HCA Inc.: standardization in action.

Ongoing government and healthcare industry initiatives clearly indicate that information technology will be the driver for change in healthcare. As systems proliferate, healthcare organizations grapple with issues of whether to choose best-of-breed systems or standardize around one vendor. For many years, HCA Inc. has been a major proponent of standardization to help meet its financial and patient safety objectives. This article examines HCA's experience and explores how standardization has been a major factor in the company's financial and clinical success, enabling faster implementation, greater quality control and significant cost-savings.