TORONTO, ON—xwave, a division of Bell Aliant, has helped more than 80 Ontario hospitals successfully implement what is Canada’s largest client registry: The Enterprise Master Patient Index (EMPI) contains more than 50 million patient records and is used by Ontario’s Wait Time Information System (WTIS) to link and uniquely identify patients. Working under contract to Cancer Care Ontario, xwave provided high-touch, on-site project support for the deployment of the EMPI within an eight-month timeframe. With the new system, healthcare practitioners now have a secure, web-based interface through which they can collect and report wait time information.

To support the EMPI implementation, xwave deployed a team of coordinators who served as key project and communication liaisons to hospital health records, registration and information technology support team members. Embracing the project’s one-team approach to ownership (‘your problem is our problem’), they worked closely with their hospital team members to answer all questions and provide assistance around testing, problem-solving, tracking results, and relaying feedback.

“Two years ago, surgeons kept their own patient wait list in their office on paper. Hospitals had no idea who was waiting for services,” said Sarah Kramer, Chief Information Officer and Vice President, Cancer Care Ontario. “With the WTIS and EMPI, the potential improvements in care are tremendous but so are the challenges. Working as part of the provincial team, xwave provided valuable hands-on support to hospital staff on a daily basis, which significantly contributed to the overall success of the EMPI implementation.”

“The human dynamics of hospital life make both communication and flexibility essential to a project such as this,” said Paul Kent, Chief Operating Officer, xwave. “Hourly re-planning is common. Issues must be chased down and resolved, or escalated appropriately. Collaborating with the entire provincial team, we helped realize objectives that, without a concerted focus and daily monitoring of each hospital’s progress, may have been difficult to achieve.”

The WTIS and EMPI implementations are integral components of Ontario’s Wait Time Strategy, which is aimed at reducing patient wait times in five key areas of care: selected cardiac procedures, cancer surgery, cataract surgery, total hip and knee joint replacement, and MRI/CT scans. Wait times are recognized as important determining factors in patient prognosis and outcome. A web-based system for recording and monitoring these times helps improve the effectiveness of treatment, in turn reducing the need for further treatment and lessening the burden on the healthcare system.

xwave Healthcare is one of the largest and longest-serving healthcare-consulting practices in Canada. In addition to project managers, its 250 consultants include physicians, nurses, technical architects and business consultants; together they draw from 30 years of experience developing technology designed to connect providers with patients and promote efficiency and reform across the entire continuum of care. Solutions and services range from wait-list management and telehealth to strategic consulting and a Clinical Management System (CMS) that is the only application service provider (ASP) solution of its kind to be funding-approved under Ontario’s Physician IT Program.

About Cancer Care Ontario
Cancer Care Ontario is an umbrella organization that steers and coordinates Ontario’s cancer services and prevention efforts so that fewer people get cancer and patients receive the highest quality of care. More information can be found at http://www.cancercare.on.ca

About xwave
xwave, a division of Bell Aliant, is a full-service business-solutions provider that serves clients through systems integration, infrastructure services, and fulfillment. These areas offer clients a broad delivery capability: xwave plans, designs, builds and operates complete ICT solutions that meet business-process needs and are designed to deliver a measurable return on technology investments. With more than $355 million in revenues and 1,500 people, xwave is one of the largest business-solutions organizations in Canada, with locations in St. John’s, Halifax, Moncton, Saint John, Fredericton, Charlottetown, Summerside, Ottawa, Toronto, New England, Florida and Colorado. More information can be found at http://www.xwave.com

For further information, contact:
Karen.Ewing@xwave.com
877-332-4605