Healthcare IT News, an online industry publication, recently recognized the University of Illinois Hospital and Health Sciences System recent segue to enhanced electronic record (EHR) storage by naming U. of I. Health to its “Best Hospital IT Department” list.
U. of I. Chief Information Officer Audrius Polikaitis described the changeover as an IT-based workflow improvement, with full implementation anticipated in the next 18 to 24 months as the facility switches out multiple system platforms, a Healthcare IT News article said.
"We’re positioning it as a redesign of workflows, with IT being an enabler,” Polikaitis said in the article. “IT is important. ... We might have some challenges with change management but if leadership owns it, it might go smoother.”
The University of Illinois Health system also recently revamped management organization including workflow and leadership training.
Building on the fact that U. of I. is consciously “flat” in that all staff-level members are positioned to be mutually accessible to one another, Polikaitis emphasized the need to recognize leadership abilities right alongside medical skills, the article said.
"Fundamentally, it’s the notion: How do people get into leadership positions? Technically, it’s because they’re the best at their job," Polikaitis said in the article. "But we’re realizing: We don’t prepare people for the leadership role. … It’s the notion of investment into people and leaders, so we saw as an organization how we can improve."
