A milestone for healthcare in Bermuda was celebrated over the weekend with the implementation of a new medical records system for the island’s hospitals.

It was a busy night for Bermuda Hospitals Board after the patient electronic and administrative records log, known as Pearl, went live at midnight on Saturday.

Michael Richmond, the BHB president and chief executive, said the Pearl system was in use across King Edward VII Memorial Hospital and the Mid-Atlantic Wellness Institute as well as group homes.

Mr Richmond said BHB was “on target” for the system to come online at outpatient clinics when they opened today.

“The system went live just after midnight and we had a very busy night with staff across MWI and KEMH working hard to input and validate data,” he said.

“As is expected with a new system of this complexity, we’ve had issues to address through the day, but the response by staff has been magnificent.

“Pearl is live and for the first time in BHB’s history, we have a BHB-wide electronic medical record.”

Mr Richmond added that while staff would be “a bit slower” as they got accustomed to the new system, there were supports in place.

“Today is a milestone day in the delivery of care BHB and we are all looking forward to the benefits having an electronic medical record are going to bring to safety, quality and efficiency at BHB,” he said.

“I’m incredibly proud of what our staff have achieved – they have been at the forefront of this major change and have gone above and beyond the call of duty to make it happen. As we get through this adjustment period, it is something that Bermuda is going to be proud of too.”