The Graniczna Medical Centre in Katowice is a modern unit which has been providing basic health care services and specialist consultations since 2005. It serves several thousand patients, who make about 6,000 visits per month - both within the framework of the contract signed with the National Health Fund (NFZ) and commercially. The patients are served by about 50 employees, who provide the highest-quality service and medical care.
Considering the unit’s continuous development, at some point the authorities of the Graniczna Medical Centre in Katowice faced the challenge of providing services to a growing number of patients. Therefore, the facility started looking for a proven and modern IT solution that would not only improve internal processes, but also allow for the efficient management of medical records. The new system was also supposed to increase the comfort of employees’ work and improve communication with patients, while maintaining a high level of data security. During the solution’s selection, its reliability and intuitive operation was of great importance, because the unit intended to carry out possible staff training as fast as possible. The authorities of the Graniczna Medical Centre in Katowice recognized mMedica as the best tool to achieve these goals. It is Asseco Poland’s proprietary solution, which provides comprehensive support for outpatient clinics. The implementation was the responsibility of TMT SYSTEM – Asseco’s Silver Partner, which has been engaged in informatization of medical facilities for several years.
The project’s goal was to facilitate the registration process and communication with patients. An important part was also to improve two processes – the access to medical records by the medical personnel and the preparation of records for a doctor by the registration staff.
The project’s implementation was a complex process, which required the adjustment of the activities of individual areas of the facility, as well as a number of its infrastructure elements. It included the development of the ICT infrastructure and the creation of a data archive, responsible for collecting documents in electronic form. To ensure their efficient handling, the Electronic Medical Documentation (EDM) module and a number of additional functions were implemented, including Xpress Skan, which enables scanning documents from multi- functional devices and scanners directly to mMedica. The system was equipped with the eResults+ module and integrated with laboratory and diagnostic test units. The implementation also included eRegistration and SMS notifications to make it possible for patients to receive reminders and make appointments electronically, without having to leave home. Another addition was the Medical Information application, which significantly improves the process of communication with a patient. The biggest challenge in this project was to choose an appropriate model for building the ICT infrastructure. Of key importance here was a thorough analysis of the needs of the entity, which wanted the new system to ensure comfortable and failure-free operation and a high level of data security. The solution was also supposed to allow for an efficient expansion in the following years with modules ensuring further integration in the area of e-Services. In order for the system to meet all the as- sumed objectives, a model was selected which allows for flexible operation within the unit and the use of the solution by potential cooperating entities.
Additionally, the Graniczna Medical Centre in Katowice took part in the e-Leaves, e-Prescriptions and e-Refer- rals pilot tests conducted by Asseco Poland. As a result, the unit was ready to issue these documents in elec- tronic form much sooner.
The implementation of mMedica, which was a large and complex undertaking, was completed in September 2019. Its success was determined by very effective cooperation between all parties involved in the project. It was carried out by TMT SYSTEM’s specialists, who reacted to the needs of the unit on an ongoing basis. The composition of the team changed in the individual stages of the implementation and it consisted of dozen or so people at the project’s most crucial phase. The company could also count on the ongoing support of Asseco Poland’s consultants.
Key benefits
The implementation of the project has allowed for the improvement of patient service already at the stage of the registration of visits, which are increasingly more often booked online. This has become a great facilitation for the unit’s employees, who have also gained access to organized medical records of the patients. Thanks to mMedica all the documents are stored in one place. The implementation of mMedica in the Graniczna Medical Centre in Katowice has provided the facility with the possibility of creating and sharing medical records in electronic form. This has significantly reduced the paper circulation of documents.
mMedica has provided the doctors with the option to view full medical data of the patients and their test results from a single system. It has also allowed for the efficient creation of document templates and quick sending of sick leaves, without the need to log into the ZUS system and go through multiple authorizations. The implementation of the system has significantly improved the communication between the patients and the unit and allowed to speed up their service. It has also significantly shortened their waiting time for medical records. Thanks to the Medical Information application, the patients no longer have to come to the unit for their test results, because they receive them directly on their mobile phones.
The unit currently has a modern and safe system whose effectiveness has been tested by thousands of clinics and individual medical practices in Poland. Through the system it has gained not only access to eServices, but also the ability to efficiently create, collect and store EDM, thus meeting the requirements of the regulator.
