Albuquerque - July 10, 2006 - UNM Hospital has been named on the nation's Most Wired according to the results of the 2006 Most Wired Survey and Benchmarking Study released today in the July issue of Hospitals & Health Networks magazine which has named the 100 Most Wired hospitals and health systems since 1999.

The nation's 100 Most Wired hospitals and health systems are helping consumers take charge of their health care by providing more tools via the Internet, according to results from the eighth annual Most Wired Survey, released today.

"Consumers are doing everything from booking travel to managing their finances from their living rooms. The Most Wired hospitals provide the same opportunities with health care," says Alden Solovy, executive editor of Hospitals & Health Networks, the journal of the American Hospital Association (AHA). "This will become the new house-call."

The nation's 100 Most Wired are also using information technology to improve quality, satisfaction and patient care by investing in technology to streamline business and clinical practices; to reduce medical errors; and to improve clinical outcomes, as follows:

• 99 percent of the Most Wired hospitals provide digital radiology images in the hospital inpatient setting, compared with 72 percent of the Least Wired hospitals (defined as the 100 hospitals scoring lowest on the survey);
• 92 percent of the medical records at Most Wired hospitals are available digitally, compared with 61 percent at Least Wired hospitals; and
• 36 percent of medications are ordered electronically by physicians in Most Wired hospitals, compared with 2 percent among Least Wired hospitals.

"As consumers become increasingly involved in their health care decisions, the Most Wired hospitals are providing the technology infrastructure necessary to address their needs," said Lewis Redd, managing director of Accenture's Health & Life Sciences Provider practice in North America.  "This investment in clinical systems technology helps enable high-performing providers to deliver higher-quality results and better service to their patients and consumers."

"Connected care often leads to better care, driven by the adoption of technologies that help to enhance decision-making and caregiver coordination," says Pamela Pure, president of McKesson Provider Technologies.  "Over the next five years, we expect to see significant growth in the use of technology that also enhances collaboration outside the hospital, and that makes the consumer and patient experience more convenient and connected."

The Most Wired Survey is conducted annually by Hospitals & Health Networks magazine, which uses the results to name the 100 Most Wired hospitals and health systems.  It focuses on how the nation's hospitals use of information technologies for quality, customer service, public health and safety, business processes and workforce issues.

Hospitals & Health Networks conducted the 2006 survey in cooperation with Accenture, McKesson Corp. and the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives.  The July H&HN cover story detailing results is available at www.hhnmag.com.