By aligning clinical and health IT operations across NewYork-Presbyterian, Columbia, and Weill Cornell Medicine, we hope to improve patient safety and enhance the patient experience by:
- Allowing a seamless flow of critical information to promote best decision making
- Improving patient outcomes and satisfaction
- Increasing practice efficiency and physician satisfaction
- Reducing redundancy
One of the key benefits of Epic is that it allows all inpatient and outpatient facilities of NewYork-Presbyterian, Columbia, and Weill Cornell Medicine, and all other NYP facilities to use one common platform. After a thorough vetting process, we are confident that the transition to Epic will create improved efficiencies, greater collaboration, and promote high quality care across all care settings.
NewYork-Presbyterian, Columbia, and Weill Cornell Medicine identified the immense opportunity provided by a transition to an integrated platform. An extensive review of potential systems was conducted, leading to the joint decision to move to Epic.
A contract was signed with Epic in October 2017. NYP/CU and Columbia Doctors will go live in February 2020. NYP/Weill Cornell will go live in November 2020, at the same time Weill Cornell Medicine’s current Epic implementation will be upgraded. In 2021 and 2022, the Regional Hospitals and NYP Medical Groups will go live. View a
timeline for specific information about the implementation process.
The implementation of the Epic platform will transform our delivery of patient care and service by improving coordination of care and sharing across institutions and care delivery settings, leading to improved outcomes for patients. A single record will translate into a more unified experience for patients, with one registration process and a unified patient portal.
The transition to Epic is a significant change. All employees who will use the new system will be trained and receive the necessary tools to prepare for the transition. Employees who are not impacted directly by the change can still contribute to its success by supporting their colleagues and NYP, Columbia, and Weill Cornell Medicine through this time.
A comprehensive training program has been developed to ensure that all users have the necessary knowledge and skill for a successful transition. After completing training, employees will become comfortable with the new system and appreciate how it can make their roles easier and enhance patient care. More information about training can be found on the
Training page.
Information about TDR can be found at:
TDR FAQ
Epic will replace a number of systems, including the inpatient electronic medical record and practice management systems at NewYork-Presbyterian, Weill Cornell Medicine, and Columbia, and the outpatient and professional billing systems at NYP and Columbia. Epic's single system will help us realize economies of efficiency and scale as well as our ultimate goal of enhancing the patient experience and improving patient care and safety. Systems that remain after the Epic go-live will be thoroughly tested to ensure they are compatible and will continue to work with Epic.
We are using Harmony Health Data Archiver to preserve the legacy clinical and financial data, which is important for continuity of care, billing, research, and other activities. More information about Harmony can be found
here.
Our teams are bringing key components of the patient’s current medical history into Connect. Rest assured that the care team will have access to the full record.
We are pleased to report that hospital billing and professional billing charges were comparable to baselines during the first Epic go-live. Several steering committees are dedicated to addressing potential revenue cycle impacts and ensuring we continue to operate within baselines during all upcoming go-lives.
As we move down the road to Epic, we will need to balance our current needs with our vision for the future. Current initiatives will need to be reassessed on a case-by-case basis. For example, we will need to consider whether an initiative will work with Epic or if we need to shift course. Some projects may be deemed unnecessary because Epic already has the desired functionality and we may need to put initiatives on hold to focus efforts on implementing Epic.
The best place to get information is through this website, which will be continually updated to ensure you have the most up-to-date information on EpicTogether.
To learn more about the Epic platform, access Epic’s UserWeb (link is external and opens in a new window). The UserWeb provides resources, tools, discussion forums, and other information about Epic. Any NYP, Columbia, or Weill Cornell employee can create an account with his or her institution email address.
Contact your supervisor or manager and let them know that you are ready to help enhance the patient experience and improve care and safety with our new integrated clinical and financial systems. We are currently working with the departments to help to create the infrastructure needed for change and improvement.
Feedback is very important to us. Please email EpicTogetherUpdate@nyp.org and you will receive a response within two to three business days.
