Kathy Ross, VP & CIO, Sacred Heart Health System and Providence Hospital, Chapter 2

If Kathy Ross could offer one piece of advice to fellow CIOs — especially those who are new in the role — it’s this: don’t try to do everything on your own. That might mean finding a mentor, networking with peers, or just reaching out to others going through similar experiences. And in fact, one of the key advantages in being part of an organization like Ascension is the ability to share best practices, something that comes in handy when your team is replacing the acute and ambulatory EHRs at the same time. In this interview, Ross talks about how she balances the roles of CIO at both Sacred Heart Health System and Providence Hospital, the work her team is doing with Optum to give physicians “a clear picture,” and what she believes is the most difficult aspect of the EHR overhaul. She also shares her thoughts on change management, patient engagement, and leadership.

Chapter 1

Chapter 2



* Clinically-led projects — “We’re being totally transparent and inclusive.”

* Power of executive sponsorship

* “Leadership all the way down is committed.”

* From Allscripts to athenahealth in ambulatory

* Analytics initiative with Optum — “It will give us a clear picture.”

* The CIO’s challenge — “Projects don’t stop.”



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Bold Statements

One thing we’re focusing on is involvement; that this is not an IS project, this is a clinically-led implementation. The thing we have done in the past as CIOs is really focused on the technology, and whether we chose to do that or the organization put us in that place, it’s not really seen as collaborative.

We’re doing full workflow analysis to make sure we cover any potential gaps with the new system and make sure that the associates or end users are fully educated, prepared and knowledgeable about what’s going to happen.

The biggest challenge is trying to make sure that we have the clinical information to the caregiver at the site of where they’re delivering care.

We’re very excited about it because we’ve been on disparate systems for so long, and it’s been very, very difficult to try to get a clear picture of what’s going on with a patient. It’s a tool that I don’t think we fully understand yet how valuable it will be.

I’m not sure if that’s going to be the wave of the future yet. I know that managing the delivery of care is a focus — that it’s no longer episodic, but it is really focused on taking care of the patient from birth to death.

Gamble:  Change management is a theme that comes up so often with the CIOs we speak with. What do you think is a good way to approach that and prepare users for that change?

Ross:  The one thing we’re focusing on is involvement; that this is not an IS project, this is a clinically-led implementation. The thing we have done in the past as CIOs is really focused on the technology, and whether we chose to do that or the organization put us in that place, it’s the same thing — it’s not really seen as collaborative, that it’s being done more to them than with them.

The big thing we’re doing now is being totally transparent and inclusive. We’ve got the organization, from the executive sponsorship down, fully engaged and fully committed to the project, to the success of the project, and to ensuring that we have participation from the end-users, because they’re the ones who really know what we need. We’re doing full workflow analysis to make sure we cover any potential gaps with the new system and make sure that the associates or end users are fully educated, prepared and knowledgeable about what’s going to happen.

We have engagements from all departments,