A Foundation System Refuel project can be a long, complex process that often puts additional pressure on an already strained support team. It’s especially arduous if it's been a while since your Epic go-live and/or you have significantly customized your system. However, a Refuel project leads to easier and faster upgrades, higher Gold Stars and Honor Role ratings, and more standardization, making the significant effort worthwhile. Here are some key items to consider when preparing for a Refuel project:
- Strategize: One of the most important aspects of this project is to implement a strategy for maintaining a Foundation-like system. You may need a partner that can team up with application and master file owners to develop standard operating procedures and/or assist with the development of a deviation request process, advise on governance procedures, and help develop a strategy for quarterly upgrades.
- Review: You will need to review Epic's assessment and create an implementation plan with timelines and operational considerations based on the recommendations provided by Epic.
- Outsource: A strategic partner can assist with heavy lifting such as feature design and build, adoption sessions with stakeholders, training material development and ultimately, will take the load off your support team. Additionally, security experts should do a review of your template and EMP provisioning processes (common challenges during a Refuel project).
While you may have limited resources, this type of project doesn’t have to weigh your team down or affect your organization’s ability to meet other critical project demand. By engaging with a strategic partner to guide and supplement your in-house staff during a Refuel, you can leverage the technical expertise of an experienced team to establish a strong foundation for future IT projects while still maintaining or exceeding standards in patient care. We have the experience and resources to help you through this process.
Next Steps:
We understand the search for opportunities to ease EHR maintenance burdens, cut costs, and create more efficient processes by eliminating customization and return to Epic’s Foundation System. Epic Refuel projects help you do just that, but often they burden the organization due to the time and effort that is required to complete them. Our team is experienced and we have been successfully providing services to hospital systems for over 15 years. CereCore has the highest quality experts and our network consists solely of ex-Epic or highly tenured industry professionals. To start a conversation or schedule a meeting, please email us at info@cerecore.net or call us at 855.276.9112.
