AMC Integrates Medical Viewer with Epic for Safer Patient Records

The Academic Medical Centre (AMC) in Amsterdam is one of the largest university medical centres in the Netherlands: more than 10,500 employees, over 1,000 beds, and 26,000 visitors on campus each day. For an organisation at this scale, reliable and instant access to patient records is not a convenience. It is a clinical requirement.

The AMC has worked with iGuana iDM's Medical Viewer for over a decade to digitally archive patient records. The starting point was straightforward: a paper archive spanning several kilometres, expensive to maintain and prone to error. By linking Medical Viewer to the hospital's appointment scheduling system, the AMC only scans records for patients with an upcoming appointment. The result is equally direct: clinical staff no longer handle paper, and documents are no longer lost.

"We wanted a single system in which we could store electronic patient records in a standard format, easily accessible to our medical staff," explains Mark Hoogeveen, Cluster Manager responsible for all medical applications at the AMC. "At the same time, we developed a system that allowed physicians to record digital notes on their patients."

The next step is integrating Medical Viewer with Epic, the AMC's new clinical information system. Epic replaces the internally developed AZD system (AMC Zorg Desktop), which has integrated and synchronised close to fifty patient-care subsystems for more than ten years. The migration project is large in scope: more than 250 people are involved, including a dedicated iGuana iDM team. The AMC is carrying out this transition in partnership with VUmc, another university medical centre that also uses Medical Viewer. Both institutions are integrating their records into the Epic platform simultaneously.

Once the integration is complete, staff will be able to retrieve electronic patient records stored in Medical Viewer directly through the Epic user interface. Systems remain synchronised, reducing the risk of errors and improving patient safety.

"We can never pause, because our patients can never pause," says Mark Hoogeveen. "We need to be able to offer our patients the best possible care and services around the clock."

This project demonstrates how iGuana iDM contributes to critical IT infrastructure in the healthcare sector, with document management continuity and system integration at its core. To learn more about Medical Viewer or other healthcare applications, visit our contact page.