Denmark

Odense University Hospital

Odense University Hospital (OUH) operates four academic and community hospitals located in the eastern part of the Region of Southern Denmark, including Svendborg Sygehus which has the largest medical department in Denmark. OUH belongs to the Region of Southern Denmark (RSD) that has 1.2 million inhabitants and four hospital units running 18 hospitals.

A 1,000+ bed medical centre, OUH annually has more than 100,000 inpatient admissions and handles in excess of 1.1 million outpatient visits in 50 different clinical departments. The hospital has a budget of €870 million and employs more than 8,700 people. The hospital has an organisation-wide, distinct patient-centred culture where the patients’ and their relatives’ benefit and experience are of the highest importance.

OUH is an international model in clinical innovation and telemedicine and has recently been awarded HIMSS Stage 6 recognition. OUH started to implement Electronic Health Records (EHR) in 1999, making the hospital an early adopter in terms of electronic medical systems.

OUH-Svendborg Hospital and 10 local municipalities including social services will participate in the pilot study of the intervention.