The core Mission of the Office of Clinical Informatics (OCI) is to improve patient care and enhance clinical research by providing user support and optimization services for all clinical information system applications utilized by the health care providers, clinical researchers and ancillary support staff of the Medical College of Wisconsin & Froedtert and Community Health. OCI emphasizes applied informatics, with the goal of contributing to the development of world-class information technology solutions supporting the delivery of patient care services and research capabilities.
A key focus of the OCI’s support and optimization activities is the Epic Electronic Health Record (EHR), which is a part of the Epic System. Healthcare is an intensely data-driven discipline. However, even today, much of the information used as part of the patient care process is paper-based. Important health information about individuals is scattered across many systems that do not, and cannot, communicate with each other. An equally important focus is how the EHR can support the development of evidence-based medicine through clinical, outcomes-based research, while ensuring the security and privacy of individual patient information. It is the Vision of Clinical Informatics at MCW/F&CH to fully implement an EHR across the Enterprise, for all modes and methods of care delivery to ensure that all care providers, support staff, and administrative staff have timely access to pertinent patient information on an as needed basis.