Newswise — SEATTLE – (Feb. 13, 2015) – Virginia Mason reached a milestone this week in its commitment to provide patients with convenient, 24-hour access to their medical information when the number of people enrolled to use the organization’s web-based patient portal topped 100,000.

With this secure online tool, called MyVirginiaMason.org, patients can view their lab results, their physician’s clinical notes and their medication lists; request medical appointments; self-schedule certain types of appointments; renew prescriptions; and exchange private emails with his or her provider. Additional features are planned through 2015 for the portal, which was launched three years ago.

“Access to information is essential for individuals to be effectively engaged in their health care,” said Michael Glenn, MD, chief medical officer. “The portal is a vital resource for our patients and for their providers.” Virginia Mason is a leader among Cerner Corp. patient portal users in the U.S. and recently won an award at the Cerner Health Conference for having the highest rate of patients registered on a portal. The national average is 30 percent compared to 67 percent at Virginia Mason.

“Information technology touches every part of the patient experience, from scheduling appointments to administering medications,” said Bill Poppy, senior vice president and chief technology officer at Virginia Mason. “As an organization, we are proud to be among the leaders in using IT solutions to connect with our patients.”

Virginia Mason has been recognized twice in the past four years by Hospitals & Health Networks magazine as one of the Most Wired health systems in the nation. The Most Wired Award recognizes organizations considered frontrunners in using information technology to advance clinical-decision support and improve patient care and safety.

About Virginia Mason Virginia Mason, founded in 1920, is a nonprofit regional health care system in Seattle that serves the Pacific Northwest. Virginia Mason employs 6,000 people and includes a 336-bed acute-care hospital; a primary and specialty care group practice of more than 460 physicians; regional medical centers throughout the Puget Sound area; and Bailey-Boushay House, the first skilled-nursing and outpatient chronic care management program in the U.S. designed and built specifically to meet the needs of people with HIV/AIDS. Benaroya Research Institute at Virginia Mason is internationally recognized for its breakthrough autoimmune disease research. Virginia Mason was the first health system to apply lean manufacturing principles to health care delivery to eliminate waste, lower cost, and improve quality and patient safety.

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