LEWES — Dr. David Tam, the president and CEO of Beebe Healthcare, has detailed the electronic medical record system the organization is set to implement, called Epic.
According to Dr. Tam, these types of systems track patient information, like when a patient visited the doctor, and medications they may be on, their allergies, etc. He said the system Beebe has been working with, Cerner, has been in use by the hospital system for decades, and it was one of Dr. Tam’s highest priorities to upgrade since he entered the position in 2020.
“What Epic does is it’s (not just) a sort of database. It really is a partner that sits with the doctor or clinician in the office to prompt (them) to ask questions. There’s an artificial intelligence component that’s already being built in,” said Dr. Tam.
He said the system uses artificial intelligence to analyze statistics like age, race, weight, medical history and more to figure out what any given patient might need to keep in mind or be at risk for, guiding the doctor to cover those things in an appointment.
Dr. Tam said that Beebe has elected to be attached to a larger worldwide network, utilizing data for more accuracy.
Epic being worldwide also simplifies things when a Beebe patient needs care while away. Other Epic-equipped facilities need only to request permission for the patient data from Beebe.
This data will also be available to the patient via the MyChart phone app, so that all a patient would need to do is show the doctor their phone to get any necessary information. He said patients will also be able to schedule appointments through this system.
According to Dr. Tam, Epic is one of the largest health system companies in the world. But switching over to it will be no easy task.
“As we change our organization to move really into the 21st century and beyond, we have to train our people, and we have to take that and also make sure that these people are still doing their work, right? The day-to-day work. And what that means is that this is a hugely expensive proposition for us,” said Dr. Tam. “It’s about a $50 million project over the course of a couple years, but we invest in that because we know that that’s what’s going to help us — as a local nonprofit, independent community health system — remain that way while being connected to the outside world.”
Dr. Tam expects the system to be operational by fall 2025, incorporating every system at the hospital, whether it is oncology, the X-ray lab, the operating room, or elsewhere.
“These are the things that I think will make Beebe Healthcare a true community asset for everybody who lives here, and you and I both know that the community is growing, and we’ll continue to build as many clinics and bring in as many doctors as possible, but we need to have a system that allows us to really force multiply all the things that we do,” Dr. Tam said.
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