What You Should Know:
– WellSky has announced that its CarePort Community Referral Network is now officially part of the Epic Toolbox, allowing Epic users to initiate referrals to over 130,000 post-acute providers without leaving their EHR interface.
– The integration streamlines discharge planning by replacing manual phone calls and faxes with a standardized, electronic workflow that boasts an average provider response time of just 24 minutes. The move signifies a major step toward interoperability, enabling seamless connections to everything from skilled nursing facilities to social determinants of health (SDOH) resources directly within the native Epic environment.
The Operational Impact: Workflow Without Friction
The core value of this integration lies in its invisibility. For case managers and discharge planners working inside Epic, the referral process no longer requires toggling between disparate systems or picking up the phone.
By embedding the referral workflow directly into the Epic Case Management application, WellSky effectively erases the technological border between the acute and post-acute worlds. Users can now securely send electronic referrals to a vast array of providers—including skilled nursing facilities (SNFs), home health agencies, inpatient rehab, and even transportation services—without leaving their native EHR environment.
This “single-pane-of-glass” approach addresses one of the most persistent causes of hospital bottlenecks: the administrative burden of discharge planning. The integration minimizes the training burden for staff, as the workflow remains consistent with their daily operations, and drastically reduces reliance on antiquated methods like faxing.
Speed as a Clinical Metric
In the high-stakes environment of patient flow, speed is a proxy for quality. A delayed discharge doesn’t just frustrate patients; it blocks beds for incoming emergency cases. WellSky’s data suggests this integration offers a tangible velocity advantage. According to the announcement, care teams utilizing the network benefit from a real-time provider directory where referrals are accepted with an average response time of 24 minutes.
“Providers today must continually demonstrate high-quality performance, and they’re looking for solutions to support exceptional patient care and efficient patient flow,” said Bill Miller, Chairman and CEO of WellSky. “We’re making it easier for providers to connect patients with the right care at the right time.”
Expanding the Definition of Care
Crucially, the network extends beyond traditional medical facilities. The inclusion of social and behavioral health organizations and transportation services acknowledges the industry’s shift toward “whole-person care.”
By making these community-based resources as accessible as a standard SNF referral, the integration provides care teams with the levers necessary to address Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) before a patient leaves the hospital. This comprehensive approach is essential for reducing readmissions and ensuring that discharge plans are not just clinically sound, but logistically viable for the patient.
