The Newsletter for Waterbury Hospital Employees & Network Affiliates

IN THIS ISSUE
SHOWING OUR STUFF
PRESENTATION IN NEW ORLEANS
PAGE 3
IT’S MADNESS!
SHOOTIN’ HOOPS WITH A STAR HUSKY
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The Newsletter for Waterbury Hospital Employees & Network Affiliates
History was made at 12:01 a.m. on March 27, 2006. At
that moment, Waterbury Hospital launched its new
electronic medical records system and the quest to
become completely electronic by 2014 (a national deadline
set by President Bush) was begun. Hello COW’s
(computers on wheels); goodbye paper charts!
ABOVE: Waterbury Hospital has approximately 150 computers on
wheels (COW’s). Doctors, nurses and healthcare professionals
input patient information on these portable, password-protected
computers. The COWs also contain drawers that hold medications
and supplies.
The implementation of the new system’s (also known as
Cerner Millennium) twenty four applications over the
course of the last twelve months, now allows doctors,
nurses and healthcare professionals to view medical
histories, document patient stays, record specific
patient instructions and comments, capture diagnoses,
fill prescriptions, view X-rays, and remit bills by simply
logging onto a computer and following the protocols
and instructions for each. According to Jim Olson, Chief
Information Officer, “A year ago, we were spending a lot
of time looking for a patient’s paper chart and you’d
have four or five people trying to look at the chart at the
same time. Now, 60 percent of the paper chart is electronic
and we’re making strides everyday towards ultimately
being 100 percent paperless.”
CONTINUED ON PAGE 2
LEFT: The Family Birthing Center had a little fun during
‘go live’ last year by wearing cow masks in honor of the
computers on wheels which now populate the hospital.
Shown, left to right, are: Maryann Hassinger, RN; Diane
Hunt, CIA; and Carol Borona, Assistant Director, Family
Birthing Center.

Win a Prize
Worth $100!
Have you ever been faced with a situation at work that
caused you to feel uncomfortable?
Have you found yourself
asking, “What is the
right thing to do?”
Maybe you know about a co-worker who is using sick
days when she is really on vacation. Or perhaps in a
crowded elevator, you overhear an employee discussing
another employee’s salary and performance review. What
if a vendor sends you a gift as a token of gratitude for
using their services for your project? Can you keep it?
Sometimes it’s hard to know what the right answer is.
We all want to
DO THE RIGHT THING...
we’re just not sure what that is.
The Network Compliance and Ethics Committee at the
hospital is trying to raise awareness about compliance
and ethics issues in the workplace.
Beginning this month, they will offer
a hypothetical question for you to answer
each month. We encourage you to consider your own
response and to talk with others. Then, send an e-mail to
Kerri Allmer at kallmer@wtbyhosp.org with your answer.
The first person to correctly answer the question will
receive a prize valued at $100! We’ll provide the answer to
April’s DO THE RIGHT THING question, in the May edition
of the Update newsletter.
APRIL’S ETHICAL DILEMMA
QUESTION:
A friend in your department calls to ask you
to check his e-mail for an important message.
He gives you his password, promising
to change it as soon as he gets back. Is that
okay? Please explain your response.
“Our staff, and more
important, our patients are
now reaping the benefits
of what a well-conceived
and well-built electronic
medical records
system can do.”
--Jim Olson,
Chief Information Officer
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
Other benefits of the system, according to Olson, include the capability,
with just a few key strokes, to immediately apprise staff of
patients’ previous visits. “This means we can use the electronic
information to respond to a patient more quickly,” he said.
Additionally, “Physicians can access a patients’ data from their
home or office because our hospital now provides them with
remote access to the Cerner system if they request it,” said Olson.
“Finally,” he continued, “the ability to collect more information at
scheduling or registration is allowing patients’ bills to be more
promptly paid by insurance companies.” Olson estimates that the
conversion to the Cerner system has slashed the hospital’s special
forms budget by one third and even more impressive, it has given
the hospital a $1 Million return to its bottom line--a direct result he
says, of improved documentation.
A year after its launch, Olson says the hospital is optimistic about
its electronic conversion. “Our staff, and more important, our
patients, are now reaping the benefits of what a well conceived and
well-built electronic medical records system can do. Of course, this
is a work in progress, but the staff and the hospital have good reason
to be proud of what we have already accomplished.”
Send your response by April 27
to: kallmer@wtbyhosp.org. If you
have questions, please call
Heather Tindall at extension 6717.
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HOSPITAL PRESENTS AT
NATIONAL CONFERENCE IN
NEW ORLEANS
Waterbury Hospital was recently invited by Cerner
Corporation to present at the National Healthcare Information
and Management Systems Society Conference in New
Orleans where the Information Services department was
asked to showcase the hospital's implementation of its electronic
medical records system involving Cerner software. The
team chose an infectious disease scenario that started in the
Emergency Department and ended as an inpatient encounter.
Within the patient-focused scenario, the team highlighted
several key Cerner system features which have been developed
or customized at Waterbury Hospital to help improve
patient care. It is expected that the sharing of such presentations
by several key Cerner clients (like Waterbury Hospital)
will have a net positive effect on the entire Cerner user base.
The convention drew over 15,000 health care professionals and provided the hospital with the opportunity to
share the stage within the Cerner exhibition booth and demonstrate to professionals who stopped by the display.
The hospital team included (L to R, above): Peter Porrello, MD, Chief Medical Informatics Officer; Betsy
Sweeney, System Architect; Brenda Nichols, Clinical Informatics Analyst; Giselle Nunes, Clinical Informatics
Analyst and Steve Laskarzewski, Director of Information Services. In an email to John Tobin, President and
CEO, Dick Flanagan, Senior Vice President at Cerner, said, “Your team's presentation was well received and
really showcased your fine organization.”
DID YOU KNOW?
Cerner considers
Waterbury Hospital a
member of their
Premier Hospital Group?
This means the hospital
is part of the “go to”
group Cerner uses to
improve their products.
Waterbury Hospital is
also part of the Cerner
Reference Site Program,
that is earning the institution
“Cerner Dollars”
for each visit. These
dollars can be spent on
future software or services.
And last but certainly
not least . . . the
hospital is being visited
by other Connecticut
hospitals (like Danbury,
Middlesex and
Bridgeport) who all want
to learn more about
Waterbury’s successful
implementation of the
Cerner system.
Crozier Scholarship Provides
Financial Assistance to Students
Pursuing Medical Careers
Students who intend to pursue a
career in healthcare, are the
son/daughter of a hospital employee(s)
and are seeking financial assistance,
may submit their application for consideration
to the 2007 Emmet &
Mildred Crozier Scholarship Fund by
May 21. Applications may be picked up
from the Human Resources (Rm.
#2310) or Payroll (Rm. #2240)
Departments. Applications may also
be downloaded from the hospital’s
Intranet by clicking on HR Forms.
Mildred Crozier, who passed away in 2002, was formerly the
Director of Special Projects and a devoted volunteer at the
hospital after her retirement. She established the scholarship
in her husband’s memory to assist students of hospital
employees who desired careers in the health sciences fields.
Originally established in Mildred’s husband’s name, the
Crozier Scholarship has been assisting medical hopefuls
since 1988. Over the years, tens of thousands of dollars have
been dispersed to the children of hospital staff. In the past
year, over $15,000 was awarded to eleven students. Awards
are based on academic performance, financial need, and a
proven, dedicated commitment to the student’s chosen field
or career.
For further information on the Crozier Scholarship, please call
Jacquie Minor at extension 6273.
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The Morale Booster Club sponsored the 4th Annual March
Madness Employee Shootout on March 5 in the
hospital's Bizzozero Conference Room. The
event was attended by Maria Conlon,
former University of Connecticut
women’ basketball star who assisted
with the shootout competition, signed
autographs, and helped with other
events planned for the day. The
hospital-wide employee basketball
shootout competition is one of
several employee-focused activities
generated by the Morale Booster Club
throughout the year to help create
a positive, cohesive environment
at the hospital.
March Madness organizer Claire Bauknecht said 62 teams registered
for the competition, a new record for the event. The 2007
winning team from the Operating Room consisted of Mike
Flanagan, MD; Pat DaSilva, Dept. Assistant, Surgical Services;
and Elise Callahan, RN, Surgery Dept. The Finance team placed
second and Hospitality placed third. Pictured above is Ann
Frenette, Hospitality Services Supervisor who demonstrated her
finest shooting form during the competition (Ann recently retired
after 19 years of service to the hospital).

PROJECT WIPE ‘M OUT
The Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at the hospital recently kicked off Project Wipe ’m Out,
an initiative designed to permanently eliminate hospital-acquired Methicillin
Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections. MRSA is a resistant staph
infection found in hospitals. It is spread through contact from a health care worker’s
hands or environmental surfaces, to a patient.
Waterbury Hospital
congratulates and welcomes
the following new employees
who joined the hospital in April:
Bibi R. Ali
Johnathan Arana
Gloria M. Benza
Christine L. Florio
Stacey Foote
Leon Frederick
David J. Lewis
Elizabeth D. Lowy
Brenda L. Pandiscia
Emily S. Parizo
Lana J. Porzio
Yazmin Rivera
Andrew J. Romano
Ruth M. Ross
Lidia M. Silva
John D. Tichon
Edward J. White
IS A PUBLICATION OF THE COMMUNITY RELATIONS &
MARKETING DEPARTMENT OF WATERBURY HOSPITAL
MANAGING EDITOR: HEATHER TINDALL
CONTRIBUTOR: KERRI ALLMER
SUBMIT ITEMS FOR UPDATE TO:
htindall@wtbyhosp.org
As part of a campaign to eliminate MRSA, the ICU will conduct a nasal swab on all
patients entering the Medical or Surgical ICU. Patients will be kept in contact isolation
until such time as results from the swab return with a negative finding. If a
patient’s swab comes back positive, the patient must remain in contact isolation.
Project Wipe ‘M Out was initiated by the Infection Control Team, working in conjunction
with the Volunteer Hospital Association (VHA) to eliminate the spread of health
care-acquired MRSA. Pictured above with the Wipe’M Out kickoff cake are (from L
to R) Sue Cordeau, Infection Control Coordinator; Debbie Migliaro, Infection Control
Coordinator; Colleen D’Amico, Assistant Director of ICU (holding cake); Stephen
Antopol, MD, Infection Control Chair; Niki Devito, PCA; Veronica Hart, CIA; Rachel
Crosby, Infection Control Coordinator (also standing next to cake); Steven Aronin,
MD, Assistant Hospital Epidemiologist; and Sharon Bielarczyk, RN, SICU.
“My Boss
is a
Patriot!”
Master Sergeant Charles Loya, a Pharmacy Buyer at the hospital, recently presented
Pharmacy Department Director Kimberly Curry with the Employer Support of the Guard
and Reserve’s “My Boss is a Patriot Award” at the Department Director’s monthly meeting.
Loya said he was grateful for his supervisor’s support of his military service in the
Connecticut Air National Guard. MSgt Loya serves as the Noncommissioned Officer in
Charge of Medical Logistics for the 103rd Medical Group at the Bradley Air National Guard
Base. He has deployed overseas in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and also to New
Orleans in support of Katrina relief efforts. He was also recalled to active duty for eight
weeks after 9/11.
“My director’s support allows me to oversee the smooth running of medical logistics operations
throughout each month and on Guard training weekends,” said Loya. “As
Connecticut Air National Guard members prepare for deploying overseas every month, I
am able to ensure their needs are taken care of and that they are able to perform in the
Theater of Operations.” As a token of his appreciation, Loya also presented Curry with an
Air Force coin he recently received as an award.
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