Enumclaw hospital earns most wired status again

Enumclaw Regional Hospital is included on the list of the “Most Wired” hospitals in the nation for the fourth consecutive year because of its use of advanced health information technology for operational efficiencies and quality patient care.

Enumclaw Regional Hospital is included on the list of the “Most Wired” hospitals in the nation for the fourth consecutive year because of its use of advanced health information technology for operational efficiencies and quality patient care.

The 2009 list is published in the July edition of “Hospitals & Health Networks” magazine, a national publication.

Enumclaw Regional is among 21 hospitals in Washington and Idaho that employ information technology solutions from Inland Northwest Health Services and which are identified as being the most technologically-advanced hospitals in the country, according to results of the annual Most Wired Survey and Benchmarking Study.

“We are honored to be recognized again for our commitment to using advanced health information technology that helps to make our hospital the best place to heal, the best place to work and the best community health resource,” said Dennis Popp, president of Enumclaw Regional Hospital.

“The sophisticated information technology we use benefits physicians, our nurses, diagnostic imaging and laboratory technologists, and other staff who strive every day to provide their patients with the best care possible.”

INHS connects hospitals, health care facilities and physician offices through an information technology network that allows healthcare providers to securely access patient information by utilizing both wired and wireless technologies.

Hospitals and Health Networks magazine surveyed more than 1,300 hospitals to name the “100 Most Wired” hospitals in the annual survey, measuring the hospitals’ use of information technologies for quality, customer service, public health and safety, business processes and workforce issues.

Enumclaw Regional and the other recognized hospitals in the INHS network are grouped under Inland Northwest Health Services-Washington and Idaho Region in the 2009 Most Wired Survey.

“It is an honor to see our region’s hospitals being consistently recognized as select hospitals in the nation for implementing health care information technology solutions that achieve high levels of automated patient care and safety,” said Dr. Brian Seppi, chairman of the INHS board of directors. “The region’s technology investment through INHS ensures the delivery of accessible and cost-effective health care for the communities we serve.”

Established in 1949, Enumclaw Regional Hospital is part of the Tacoma-based Franciscan Health System. A $65 million state-of-the-art replacement Enumclaw hospital, which will be twice as large as the existing hospital, is now under construction.