Nordic is the largest Epic-only EMR consulting firm in the country. With over 400 consultants, Nordic focuses on Epic software implementation, optimization, remote support, strategic advising, and affiliate extension projects.
Nordic’s Affiliate Solutions business line works with clients extending their EMR to their healthcare partners. They have experienced significant growth over the last 18 months as some health systems focus on expanding their reach through partnerships with independent hospitals and clinics, while others merge or acquire groups. With over 100 consultants who have completed Epic extension projects, Nordic has become the industry leader in guiding clients through strategizing, planning, and deploying their EMRs to their partners.
ThedaCare, the third-largest health care employer in Wisconsin and a longstanding and trusted partner of Nordic, chose to work with Nordic on a recent affiliation project. ThedaCare needed to deploy their EMR to two affiliated critical access hospitals, Community Health Network (CHN) and Wild Rose Hospital, as well as their 18 associated ambulatory clinics. ThedaCare wanted to bring them live on Epic quickly by extending their current build to meet a Meaningful Use deadline.
Nordic provided ThedaCare with a plan for an accelerated 19-week implementation of the 20 facilities from discovery to go-live. A team of 20 Senior Consultants and a Project Manager began work in mid-February to complete gap analysis for the sites and identify unique workflows for the sites. This team then built and tested the system while creating training materials with the assistance of seven Consultant Trainers to train over 600 end-users. Throughout go-live, Nordic provided 60 go-live supporters to assist with the transition during the first two weeks on the new system.
The results of the go-live were extremely positive. 90% of issues opened during go-live were resolved within the first two weeks while the Command Center was open. When the Command Center closed, over 20 areas were reporting “green” status with only 6 reporting “yellow.” End-users commented positively as they acclimated to their new system and workflows.
The success of the go-live is credited to the overall partnership between ThedaCare, CHN, Wild Rose, and Nordic. ThedaCare staffed key roles to ensure the acquisition and implementation went smoothly. Together with CHN and Wild Rose leadership, they set appropriate expectations with all parties regarding change management, setting the Nordic team up to be able to move quickly because all groups were fully-engaged throughout the process. The Nordic implementation team has successfully transitioned back to the ThedaCare Support Team to provide continued maintenance to their new sites.
For more information about Nordic Affiliate Solutions, visit their website or contact Abby Polich, Director of Affiliate Solutions, at 608.268.6900.