Case Study: NorthShore University HealthSystem achieves secure, efficient e-prescribing of controlled substances with Imprivata

One of the first health systems to enable Electronic Prescribing of Controlled Substances with Imprivata

NorthShore University HealthSystem, a Chicago‑area integrated system with four hospitals, 100+ clinics and about 2,400 physicians, is an early EMR adopter that faced a specific gap: until EPCS was allowed, controlled‑substance prescriptions had to be written on paper. That process slowed e‑prescribing workflows, increased pharmacy wait times and raised the risk of errors or forgeries for roughly 7,500 controlled‑substance orders per month.

To address this, NorthShore upgraded its SureScripts interface, integrated Epic reporting and deployed Imprivata’s FIPS‑compliant fingerprint biometric two‑factor authentication to enable electronic prescribing of controlled substances. After a successful pilot, the rollout expanded to dozens of departments and 200+ physicians by June 2014, with EPCS orders rising from 1,651 to 3,648 month‑to‑month; the change delivered faster, seconds‑long prescribing, reduced paperwork, improved reporting, and higher physician and patient satisfaction while minimizing prescription inaccuracies and fraud.

NorthShore University HealthSystem