St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital and Texas Heart Institute Partner With Surgical Information Systems

Doctors at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital (SLEH) in Houston, Texas, pioneered the first successful U.S. heart transplant in 1962.

Now, St. Luke’s chooses to use the latest innovative surgical management system, designed by Surgical Information Systems of Alpharetta, Ga., to add to their quality, cutting-edge approach to healthcare.

Surgical Information Systems, a known leader in perioperative information management, will install the latest in surgical information technology in St. Luke’s 42 O.R. surgical suite. The facility will implement software for Nursing, Scheduling and Rules Based Charging. This new system will offer St. Luke’s instant access to critical patient information with the ability to calculate accurate surgery costs, and can increase time devoted to patient care by eliminating or reducing many administrative tasks.

St. Luke’s, home of the Texas Heart(R) Institute, is a world leader in heart and vascular care. For ten consecutive years, U.S. News & World Report’s annual “America’s Best Hospital” survey has ranked St. Luke’s and the Texas Heart(R) Institute the best cardiology and heart surgery center in the Southwest–and among the top 10 centers nationwide.

“We reviewed several top-notch perioperative systems,” said Darlena Stevens, RN, MSN, CNOR, vice-president of perioperative services at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital. “We selected Surgical Information Systems because it offered the best integration and functionality of the systems evaluated. We are excited about the impact that this system will have on our O.R.” The partnership between SIS and St. Luke’s means more efficient, accurate and quality patient care while at the same time reducing hospital costs.

Rick Jackson, president and CEO of Surgical Information Systems, notes, “St. Luke’s has been a healthcare pioneer since its beginnings. We are pleased to join forces with such an innovator to improve healthcare business and patient care.” Jackson adds, “By combining the strengths of innovate surgery techniques with groundbreaking perioperative software technology, healthcare for patients in one of the world’s best hospitals will be even better.”

Surgical Information Systems offers the only perioperative system that provides clinicians and administrators ALL the clinical and financial data relative to every surgical case. The Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) Windows- or UNIX-based system has an open architecture that is tied into an Oracle (Nasdaq: ORCL) database. The system includes modules for scheduling, materials management, nursing documentation, resource management, rules-based charging, documentation, PAT, pre-op, intra-op, PACU, surgical transcription and anesthesia – enabling healthcare professionals to provide the highest quality care at the lowest possible cost. Surgical Information Systems makes it possible for healthcare facilities to operate more profitably, quantify performance and focus on patient care rather than data collection. Visit the company’s Web site at http://www.ORsoftware.com.