Clarian Health Improves Staff Productivity and Reduces Costs With Microsoft-Based Policies and Procedures Management System
REDMOND, Wash., Feb. 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Microsoft Corp. today announced that Clarian Health — a leading healthcare organization serving more than 1 million patients annually in the Indianapolis area — selected Microsoft(R) software to build a policies and procedures management system (PPMS) to efficiently manage the organization’s hundreds of business guidelines that help keep its hospitals running smoothly.
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With more than 11,000 employees at five central Indiana hospitals, Clarian Health needed a better way to track, update and maintain its policies and procedures, which are the primary information sources guiding employees on how to operate within the organization. Clarian’s Information Systems (IS) Department turned to Microsoft to help develop a PPMS that would seamlessly integrate with current IT systems, as well as leverage the familiar look-and-feel of Windows(R)-based applications.
The resulting PPMS system, based on Microsoft Office SharePoint(R) Server 2007, boosted employees’ abilities to create reports on their own by 80 percent, increased policy and procedure creation by 50 percent, and reduced IT and patient costs.
“Before the PPMS was implemented, employees were stumbling over where to look for the organization’s business policies and procedures,” said Brian Quick, director of quality assurance for the IS Department at Clarian Health. “There was so much frustration and confusion trying to find policies and procedures that many employees were reluctant to deal with revising, updating and even following them. Microsoft helped us create an automated policy management tool, providing our staff with easy access to the critical information they’re looking for.”
The PPMS addresses everything from workstation use and security to encryption and access management. The procedures are integrated with automated workflows to make it easier for employees to create, review, approve and then distribute them within the authorization structure. Although policies and procedures can only be created and edited by those in the 270-person IS Department, the entire Clarian Health organization can view documents on the PPMS.
“Clarian Health is committed to providing the highest standard of patient care, and recognizes how important its employees are as a factor to that success,” said Chris Sullivan, Healthcare Provider Solutions Director of the U.S. Healthcare and Life Sciences Group at Microsoft. “We are pleased that Clarian Health has been able to build a healthcare vertical solution on the Microsoft technology platform to create an efficient and cost-effective environment for its entire staff.”
About Clarian Health
In 1997, Methodist, Indiana University and Riley hospitals united to form Clarian Health Partners. Committed to excellence in patient care, education and research, Clarian hospitals are considered by many to be the premier health care facilities in Indiana and the Midwest.
About Microsoft in Healthcare and Life Sciences
Microsoft provides standards-based products and technology to help the healthcare and life sciences industries break down information barriers between the disparate IT environments across pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device companies, physicians and healthcare professionals, provider organizations, government and private-sector employers, health insurers, and consumers. Microsoft’s vision for knowledge-driven health utilizes the company’s cutting-edge technology to help these groups integrate their systems, dramatically enhance collaboration, and increase information sharing and learning — ultimately resulting in the ability to deliver high-quality products and services to patients and consumers worldwide. More information about Microsoft in Healthcare and Life Sciences can be found at http://www.microsoft.com/healthcare.
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.
NOTE: Microsoft, Windows and SharePoint are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.
The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
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Microsoft Corp.
CONTACT: Ted Ladd of Microsoft, +1-646-225-4722, ortedladd@microsoft.com
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