WVU Healthcare First in U.S. to Implement New Patient Safety Software from UHC and Datix

CHICAGO and LONDON, Sept. 11, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- UHC, an alliance of 116 academic medical centers with 264 affiliated hospitals in the U.S. along with Datix, a U.K.-based provider of patient safety technology solutions, today announced the first installation of its new Patient Safety Net®/Datix (PSN/Datix) solution at WVU Healthcare.    

WVU Healthcare is the largest provider of healthcare services in West Virginia, with facilities that treat more than 3,600 people each day. The initial implementation of the new online Datix incident reporting system is at West Virginia University Hospital and was rolled out to more than 6,000 staff and 400 physicians in June 2012.

"We originally started working with UHC in order to access data for benchmarking and reporting purposes," said Tamma Melton, Manager, Center for Quality Outcomes at WVU Healthcare.  "We looked at UHC's Patient Safety Net, which is one of the largest repositories of patient safety event data, plus an analytical and benchmarking tool in the U.S.  Therefore, we were delighted to become the inaugural site for the new UHC and Datix collaboration and PSN/Datix patient safety software." 

WVU Healthcare previously managed incident and adverse events using an in-house developed database which had limited reporting capabilities. Datix enables the production of detailed reports and management information.  Reports can be produced on individual incidents to show updated information on investigations, likely future risk, impact on patients and root causes.  Statistical breakdown and trend analysis can also be produced to help with benchmarking activity.

"With the old system, there was no way for us to compare our data -- for example, around incidences of violence -- with similar healthcare organizations," said Melton.  "With PSN/Datix, we will be able to share lessons learned and recommend the necessary changes to address the situation. The new system also has a modern look and feel and will reduce duplication of data input which is already proving popular with staff and physicians."

WVU Healthcare believes one of the main advantages of the new system will be the ability for those reporting an incident or near miss to see feedback from their manager on the investigation process.  According to Melton, those who report incidents are often invited to be involved in the review of a report becoming the "bed-side experts".  Building on their knowledge and experience will help prevent similar incidents happening again. 

"WVU Healthcare's desire to put the care of patients first in everything it does makes it the perfect organization for the new PSN/Datix solution," said Jonathan Hazan, Chief Executive at Datix.  "We look forward to working toward the introduction of other Datix integrated modules which include complaints, claims, patient feedback management and a comprehensive risk patient safety learning solution."

UHC announced its collaboration with Datix in May 2012 at the National Patient Safety Foundation Congress in Washington, D.C.  UHC chose Datix because of its proven commitment to advancing patient safety and its extensive customer base.  Datix software is used by many of the largest public and private healthcare providers worldwide, including the US Department of Defense's Military Health System and more than 70 percent of the National Health Service in the U.K. 

"In response to a request from our members for a broader suite of patient safety tools, we undertook a comprehensive search for a technology partner that could provide the right solutions," said Irene M. Thompson, UHC's President and Chief Executive Officer.  "We chose Datix because it is the global leader in safety and risk management solutions and shared our vision in terms of excellence in quality, safety and cost effectiveness.  We commend WVU Healthcare as the first user of the new PSN/Datix solution and look forward to continuing to work with them to improve patient safety."

About WVU Healthcare

WVU Healthcare is dedicated:

• to caring for people when they are sick or injured,
• to helping people and communities achieve and maintain health,
• to educating health professionals, and
• to searching for better methods of treatment for the causes of human illness.

We are the teaching hospitals and clinics for West Virginia University's health professions schools.

We are proud to serve patients in a first-class, high-quality hospital and state-of the art outpatient clinics. WVU Healthcare offers advanced treatment in a wide variety of medical fields.

In everything we do, care of the patient comes first. Our standard of quality is excellence. The patient is the judge of that quality. It is the responsibility of everyone at WVU Healthcare to see that patients and their families are treated with care and concern at all times.

For more information, visit www.wvuhealthcare.com

About UHC

UHC is an alliance of the nation's leading non-profit academic medical centers, which are focused on delivering world-class patient care. Based in Chicago, Ill, UHC fosters collaboration with and among its 116 academic medical center and 264 affiliated hospital members through its renowned programs and services in the areas of comparative data and analytics, performance improvement, supply chain management, strategic research, and public policy.

UHC helps its members achieve excellence in quality, safety, and cost-effectiveness. Formed in 1984, UHC's membership includes a majority of the nonprofit academic medical centers in the United States.

For more information, visit www.uhc.edu

About Datix

Datix has been a pioneer in the field of patient safety since 1986 and is today the leading supplier of software for patient safety, risk management, incident and adverse event reporting.  Datix aims to help healthcare organisations build a culture and practice that drives excellence in patient safety.  It recruits and retains people committed to the healthcare sector and continually invests in its software and services to ensure that it integrates best practice and learning. 

Datix is focused on the health and social care sector.  Its customers include public and private hospitals, primary care providers, GP surgeries, mental health and ambulance service providers.  Its clients also include organisations delivering care home and domiciliary care services.  Within the UK this includes more than 70% of the National Health Service.  Internationally the Datix client base is growing rapidly and includes large scale deployments in Canada and the USA as well as clients in Europe and Australia.  Datix is headquartered in London, United Kingdom.

To learn more, visit www.datix.co.uk  or call +44-(0)20-8971-1971