Northeast Georgia Health System (NGHS) is the fifth organization in the country to launch a new AI tool to give nurses more time with their patients. Leaders from NGHS and Epic joined staff to get feedback as the new tool launched. From L-R: Kara Wynkoop Hirz, nurse wellbeing at Epic; Emily Ellis, clinical informatics specialist at NGHS; Raleigh Merchant, clinical informatics specialist at NGHS; Marie DiFrancesco, chief nursing informatics officer at NGHS; Stuart Downs, chief nurse executive at NGHS; Enkay Ibeneme, registered nurse at NGHS, Kimberly Weber, EpicCare inpatient software developer; Stephanie Jones, chief nursing officer at NGMC Gainesville.
Nurses at Northeast Georgia Health System (NGHS) are among the first in the nation to explore how a new artificial intelligence tool can help them spend less time in front of screens and more time caring for patients.
A group of 15 nurses and two patient care technicians are piloting a new technology called Chart with Art, which captures conversations between nurses and patients and drafts documentation for the nurse to review. The pilot makes NGHS the fifth health system in the nation to partner with Epic, the electronic health record company and creator of MyChart, on Chart with Art for nursing.
“Being an early adopter of this tool not only helps our nurses spend more time focused on patient care and less on documentation, but it also allows us to help shape the future of this technology,” said Marie DiFrancesco, chief nursing informatics officer for NGHS. “Our goal is to give nurses more time at the bedside, where they build meaningful connections with patients.”
Staff will use Chart with Art to capture real-time conversations at all five of the system’s Northeast Georgia Medical Center (NGMC) hospitals. The technology translates the discussions between nurses and their patients into documented assessments, next steps, patient education and other details that inform the rest of the patient’s care.
“Our patients tell us all the time how much it means to them when a nurse takes a few extra minutes just to talk with them about their care, and honestly, those are the moments nurses show up for,” said Stuart Downs, chief nurse executive for NGHS. “This AI solution is about working smarter, not harder. By letting technology take on the bulk of the data entry, we are giving time back to our nurses so they can spend it where it matters most, with their patients and their families. That’s really what our vision for nursing comes down to. Taking great care of our nurses and making it easy for them to practice here. When we get that right, everybody wins — our nurses, our patients and healthcare as a whole.”
Staff participating in the pilot will let patients know when Chart with Art will be used, and patients can decline to participate at any time. Every entry is reviewed and confirmed by the clinician before it becomes part of the patient’s medical record.
“This is just one more way we’re staying on the leading edge of using technology to help our people do their jobs efficiently and improve the care they provide,” said Chris Paravate, NGHS chief digital & information officer. “We’ve rolled out additional AI solutions to help with documentation, to identify care gaps in big geographic regions we serve, and to generate reports that help our professional teams do their work more effectively. It’s in service of our goal to be the best run health system in Georgia and the best place to give and receive care.”
If you would like to be a part of the future of healthcare and learn more about what it’s like to work at NGHS, visit nghs.com/careers.