What is a Super User?

A super user is someone from a department who provides operational support for the project and for end users. Super users serve as liaisons between end users, department leaders, and the project team. Super users will receive additional training to assist them in their role. This training will take place before other end users receive training, between late October-mid November.

To be successful in their role, Super Users should be:

  • Respected by peers as a go-to person in the department, a leader or mentor
  • Experts in their department or specialty
  • Positive about their workplace, their employer, and the Epic project
  • Patient when faced with stressful situations and difficult staff
  • Good communicators and active listeners
  • Outgoing and enthusiastic
  • Approachable, personable, and friendly
  • Open and acceptable to change
  • Willing to continue to learn and improve
  • Competent in basic computer skills

Benefits

  • End-user adoption: Super users demonstrate a greater sense of accountability for the success of the project when they are involved early, because they can provide feedback during crucial phases of the install and ensure the system meets their department’s needs. Their early involvement will increase communication and excitement for the Epic implementation among their peers.
  • Training support: Super users bring knowledge of operations and end-user activities to all training tasks, from Day-in-the-Life (DIL) activities to go-live. They also get early training in their Epic application, allowing them to assist other employees getting trained later.
  • Long-term success: Super users are both the first line of defense for end user questions and a key part of the operational guidance needed to prioritize requests to the project team. Having a strong contingent of super users providing day-to-day support for other end users enables the project team to focus on change control, coordination of new releases, and resolution of reported issues.

Timeline

Super User Training

Super users have many responsibilities. To help prepare them for the responsibilities they have in terms of end-user training and support, including various support they will be asked to provide in the classroom, on the floor during go-live, and beyond go-live. They can also review The Art of Being a Super User Quick Start Guide for more information on how to be successful in the role of a Super User.

Before Go-Live

  • Participate in a 1-2 hour introductory meeting.
  • Complete the assigned Epic super user training to gain a detailed understanding of Epic and maximize the benefits of the electronic health record (EHR) for workflows in the department.
  • Reinforce training for staff in your department, including completion of department-specific components and classes.
  • Serve as a project advocate to generate enthusiasm and excitement for the change.
  • Attend one-hour monthly super user readiness meetings held by the super user coordinator.
  • Super User Leads: Assist with department and usability testing of Epic applications.
  • Super User Leads and Super Users: Support end-user engagement activities and Day in the Life activities.

During Go-Live

  • Lead, reinforce, and validate standard workflows and best practices.
  • Provide at-the-elbow go-live support for users within your department.
  • Mentor the staff in your assigned support areas, being approachable and available.
  • Always prioritize patient care and safety and revenue cycle integrity.
  • Assist the project team with identifying and resolving standard workflows or application issues and provide feedback on proposed resolutions.
  • Attend daily issues meetings, report outcomes to your department, and distribute daily communications, such as tip sheets, to help implement the latest changes.
  • Super User Leads: Support What-to-Do Sessions in which supervisors or managers facilitate discussion and hands-on work time for their staff on the top issues impacting their area.

Beyond Go-Live

  • Work with the training or optimization team to communicate with and educate end users about upgraded functionality and changes in standard workflows or best practices.
  • Work with the training or optimization team to help deliver or reinforce refresher training and distribute information on changes or enhancements to workflows.
  • Attending additional training as required for continued competency on Epic functionality.
  • Lead and reinforce optimized application use, along with the training or optimization team and department leaders. In some cases, this may mean facilitating a training session or peer discussion.
  • Provide feedback on users’ knowledge and skills to your training or optimization team and department leaders.
  • Assist with testing and reviewing Epic upgrades.
  • Attend and actively participate in regularly scheduled super user meetings.
  • Facilitate user and manager concerns and requests by providing department-specific feedback to project team.
  • Assist with on-boarding new hires in the department.
  • Super User Leads: Support What-to-Do Sessions in which supervisors or managers facilitate discussion and hands-on work time for their staff on the top issues impacting their area.