In preparation for the EMR Phase 2.1 Go-Live, the Emergency Medicine and Access Division has put a number of plans in place to support their staff during this important enhancement. 

A key part of the preparations was the allocation to Digital Health of a medical and nursing lead from the division. This dedicated resource was able to be a direct link between the project and divisional staff and have key responsibilities focused on training and operational readiness. 

Divisional Director Patriece Shelly said the early allocation of these resources was an essential step for her when preparing her colleagues for Go-Live. 

“Luckily for me I’ve been through this before, so it (allocating staff to the project) was a bit of a given for me,” she said. 

“I wanted to ensure that there were some key roles that could be dedicated to Go-Live readiness, from within the team who understand the system, know their colleagues and be hands on to help everyone prepare.” 

As well as checking that staff were completing their training and Super Users were rostered, these medical and nursing staff have also conducted a number of additional education sessions, recorded demonstrations of the new system for viewing on the Digital Health information site, and are now running simulations and scenario testing at all Emergency Department sites. 

After holding the initial simulations for staff, the Division gained an insight into the readiness of the division for Go-Live and has subsequently planned additional sessions at a variety of times to ensure staff are ready. 

“We’re going to run more simulations than we expected, and that’s the focus of our dedicated resources; so if we didn’t have them allocated we would be stretched to be able to do that,” Patriece said. 

“We’re also encouraging staff to practice doing it independently with given scenarios. So we’ve got plenty of WoWs set up for people to be able to do that, and then we have scenarios that they can run through which are essentially based off the WeLearn modules.” 

Digital Health Project Manager for Emergency Medicine and Access, Kyrin Sandles, said the additional resources from the division had greatly helped with preparations for Go-Live. 

“Having that dedicated resource is a recognition that this is a big change for the Emergency Departments and that this has been made a priority within the division,” Kyrin said. 

“Taylor Voss-Smith and Daiv Lown have done some amazing work in their time with the EMR Phase 2.1 project team, and really made a big difference to the Go-Live preparations for staff. 

“As well as being a valuable link between the project and staff on the floor, having these resources has also allowed our regular project team members to focus on project tasks such as testing and preparing Quick Reference Guides.” 

As Go-Live gets closer, Patriece reiterated that embracing the change across the whole division was a key part of her and the Division’s preparations. 

“Particularly right now that we’re so close, my message to the team is that everything else non-urgent needs to come out of your calendar as we prepare for Go-Live,” she said. 

“This is an all hands on deck approach. I’ve cancelled divisional meetings so the team can focus and support the readiness and Go-Live activities.  

“As leaders we’re all going to be Super Users, to demonstrate that we are engaged and to make ourselves available to support Go-Live. 

“I would say the team has really embraced it, and people are very excited about what this will mean for their daily workflows and providing patient care.”