May Pen Hospital, we are able to retrieve the files from the system – one record,” she said.

“Specialists can share the patient’s record, up to four people at a time, and appointment scheduling is very easy because we now do it online,” Dr. Thompson added. The Consultant Anaesthesiologist said there is no longer a need to give the patient a piece of paper to take to the relevant departments.

“You can scan results into the patient’s electronic file and give them back the paper, so they can keep it on their own file,” she added. Dr. Thompson said the system will also make a difference to the facility’s storage capacity, as less space will be required for the storage of files.

She pointed out that the transition has not been without its fair share of glitches and that for some users there was a steep learning curve.

Dr. Thompson said that in some instances persons were going live on the system within three months of being trained, and that the clinical and information technology teams were on hand to provide support. “We have been able to learn from the challenges and we are still on that learning curve, but we’re getting there,” she added.

Dr. Thompson said the May Pen Hospital is very excited about being the “pioneers for the EHR System in Jamaica” and that it augers well for service delivery within the public health system.

“I am very impressed by how easy it is to use the EHR system to manage a patient. We’re putting our health service in the 21st century and this is where we all should be heading. We are very grateful for this,” she concluded.