Joseph Brant Hospital (JBH) and St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton (SJHH) have launched a new integrated health information system partnership that will enable more seamless care for patients and improved experiences for healthcare providers.

Under the partnership, JBH will adopt SJHH’s version of Epic, an award-winning health information system. It will allow providers from each organization to easily access patient medical histories and ensure that they are receiving the most appropriate care. The partnership between two of the region’s leading healthcare providers means that patients will have seamless access to their health information at both hospitals. The technology uses highly secure encryption and is in line with patient privacy legislation.

(L-R) Dr. Mike Heenan, president of St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton and interim CEO of St. Joseph’s Health System, Raffaela McCowell, registered nurse, St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton and Eric Vandewall, president and CEO of Joseph Brant Hospital.
 
Eric Vandewall, president and CEO at Joseph Brant Hospital, said the new partnership will enable healthcare providers to better connect to each other and collaborate on patient care. “The adoption of this system will allow us to digitize and modernize care across our entire organization,” he said. “Our new system will revolutionize our capacity to create healthier communities.” 

“SJHH’s collaboration with JBH to implement this innovative health information system will help healthcare providers deliver exceptional, high-quality care when and where patients need it. The implementation of this system will streamline the way providers across the region work and help us on our journey toward a more integrated, patient-centred system,” said Dr. Mike Heenan, president of St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton and interim CEO of St. Joseph’s Health System.

The implementation of Epic is a large-scale transformation that will move JBH from a largely paper-based system to a modern digital health information system and is an exciting step in improving the patient healthcare experience.  The partnership will also ignite a new collaboration between JBH and SJHH will that will align best practices and improve the provider experience.  

SJHH is a Healthcare Information Management Systems Society (HIMSS) Stage 7 certified hospital and leader in innovative technology implementation. JBH will benefit from the adoption of most elements of SJHH’s Epic software, leveraging key clinical information, such as visit and medication histories. This will enable a more seamless healthcare journey for patients.  In addition, JBH patients will also have access to a secure online portal to access their health information from their hospital visit, enabling them to take a more active role in managing their care. 

The partnership will benefit SJHH by enabling the organization to see how its version of Epic is adopted and maximized in other settings. This will allow SJHH to enhance its service offerings to patients through standardized clinical pathways and ensure that patients who visit both healthcare organizations have a seamless care experience.