KLAS report dissects McKesson's IT successes, challenges
A number of factors, including a hospital's size, budget and functionality needs, determine the degree to which McKesson's Paragon, a comprehensive EHR and health information system, is a fit for any given hospital, according to a new report from healthcare market researcher KLAS.
“McKesson's announcement of increased investment, research and development in Paragon through their Better Health 2020 strategy is aimed at attracting larger clients,” the Orem, Utah-based researcher stated.
Paragon--McKesson's go-forward strategy for all hospital sizes--has a client base of community hospital customers satisfied with the system's integration, intuitive Windows architecture and comparatively low cost of ownership, KLAS added. The tool has won the Best in KLAS award in this space six years in a row.
However, the report stated a number of product gaps and weaknesses still exist and there are questions in providers' minds about whether Paragon can scale to larger hospitals, particularly over-400 bed sites where it is still unproven. “One CIO said, ‘The (Paragon) back office, support and the implementation people all have the mindset of working with smaller hospitals and smaller groups. They can't relate to the issues that are facing the larger hospitals...’ McKesson is especially hoping Paragon's success in community hospitals will appeal to their Horizon base, many of which are larger hospitals,” the report read. "Paragon’s development has been rapid but is still incomplete," according to the report.
Gaps that require complementary McKesson tools (ambulatory, DMI) and weaknesses in the product (ED, lab) exist. Physician documentation was released in December 2011, and a new emergency department information system and ambulatory EMR are in development.
“Rapid growth has stretched some implementation resources, resulting in lower scores from the newest customers,” the report stated. “Different support teams for gaps filled by Horizon Patient Folder and Practice Partner have resulted in compartmentalized service and support as well as interfacing challenges for some customers.”
The report additionally noted McKesson recently committed millions of dollars to Paragon’s development, moving resources away from Horizon Enterprise Revenue Manager to bolster implementation, support and development for Paragon. “To maintain high customer satisfaction, Paragon needs to focus on partnering with customers around support and training while rapidly filling gaps and weaknesses with continued high-quality development.”
All in all, despite gaps and immaturities, Paragon customers would overwhelmingly recommend the solution to their peers. McKesson’s history of reliable development and high customer satisfaction create optimism in current customers and bring high mindshare among prospects,” the report concluded. “Paragon offers a cost-effective, viable option for midsize hospitals and the hope for a lower cost yet sufficiently robust solution for larger organizations.”
“McKesson's announcement of increased investment, research and development in Paragon through their Better Health 2020 strategy is aimed at attracting larger clients,” the Orem, Utah-based researcher stated.
Paragon--McKesson's go-forward strategy for all hospital sizes--has a client base of community hospital customers satisfied with the system's integration, intuitive Windows architecture and comparatively low cost of ownership, KLAS added. The tool has won the Best in KLAS award in this space six years in a row.
However, the report stated a number of product gaps and weaknesses still exist and there are questions in providers' minds about whether Paragon can scale to larger hospitals, particularly over-400 bed sites where it is still unproven. “One CIO said, ‘The (Paragon) back office, support and the implementation people all have the mindset of working with smaller hospitals and smaller groups. They can't relate to the issues that are facing the larger hospitals...’ McKesson is especially hoping Paragon's success in community hospitals will appeal to their Horizon base, many of which are larger hospitals,” the report read. "Paragon’s development has been rapid but is still incomplete," according to the report.
Gaps that require complementary McKesson tools (ambulatory, DMI) and weaknesses in the product (ED, lab) exist. Physician documentation was released in December 2011, and a new emergency department information system and ambulatory EMR are in development.
“Rapid growth has stretched some implementation resources, resulting in lower scores from the newest customers,” the report stated. “Different support teams for gaps filled by Horizon Patient Folder and Practice Partner have resulted in compartmentalized service and support as well as interfacing challenges for some customers.”
The report additionally noted McKesson recently committed millions of dollars to Paragon’s development, moving resources away from Horizon Enterprise Revenue Manager to bolster implementation, support and development for Paragon. “To maintain high customer satisfaction, Paragon needs to focus on partnering with customers around support and training while rapidly filling gaps and weaknesses with continued high-quality development.”
All in all, despite gaps and immaturities, Paragon customers would overwhelmingly recommend the solution to their peers. McKesson’s history of reliable development and high customer satisfaction create optimism in current customers and bring high mindshare among prospects,” the report concluded. “Paragon offers a cost-effective, viable option for midsize hospitals and the hope for a lower cost yet sufficiently robust solution for larger organizations.”