ROI: Integrating CPOE Across the Enterprise

Alberto Kywi, CIO, Cottage Health System, Santa Barbara, reviews application integration using single sign-on and context management technologies, including tactics for improving workflow and reducing computer interaction time to achieve successful adoption.  He also shares the success metrics for both business and caregiver stakeholders, and explains reporting successes and challenges.  A pre and post study to quantify the ROI from the integration of CPOE, EHR, and PACS not only showed measurable productivity gains, but the number of caregiver users doubled, applications being used increased, as well as increased use of each application.  Through single sign-on, context management and stronger authentication, Cottage balanced the need for instant access to patient information with the need for security, yet demonstrated clear productivity gains.