A clinical information system for P.E.I. hospitals is up and running following delays and cost overruns.

'It is really is a cultural change for the people who have been used to using paper all their life.'— Dr. Bill Walker, surgeon

The system gathers data about a patient's stay in hospital — and medications, vital signs, lab tests, X-ray reports — and stores them electronically. Doctors and nurses working with that patient can access that information at any time, at any hospital. During the past few weeks staff operated the new system, as well as the old paper system as they get used to the idea of leaving paper behind.

"It's a big adjustment for people who have spent their whole working life working on paper," said Dr. Bill Walker, a surgeon at Prince County Hospital in Summerside.

"The whole project is sort of looked at by a lot of people as a computer project, but it is really a cultural change for the people who have been used to using paper all their life. Training them, getting them used to picking up the computer and getting them used to using a keyboard or a mouse or a pen to input what they need to on the computer and find that information."

When it was first proposed, the system was projected to be implemented at a cost of $12 million, but the most recent estimate is $29.2 million.

Walker said the new system will reduce the risk of errors and keep patient information more secure.

Eventually, the province hopes to link Island pharmacies into the system, allowing hospitals access to an even more complete medical history of patients.