Grande Ronde Hospital Wins 2011 Health Devices Achievement Award

Congratulations to Grande Ronde Hospital of La Grande, Oregon, the winner of ECRI Institute's 2011 Health Devices Achievement Award. Grande Ronde’s submission described how this 25-bed critical-access facility established a telemedicine network that allows its patients in rural northeast Oregon and Washington to access specialty physicians from across four states.

As a result of the initiative, Grande Ronde Hospital now offers 16 outpatient, consulting and educational services and more through its telemedicine program.
The technology is used for sharing Electronic Health Records, with consultants as far away as 1,800 miles reviewing patient lab results, radiology images and medications. Some of the services provided by this program are now being used as a model by other hospitals.

The Health Devices Achievement Award is presented each year to a member institution that has demonstrated excellence in the field of health technology management. The 2011 award will be formally presented to Grande Ronde Hospital later this year. Look for a complete description of Grande Ronde’s telemedicine initiative in an upcoming issue of Health Devices.