The Veterans Affairs Department is pausing its massive electronic health records program rollout for up to three months while the new leadership conducts a “strategic review” of ongoing issues.
VA has been working for more than two years with commercial EHR company Cerner to develop and deploy a single records management system across the agency that will also be interoperable with the Cerner-built system being deployed by the Defense Department and the Leidos Partnership for Defense Health.
Nearly five months after the first deployment of VA’s new Cerner Millennium EHR system in Spokane, Washington, future rollouts are being put on hiatus for a 12-week review by VA Secretary Denis McDonough.
“A successful EHR deployment is essential in the delivery of lifetime, world-class health care for our veterans,” McDonough said Friday announcing the review period. “After a rigorous review of our most-recent deployment at Mann-Grandstaff VA Medical Center, it is apparent that a strategic review is necessary. VA remains committed to the Cerner Millennium solution, and we must get this right for veterans.”
In a release Friday, VA said McDonough did an “initial assessment of the program within his first month in office,” prompting a full “strategic review” that will take no longer than 12 weeks.
“The strategic review will focus on identifying areas for additional productivity and clinical workflow optimization at Mann-Grandstaff and upcoming ‘go-live’ sites, conducting further research into veteran-centered improvements for the patient portal experience, data syndication and revenue cycle improvements,” the agency said.
The review comes a little more than a month after electronic health records program delayed weeks strategic review
