Health system becomes one of nine globally to earn repeat honor

University of Missouri Health Care has again been named a HIMSS Davies Award winner, making it one of only nine health care organizations globally to be selected as a Davies winner a second time. The award from the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society recognizes the thoughtful application of information and technology to substantially improve clinical care delivery, patient outcomes and population health around the world. MU Health Care also received the award in 2015.

“At MU Health Care, we’re committed to harnessing technology to live out our mission to save and improve lives,” said Jonathan Curtright, chief executive officer of MU Health Care. “I am proud of our team who has merged clinical practice, hands-on experience and technology to improve the quality of care we provide, helping our patients achieve better outcomes.”

MU Health Care’s focus on scaling information and technology solutions throughout its clinical enterprise to address challenges was a primary focus on MU Health Care’s Davies submission. MU Health Care implemented an automated intelligence algorithm capturing vital sign and lab data to provide earlier indications that a patient may be entering into septic shock. The NEWS (National Early Warning Score) system paired with a Rapid Response Team (RRT) contributed to a 22% reduction in sepsis mortality and saved an estimated dozen lives within the first nine months of adoption.

MU Health Care’s health IT operations are led by the Tiger Institute for Health Innovation, a unique private-public partnership between the University of Missouri and Cerner Corporation. The Tiger Institute was formed a decade ago as a model for leveraging industry collaboration and better health care. Their work has improved the health and safety of patients, reduced costs and shaped the future of care for Missouri and beyond.

“I am proud of the collaboration between Tiger Institute and MU Health Care clinicians to create innovations that lead to sustained improvements in outcomes for our patients,” said Bryan Bliven, chief information officer for MU Health Care and executive director for the Tiger Institute for Health Innovation.

University of Missouri Health Care has been recognized for the last decade as one of the nation’s “Most Wired” health systems, according to the 2021 Most Wired Survey by the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME).