Finding the Right Data Archiving Solution to Achieve One Patient, One Record, One Bill

The Organization

Artesia General Hospital serves the rural areas of Artesia and Southeastern New Mexico, along with their associated clinics in Carlsbad. This 49-bed hospital has a mission to provide high-quality, patient-focused care that is readily accessible, cost-effective and meets the needs of their communities.  

The Situation

Artesia General sought to consolidate their five legacy electronic health records (EHRs) — along with billing, HR and clinical data from separate systems — to achieve “one patient, one record, one bill.” They first selected Evident EHR as their single system. Next, they searched for a data archiving solution to help them further simplify their application portfolio and reduce costs.   

The Solution

Artesia General found Harmony Healthcare IT through an RFP process and chose HealthData Archiver^® to help them rationalize and archive data for record-keeping and future use. Demos with clinical teams and the medical records department ensured the streamlined system would meet their needs. 

The Challenge

The most challenging hurdle was concern amongst the user base. Internal Health Information Management (HIM) stakeholders worried they would lose data in the transition. To assure them, the team at Artesia General validated data from HealthData Archiver^® and found it delivered as promised: All the data from multiple legacy systems had been consolidated seamlessly to a single source. Staff members are now using the system with confidence.  

The Results

Artesia General planned to decommission all old technologies a year after consolidating them into HealthData Archiver^®. Harmony Healthcare IT met that timeline using a phased approach, archiving and sunsetting one system at a time, helping the organization in their goal to get down to one patient record. 

• Cost savings. Artesia General reduced its annual maintenance costs from six figures to approximately $30,000 a year. 
• IT workload reduction. The IT staff can now focus on just one application to manage all legacy data. 
• Easy maintenance. The IT team found HealthData Archiver^® easy to maintain from the start. 

 Lessons Learned

Understanding all the places where the data resides is vital for accurate mapping. After the IT team at Artesia General began project planning, they discovered data in a previously unknown system. By conducting a deep dive with the people who work in the systems every day, they produced a more accurate account of all data and technologies. 

Client Quote

“We wanted to get down to one patient, one record, one bill. The Harmony team has helped us do that. Their technology just works. It’s a set-it-and-forget-it solution. Other vendors require handholding, but they don’t.” 

Eric Jimenez, Chief Information Officer, Artesia General Hospital