Clicking into better care - May Pen Hospital sees gains from electronic health records system

May Pen Hospital in Clarendon is seeing improvements in patient management, data collection and decision-making since the introduction of the Ministry of Health and Wellness’ electronic health records system, according to Senior Medical Officer Dr Curtis Pryce.

Pryce was speaking following a tour with Health Minister Dr Christopher Tufton of the construction site of the hospital’s new outpatient facility last Wednesday.

The Electronic Health Records (EHR) System, dubbed e-Care, was launched at May Pen Hospital in January 2024 as part of the health ministry’s drive to modernise the management and delivery of healthcare across the public-health system.

The digital platform is designed to replace traditional paper-based patient records with an electronic system that allows health facilities to capture, store and access patient and facility information, while enabling healthcare providers to share relevant records to support more coordinated care.

Implemented under the ministry’s Health Systems Strengthening Programme (HSSP), e-Care is intended to improve the efficiency with which patient information is managed and used across participating public-health facilities.

At May Pen Hospital, Pryce said the system is already providing the facility with greater capacity to monitor its operations, collect and analyse data, and use the information to inform treatment and service delivery.

“The system has been working pretty efficiently. We’re able to do a lot of monitoring, data collection, that will guide our treatment plan, and that sort of stuff. It’s working tremendously... pretty good,” Pryce said.

He explained that, following the installation of the necessary hardware and software, the hospital has moved into a phase of assessing how effectively the system is being used and identifying areas where further improvements can be made.

Pryce said the digital platform is helping to streamline areas such as patient registration and access to medical histories, while giving doctors quicker access to information needed to make treatment decisions.

Reduce delays

The shift from paper files, he said, can reduce delays associated with locating and reviewing patient records.

“So, for example, if it took 15 minutes for someone to be registered, we expect that it must take less now that you have digitisation. If a patient goes into a doctor’s office and the doctor has to review a paper file, and you can’t find the file, it’s now on the computer and the laptop in his office or her office, they can look at the patient history, what medication they’re on and treat with them quickly so you’ll have more throughput,” he said.

According to Pryce, having patient histories and medication information readily available can help doctors assess and treat patients more quickly, while potentially increasing the number of patients they are able to see.

However, he stressed that simply introducing technology does not automatically translate into greater efficiency, noting that the hospital must continuously assess how the system is being used and make adjustments where necessary.

“So, technology in and of itself doesn’t make any sense if it’s not used to improve efficiency. And what we’re doing now is assessing the efficiency levels, and it’s always going to be tweaked to make it a better working facility, but May Pen will benefit from that,” Pryce said.

The implementation of e-Care forms part of the broader modernisation of healthcare services under the health ministry, with greater emphasis being placed on the use of digital information to strengthen patient care, improve operational efficiency and support data-driven decision-making.

At May Pen Hospital, Pryce said the focus is now on ensuring that the information generated through the system is actively used to measure performance and identify opportunities to improve the quality and efficiency of care.

olivia.brown@gleanerjm.com