St. Catharines, Ontario – April 11, 2023 – Niagara Health, a multi-site hospital organization serving over 450,000 residents across the Niagara region, announced the launch of SeamlessMD, a leading Digital Care Journey platform that improves patient outcomes. Patients at Niagara Health are among the first in Ontario who can access their digital care journeys for hip, knee, shoulder, bowel and transurethral resection of the prostate surgeries at the Niagara Falls, St. Catharines, and Welland sites through Niagara Health Navigator.
Since going live with SeamlessMD in March 2022, 1204 patients at Niagara Health have already benefited from the platform, with 89% recommending their experience to others, 85% saying the program helps them feel more confident before surgery, and 79% saying the program helped them feel more confident at home after surgery. Current data suggests that patients are highly engaged in the program, with 60% tracking their post-surgical symptoms and recovery on the app.
“SeamlessMD is a user-friendly digital solution, providing patients with convenient access to information as well as their care team to support any post-operative care needs,” said Justin Saindon, Director of Digital Transformation, Niagara Health. “It is helping our organization achieve several strategic goals such as improving patient care by reducing hospital length of stay, elevating patient experience, and increasing same-day surgeries for total joints.”
Using SeamlessMD, patients at Niagara Health are guided from pre-surgical preparation through post-surgical recovery via personalized education, progress-tracking, and post-op symptom monitoring using their own device (e.g., smartphone, tablet, computer). While recovering from surgery at home, patients can access education and self-report data such as pain scores, symptoms, range-of-motion, and share photos of their wounds through the platform. Meanwhile, healthcare providers at Niagara Health can remotely monitor patients, allowing for personalized care recommendations and faster intervention from the surgical care team if necessary. The programs are also available in French.
“With SeamlessMD, collecting Patient-Reported Outcomes Measures (PROMs) and tracking opioid use in real-time has been made easier for our healthcare providers,” said Marina Stegne, Project Manager, Niagara Health. “The technology also allows patients to digitally receive comprehensive information to facilitate more effective self-management from home, allowing healthcare providers to redistribute their time and expertise more effectively.”
“We are excited to collaborate with Niagara Health to revolutionize how patients navigate their care journey as they continue to drive innovation forward with the delivery of digital care journeys,” said Dr. Joshua Liu, CEO and Co-founder, SeamlessMD. “As one of the first providers to integrate with the Ontario trusted account, our partnership highlights our dedication to supporting healthcare organizations as they strive to deliver convenient, efficient, and effective digital healthcare.”
Niagara residents who are interested can sign up for an Ontario trusted account and access SeamlessMD through the Niagara Health Navigator mobile app on the Apple App Store or Google Play once they have enrolled in the Surgical Transitions program. SeamlessMD is the first digital care journey and remote monitoring platform to integrate with Ontario trusted account, providing users with a secure way to seamlessly access digital health information and services.
Additionally, Niagara Health has plans to integrate SeamlessMD with the Oracle Health (Cerner) Electronic Health Record to deliver a more fully integrated experience.
Niagara Health is a regional hospital system with multiple sites and a growing network of community-based and virtual services. We believe every person in our region deserves to live every day of their life in the best health possible. As a community-based academic centre, our focus on teaching and learning, research, innovation and partnership propels us to continually improve care and make a difference in people’s lives. Our team is made up of more than 7,300 employees, physicians, volunteers and patient partners who contribute to our purpose of providing Extraordinary Caring. Every Person. Every Time. Our Accreditation with Exemplary Standing is a clear demonstration of the team’s commitment to the highest safety and quality standards.
SeamlessMD provides the leading Digital Care Journey platform for hospitals and health systems to engage, monitor and stay connected with patients across healthcare journeys. 35+ clinical studies & evaluations have shown SeamlessMD to improve the patient experience while reducing hospital length of stay, readmissions, and ED visits. Health systems such as Horizon Health Network, Trillium Health Partners, William Osler Health System, Sunnybrook, and others use SeamlessMD to elevate the patient experience, improve outcomes and lower costs. Patients access digital care plans on their smartphones, tablets or computers and are guided via reminders, education, and progress tracking. Providers receive alerts, monitor patients and access analytics to deliver better care. SeamlessMD is directly integrated with leading EHRs such as Epic, Oracle Cerner, and MEDITECH. In 2022, SeamlessMD was named by the CAN Health Network as its Company of the Year. To learn more visit seamless.md.
Erica Bajer Tracy Staniland
Manager, Public Affairs Vice President, Marketing
Niagara Health SeamlessMD
Erica.Bajer@NiagaraHealth.on.ca tracy@seamless.md