Kettering Health Network has been named one of the nation’s Most Wired Hospitals by the American Hospital Association’s Health Forum.

HealthCare’s Most Wired® survey, conducted between Jan. 15 and March 15, 2016, is published annually by Health & Hospitals Networks (H&HN) magazine. The 2016 Most Wired survey and benchmarking study is a leading industry barometer measuring information technology (IT) use and adoption among hospitals nationwide. The survey of 680 participants, representing an estimated 2,146 hospitals – more than 34 percent of all hospitals in the U.S. –examines how organizations are leveraging IT to improve performance for value-based health care in the areas of infrastructure, business and administrative management; quality and safety; and clinical integration.

“We are extremely honored to receive this recognition for our IT initiatives,” says Andy Lehman, chief information officer for Kettering Health Network. “We have been deliberate in identifying the most appropriate technology that will assist us in providing exceptional patient care throughout our network. The patient is at the heart of all our technology initiatives.”

One of Kettering Health Network’s most successful “wired” initiatives is the implementation of the Epic electronic health record software which has been recognized as one of the most comprehensive and integrated electronic medical record systems in the country. It covers most services that a hospital network would need, including patient access to their health records and remote access for physicians. The network also offers Epic to smaller organizations that could not otherwise afford to implement Epic because of their size.

“This award recognizes Kettering Health Network’s commitment to using technology as a tool for improving the health care in our community,” says Charles Watson, DO, chief medical information officer for Kettering Health Network. “Technology helps us to improve processes and standardize functionality so that patients can expect to receive the same high-quality standard of care at every one of our locations, every time,”

Kettering Health Network is taking advantage of the versatility of mobile technologies so that physicians have the right tools for sound clinical decision-making wherever they are.

The network offers telehealth services for a number of consultations including neonatal, psychiatric, and stroke. Telehealth allows physicians in another location to perform a virtual physical exam.

The network is using population health management tools and partnering with other health care providers to share critical clinical information used in analyzing interventions aimed at key patient groups such as those with diabetes.