EPIC ACHIEVEMENTS: INSIGHTS FROM DR. DAVID BAR SHAIN You never know exactly how you are going to have an impact on the world. Some people are thrown into new, unexpected situations and they discover new strengths. That’s what happened to Dr. David Bar-Shain. In an exclusive narrative shared with the Compass, Dr. Bar-Shain shares his story, his achievements, and takeaway lessons for those who want to achieve greatness. Back in 1999, I’d been a pediatrician for about a year when our hospital, MetroHealth, started using electronic medical records. The Chair of the Pediatrics appointed me as the department’s liaison to the IT company, EPIC. I had no idea what to expect, and no background in tech, but I plunged right into my responsibilities. It quickly became apparent to me that the EPIC system at the time wasn’t really programmed with pediatric patients - children - in mind (it’s much better
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now). I began addressing problems from the ground up and approached our IT Department to try to find solutions. Together, we struggled to build some elements into the system that would make it more user-friendly for pediatricians.
“analyst training.” When I passed my certification exams, I became the Director of Clinical Decision Support for the MetroHealth System. It’s a role that lets me configure our EPIC system to help ensure that our doctors and nurses don’t forget important information while they’re treating our patients.
MY LEARNING EXPERIENCE WITH EPIC WAS ONE OF EPIC PROPORTIONS, & THE WORK I’VE DONE HAS EARNED A NUMBER OF AWARDS FOR BOTH ME & MY HOSPITAL.
A few years later, our current Chief Medical Information Officer invited me to be part of a forum where EPIC met with its top users to learn about how to improve their software. At the same time that EPIC was learning from us, I found out that the company had its own training center. I signed up for what they call
My learning experience with EPIC was one of epic proportions, and the work I’ve done has earned a number of awards for both me and my hospital. We’ve been recognized for using EPIC to increase immunizations and identify high blood pressure, and we’ve won the prestigious HIMSS Davies Awards, one of the highest honors in health informatics. I am proud that I am developing the creativity, the skills, and the national professional standing to help design, implement, evaluate and train improvements to solve future health informatics challenges.
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