The People Behind Partners eCare at BWH

The BWH Nursing Informatics Program is just one of the many teams behind the successful implementation and ongoing improvements of Partners eCare, our enterprise-wide electronic medical record. This month, Heart & Science highlights the important work of this team.

The BWH Nursing Informatics Program leaders serve as the voice of BWH nurses and Patient Care Services staff for the enterprise level. They ensure the PeC infrastructure supports the needs of the care team to promote patient safety and quality care. By attending unit-based and ambulatory practice council meetings, rounding on the units and meeting with Epic Super Users and department experts, program leaders gather feedback to bring to the enterprise Partners eCare team. Communication and collaboration is key to the success of PeC at the local level.

Program leaders believe one of the biggest practice benefits of PeC is the ability to capture the patient story in one place for all members of the care team to access across the enterprise. Not only does this full accessibility allow providers to be better prepared in caring for their patients, but it also improves workflow by having all of the patient’s information in one place.

“Another great benefit is biomedical device integration,” said Anne Bane, MS, RN, director of Nursing Informatics and Medication Safety. “Having vital signs come directly from the device into the flow sheet in the patient’s record allows the care team to review and adjust care in real time.”

Clinical transformation, such as the move to PeC, is no small feat, especially for an enterprise as large as Partners HealthCare. It takes time, patience and learning, noted program leaders.

“All nursing informatics program leaders have previous clinical nursing experience, so we understand the needs of the nurse when it comes to clinical systems,” said Denise Goldsmith, MS, MPH, RN, FAAN, chief nursing information officer.

Combined with their knowledge of health information technology, the BWH Nursing Informatics Program is committed to advocating for a PeC infrastructure that captures nursing and Patient Care Services’ unique contributions to patient and family care.

Added Goldsmith: “As we continue optimizing PeC, our focus is first on clinical practice and then on how we can leverage the technology for the benefit of the clinical nurse to improve outcomes for patients and families.”

Please reach out to program leaders with any questions or ideas regarding PeC.

BWH Nursing Informatics Program Leadership

  • Denise Goldsmith, MS, MPH, RN, FAAN, chief nursing information officer
  • Anne Bane, MS, RN, director, Nursing Informatics and Medication Safety
  • Beth Baldwin, MSN, MHA,RN, program director, Nursing Informatics
  • Anne Brogan, MS, RN, project manager, Nursing Informatics
  • Deb Furlong, MS, RN, project manager, Nursing Informatics
  • Laura Maclean, MS, RN, program director, Ambulatory Nursing Informatics