I am pleased Tegria acknowledges the sacrifice and service of our veterans and their families by recognizing Veterans Day (Remembrance Day in Canada) as an official company holiday. This has been my policy at Navin Haffty since our inception in order to demonstrate our appreciation. Even when serving in a fairly safe naval assignment (as my nephew had), there may be long-term separation from family. For those in active combat, they undergo experiences those of us who haven’t served will never understand. We acknowledge families share in the sacrifice. The son of one of our long-time directors was deployed in Iraq during the surge. She was gripped with fear every time her phone rang. Unfortunately during one of those calls she learned he had been wounded and hospitalized in Germany. Thankfully he has since fully recovered and is now leading a full and normal life. Tegria and Navin Haffty are proud to honor these and all veterans and their families for their service and sacrifice.
John Haffty, President
Navin Haffty
Many hospitals are discovering MEDITECH’s new offering, MEDITECH as a Service (MaaS) is a great option. The traditional perpetual software license for Expanse may make sense for some hospitals, but for others, the advantages of MaaS are worth considering. For the hospitals beginning the journey to MaaS, consider bringing in Navin Haffty/Engage for implementation services. Here are examples of how we are helping other hospitals on the same path:
For those hospitals that have contracted for MaaS, congratulations! If your hospital is determining which Expanse route to take (MaaS vs. traditional licensing), both have advantages, depending on your organization’s needs. Navin Haffty/Engage is happy to spend time with you to weigh your options and/or discuss how our Expanse services could assist in your journey. Contact us at info@navinhaffty.com.
The College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME) “Digital Health Most Wired” annual survey identifies, recognizes, and certifies the adoption, implementation, and use of information technology by healthcare organizations. This year’s survey spanned 36,000 facilities, a 20 percent increase from last year.
We are pleased to report this year’s CHIME honors include several Navin Haffty/Engage clients:
MEDITECH hospitals have experienced challenges over the years with recruiting and retaining subject matter experts to support and optimize MEDITECH applications and infrastructure. The pandemic invariably increased these challenges. If your MEDITECH experts are stretched thin, Navin Haffty/Engage offers customized solutions to meet your needs. With over 20 years of remote staffing and flexible resource deployment experience, we have staffing solutions that provide access to dedicated and highly qualified MEDITECH specialists as needed. These solutions range from full-time on-site support to 24×7 or part-time remote support. We pride ourselves on working with our clients to develop complementary staffing to meet individualized organizational needs and are currently providing these services for many clients in the U.S., Canada, and abroad. Our team delivers the expertise, speed to execution, and flexibility that is more important now than ever before. Our contract terms are flexible, giving you the ability to modify service levels at any time. If you are interested in learning more, contact us at info@navinhaffty.com.
CHAMP Overcomes Pandemic Challenges to Successfully Go LIVE with Expanse Advanced Clinicals
Navin Haffty congratulates members of the Champlain Association of MEDITECH Partners (CHAMP) network of hospitals on the successful October Go LIVE with Expanse Advanced Clinicals, including computerized physician order entry (CPOE), electronic Medication Administration Record (eMAR), Bedside Medication Verification (BMV) and Surgical Services (SUR). The CHAMP network includes Arnprior Regional Health, Bruyère Continuing Care, Carleton Place and District Memorial Hospital, Glengarry Memorial Hospital, Hôpital Montfort, and Queensway Carleton Hospital (QCH).
During the implementation, CHAMP was forced with the difficult decisions to pause the project, not once, but twice. Tim Pemberton (QCH’s Vice President, Information Management, Clinical Support, Chief Information Officer & Chief Privacy Officer) recalls, “We had to be responsive and pause when appropriate. Our first delay was due to the pandemic, to reallocate lead clinicians to patient care and support. Our second pause came during the third (and largest) wave, which hit us on the staffing side. This time it was about nursing capacity. We added 100 beds during pandemic, which stretched our staff. We found it difficult to staff the units, let alone train the nurses on the new system.”
In fall 2020 the decision was made to resume the project, despite being in the middle of wave three. “We revisited the guiding principles of why we initially started on this path. Clinical patient safety was of utmost importance. Our clinicians were using a combination of paper and electronic charts. We needed to eliminate the hybrid chart due to patient safety risks,” according to Tim.
Planning for Go LIVE would pose additional challenges. The typical support model would not work in the COVID-19 world, and Navin Haffty and the CHAMP project team pivoted to develop a creative alternative. According to Karen McMullen, Director of Information Technology Services, “The remote command center support provided by the core team of Navin Haffty resources would prove to be fantastic. There was a lot of organizing to do around Go LIVE support scheduling, as one would expect. To ensure real time support, the CHAMP project team and Navin Haffty established 24×7 virtual remote support, and the collaboration was excellent. This model worked out very well, although it was not something we would have considered pre-pandemic.”
Resuming the project and pushing ahead resulted in positive outcomes. Tim reports, “Being prepared, and having a couple of new beginnings, ultimately contributed to the project’s success. We have a better product because of it. During pre-LIVE this summer and fall, engagement was incredible. There was a big push to go LIVE. We knew we couldn’t postpone again and delay our patient safety goals, or incur the costs associated with a delay. These were huge driving forces.”
Tim and his QCH Connected Care Team placed a tremendous amount of emphasis on leading the organization through change. Knowing a more structured governance model and an increase in automation could lead to delays and frustration, leadership prepared the organization for the changes (and improvements) to come. CHAMP and QCH’s Connected Care Team ramped up communication, education, and excitement around the project. Using a catchy one-page “tip of the week” infographic style newsletter, the team conveyed palatable tidbits organization-wide on topics such as “All about armbands,” “Real time orders improving efficiency and accuracy,” and “Addressing verbal orders in the new system,” to name a few. These brief newsletters helped to normalize questions and provide meaningful and uniform approaches, increasing confidence and adoption.
Now in the optimization phase, the CHAMP hospitals are realizing the advantages of MEDITECH’s Advanced Clinicals system. Tim stated, “We have a real time patient record, a huge benefit from a medication reconciliation perspective. Everyone can see what medications our patients have received. Physicians are very pleased with that. Previously they had to go find the chart and the medication reconciliation record. Now they know instantly.”
In his QCH executive oversight role within CHAMP, Tim leveraged his depth of experience to serve as the champion and leader of the project, engaging and managing the stakeholder groups. For other healthcare organizations beginning their journey, Tim shares his advice on the importance of strong leadership and governance structure. “Each organization is unique, but projects of this magnitude are ultimately about change management on the people side. Use virtual collaboration tools to your advantage. They allow for wider participation among stakeholders and facilitate engagement among those who may not have otherwise participated. Bring the stakeholder groups together and mediate consistently in order to gain consensus and compromise. This is your key to success. Leadership, including C-suite, must be kept updated on the pulse of the project. This allows for informed decision making at key points when decisiveness is critical. Further, anticipate issues and proactively communicate to your executives. For example, physicians will escalate to the top if there is dissatisfaction. Don’t allow your executives to be caught off guard. Differentiate the real issues and communicate. A change of this scale will be a tough transition not only for physicians, but for everyone.”
QCH is excited to be part of CHAMP, linking it with other local hospitals in the Ottawa region that use MEDITECH healthcare information system for electronic patient charts. “As a leader in the MEDITECH Expanse community, other sites will be looking to us for guidance,” according to Tim. “Others can learn from CHAMP’s experiences in standardizing, while recognizing each hospital as an individual entity. Properly developed governance, effective communications and level setting of expectations is key to this successful partnership.”
CHAMP understands the work isn’t over yet. A six-month stabilization period has been put in place to allow clinicians time to become fully proficient in the new solution and to optimize based on their feedback. Despite pandemic fatigue, the CHAMP hospitals marched forward, resulting in a successful Go LIVE. Tim, Karen and the entire CHAMP project team extend their gratitude to the staff and physicians for their countless contributions in making Expanse a reality.
Quick Notes
Navin Haffty of Canada is Hiring
Navin Haffty continues to expand our commitment to MEDITECH’s Canadian clients. We are pleased to have recently added new team members in Canada and plan to continue our initiative to grow our team here. Navin Haffty employs the most experienced MEDITECH consultants in North America and is looking to complement our team with Canadian-based resources.
MEDITECH Expanse Clinical Lead or Subject Matter Experts – Canada: Navin Haffty is looking for strong clinical resources with proven implementation experience with MEDITECH Expanse. Are you a clinician able to communicate effectively, with expert application knowledge, who enjoys leading projects in a fast paced and energetic team environment?
Navin Haffty is also actively seeking experienced MEDITECH Expanse project managers for Canada. If you have strong project management skills in healthcare and have worked with the MEDITECH platform, we want to talk to you!
Are you ready to join the team at Navin Haffty? Contact us at recruiting@navinhaffty.com.
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We are pleased to share the following KLAS comments from our clients:
“Navin Haffty has a commitment to value, and they are committed to understanding what we need and who we are as an organization. They appreciate all the unique things about us. Navin Haffty is committed to a sense of partnership with us. They reach out and tell us about someone in an organization like ours who we may want to speak to. Navin Haffty tells us when a conference is coming up. They serve as a good liaison between our organization and our software vendor. Navin Haffty partners with us as opposed to just generating revenue. They put us first.”
– CIO
“Navin Haffty has a very good all-encompassing team for support and new projects. Navin Haffty is really very capable in all areas. They have great people and are nice to work with. They work hard and go the extra mile.”
– VP/Executive
“Navin Haffty challenges us to really think long term, and I appreciate that. Rather than solving a particular issue at a particular time, we have an enterprise-wide sustainability approach to every single output or initiative we are working on. They help us facilitate and talk that out in our organization.”
– Director
Congratulations to Avera Health on its October 1 Go LIVE, migrating from MEDITECH Client/Server to Expanse in the acute and ambulatory environments. Based in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Avera Health serves a population of nearly one million throughout a geographical footprint of 72,000 square miles in South Dakota and surrounding areas of Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska and North Dakota. The health system includes six regional centers, 37 hospitals, 215 primary and specialty care clinics, 40 senior living facilities, home care and hospice, and more. Avera Health facilities have received numerous recognitions for quality of clinical care and service, with each hospital accredited by The Joint Commission. Navin Haffty supported Avera Health in preparation for a successful Go LIVE, providing training in the acute and emergency department environments, at-the-elbow support for providers and nurses in the acute and ambulatory settings, as well as assistance with patient registration and charge entry.
New Projects
MEDITECH Conference
2022 Home Care Symposium
March 21-25 (virtual)
Register for MEDITECH’s 2022 Home Care Symposium, taking place virtually March 21-25.
MEDITECH Webinars (all times listed in Eastern)
MEDITECH and Nuance – Expanse Virtual Assistant EHR Workflow
December 13, 2:00 PM | 60 min.
MEDITECH and Nuance have collaborated to integrate artificial intelligence and voice-driven navigation into the Expanse EHR, allowing physicians to use simple and intuitive voice commands to access key areas of the patient chart.
Doctors’ Hours: CLPP Clinician Advisor Series Q & A
Deborah Harrigan, MD (Ambulatory)
Thursday, December 9 at 12 p.m. – Register
Louis Dandurand, MD (Emergency)
Tuesday, January 25 at 1 p.m. – Register
Bryan Bagdasian, MD, MMM (Acute)
Wednesday, February 16 at 11 a.m. – Register
Navin Haffty/Engage is actively seeking individuals with strong implementation project management and consulting experience with MEDITECH Expanse. Demand is high for skills with billing, ambulatory, clinical materials management and laboratory. Those with proven implementation experience are encouraged to apply. We offer an outstanding compensation package and a workplace culture that values each of our employees. If you are interested in joining Navin Haffty/Engage to be #BetterTogether, please email us at recruiting@navinhaffty.com to set up a time to discuss opportunities.
Navin Haffty/Engage offers the client job board as a free service to the MEDITECH community.
Job Seekers: If you are interested in exploring positions at other organizations, visit the client job board section of our website often. Feel free to refer colleagues!
Recruiters: If you would like to include your organization’s listing on the client job board, please email the job description and candidate application instructions to Lauren Iacovelli. No recruiting firms, please.