Virginia Dept. of Behavioral Health & Developmental Services selects Siemens Soarian

MALVERN, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Today, Siemens Healthcare announced that the company will provide the Soarian enterprise electronic health record (EHR) to the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services (DBHDS), Richmond, Va., a non-acute, specialty care provider. The purchase delivers Soarian functionality across 14 facilities, replacing a disparate array of healthcare IT solutions and semi-manual paper-centric processes for orders. The decision was based on Soarian's adaptable, workflow-driven architecture; the ability for Siemens MobileMD Health Information Exchange (HIE) to help providers access mental health records, securely, among different care settings such as the hospital or their main practice locations; and by the potential to influence population health management with Healthcare Intelligence, a new solution from Siemens that collects both clinical and financial data as well as structured and unstructured data for analysis. As part of Agenda 2013, a two-year global initiative in the Siemens Healthcare Sector, the company is identifying new ways to address the unique needs of customers in a variety of settings.

“Siemens heard our need and responded in a manner that engendered confidence in both the company and its solution suite.”

“Soarian allows us to document and manage information in a way that can improve the safety and effectiveness of treatment,” said Jack Barber, MD, Chief Medical Officer. “Our providers appreciated the streamlined capabilities to not only view and document patient care but to manage a longitudinal interdisciplinary treatment plan across departments and settings.”

The Virginia DBHDS purchased a comprehensive suite of Soarian Clinicals, Soarian Financials, Healthcare Intelligence, Siemens Pharmacy and Med Administration Check™, and Siemens MobileMD HIE. Pilot implementations are planned for mid 2013 at three sites: Western State Hospital and Commonwealth Center for Children & Adolescents in Staunton, and Eastern State Hospital in Williamsburg, Va. Siemens has selected Quammen Healthcare Consultants, Murfreesboro, Tenn., to lead the implementation efforts.

“Our clinical leadership and staff were closely involved throughout the entire vendor/product selection process,” said Russell Sarbora, CIO, Virginia DBHDS. “Siemens heard our need and responded in a manner that engendered confidence in both the company and its solution suite.”

Available to citizens statewide, Virginia's public mental health, intellectual disability and substance abuse services system is comprised of 16 state-operated facilities and 40 locally-run community services boards (CSBs). The CSBs and facilities serve children and adults who have - or who are at risk of - mental illness, serious emotional disturbance, intellectual disabilities, or substance abuse disorders. Virginia's state-run facilities provide highly-structured, intensive services and consist of: seven adult inpatient mental health facilities, five training centers for individuals with intellectual disability, an inpatient psychiatric facility for children and adolescents, a medical center, an inpatient psychiatric geriatric hospital, and a center for behavioral rehabilitation.

For further information on Soarian, please see http://usa.siemens.com/soarian.

Launched in November 2011, “Agenda 2013” is the initiative of the Siemens Healthcare Sector to further strengthen its innovative power and competitiveness. Specific measures, which will be implemented by the end of 2013, have been defined in four fields of action: innovation, competitiveness, regional footprint, and people development.

Siemens AG (Berlin and Munich) is a global powerhouse in electronics and electrical engineering, operating in the fields of industry, energy and healthcare as well as providing infrastructure solutions, primarily for cities and metropolitan areas. For over 165 years, Siemens has stood for technological excellence, innovation, quality, reliability and internationality. The company is the world's largest provider of environmental technologies. Around 40 percent of its total revenue stems from green products and solutions. In fiscal 2012, which ended on September 30, 2012, revenue from continuing operations totaled €78.3 billion and income from continuing operations €5.2 billion. At the end of September 2012, Siemens had around 370,000 employees worldwide on the basis of continuing operations. Further information is available on the Internet at: http://www.siemens.com.