Case study: Tenet's clinician-driven approach to HIT

Despite facing financial and operational concerns, Tenet has made meaningful progress offering its physicians an array of useful tools, including physician portals, document imaging and PACS. In a recent Q&A, Tenet vice president of clinical informatics Liz Johnson said that despite having such a complex infrastructure in place, her team has been able to drive the clinical informatics development process forward successfully by making sure clinicians drive development. "When you look at the future and how you will deliver care, the first thing is to make sure that you involve the clinician and determine what processes can be supported by technology," Johnson says. "The clinician needs to drive the process, not the other way around."

To make sure clinician workflow, not IT needs, are given priority, the IT team documents real clinical processes, then tested the products to see if the technology supported those processes. Often, Johnson's team has to make extensive modifications to their technology once they test it against real clinical scenarios. However, it seems she feels that the final results are well worth the effort.

To read Johnson's full Q&A:
- read this Digital HealthCare & Productivity piece