Go-Live Call Command Center
Strategizing EHR Implementations and New Version Upgrades
A healthcare facility's EHR implementation is a significant, high-pressure event, peaking with the new system go live. While most hospitals have tackled the initial transition, the battle to maximize system ROI continues. The implications of a lackluster go live are ongoing concerns in the era of vendor required EHR new version upgrades.
During both an EHR implementation and upgrade, if communication isn't effectively handled with end users across the organization, frustrations can mount. Without a seamless transition, support may dwindle from IT initiatives and system adoption can be stifled. However, the pool of qualified health IT staff continues to be limited, with providers looking for IT support for the service desk and clinical application support. According to Computer Economics, large and mid-sized organizations have increased outsourcing spend 38 percent for their IT budgets. Many of these facilities choose to outsource go-live support functionality due to the commodity of skills needed for effective support and the economies of scale service providers can offer for cost savings. This especially comes into play for staffing flexibility required to drastically ramp up and adjust for system upgrade and data conversion end-user support. An strategic Go-Live Call Command Center reduces expenses in the long run, driving down end-user errors and frustration while decreasing lost internal IT staff and patient care time.
See Stoltenberg's full scope of support services across the entire Epic EHR system lifecycle for your varying project needs — from data abstraction and conversion for new system go live to staff augmentation with Epic certified analysts and credentialed trainers.
A Case For FlexSourcing: Northwestern Medicine's Epic Go-Live Implementation
Northwestern Medicine initiated its full strategic transition to one unified EHR system. To seamlessly facilitate the rollout, the health system partnered with Stoltenberg Consulting's FlexSourcing healthcare IT support program for completely remote 3x Best in KLAS Tier 1+ Service Desk and Epic Go-Live Call Command Center support.
Stoltenberg's virtual Go-Live Call Command Center mitigated end-user problems quickly and effectively with 24/7 support during the go-live Epic conversion, enabling Northwestern's internal IT staff to focus on application support. The clinically consultative support analysts provided one-on-one end-user shadowing and real time at-elbow support with a comprehensive understanding of hospital workflow and processes. Analysts approached each end-user call as a meaningful interaction. They carefully listened to each caller with empathetic communication for thorough issue resolution, end-user education and documentation.
Stoltenberg led the Epic Go-Live Call Command Center with on-site management as a single point of contact for project oversight, quality consistency and issue escalation. Daily statistical reports included calls per hour, total calls, call abandon rate, first-call resolution and average wait time with call recording. Staffing levels easily adjusted up or down based on the health system's immediate needs and call volumes with support from Epic trained support techs, certified trainers and certified analysts. Throughout the Epic go-live transition, Stoltenberg served as a flexible partner, blending seamlessly into Northwestern's unified EHR goals for cross-organizational coordination through a cohesive information technology system.
Project Stats:
- Initial project spanned the health system's three regions with six hospitals and affiliated medical groups
- Epic Go-Live Call Command Center averaged 1,800+ calls a day
- $425,000+ in IT support cost savings within the first 10 months alone
- Support for over 5,900 primary affiliated physicians and 40,000 overall end users
New Version Upgrade Support
As the competitive health system continues to expand its patient population and make M&A moves, Stoltenberg easily adjusts to new user base needs. In spring 2019, Northwestern Medicine successfully deployed its cumbersome Epic new version double upgrade, as an extension of its unified EHR initiative. Then just a few weeks later, as it continued to expand with newly acquired facilities, the health system completed its northwest region's Epic new version ambulatory go live. During these events, Stoltenberg proactively led the Epic Go-Live Call Command Center for both system transition and upgrade support. More recently, despite ongoing pressure from the COVID-19 pandemic, Stoltenberg also supported two Go-Live Call Command Centers for Epic Beaker Lab and Epic Beaker go lives in 2021, as well as two additional Go-Live Command Centers in 2022 for a Candence/Lumens go live and new hospital acquisition go live. Even today as the health system strategically grows, Stoltenberg stands readily flexible to adjust to staffing and skill mix demands to maximize EHR system utilization. This support agility enables Northwestern to focus its sights on sustained competitiveness in the value-based care landscape.
Initiate seamless remote new EHR system or new version upgrade adoption through FlexSourcing's built in 3x Best in KLAS Go-Live Call Command Center.
