Check out the new Apple iPad….
Seems like a very cool toy – not sure about it’s use in a ‘business’ environment. Thinking about getting the basic model to test out some of the functionality. Does anyone know of a Citrix app that could run on an iPad? If so, I could then access my EMR. I am sure that clinicians are looking at this device as it looks extremely portable. Would like to try using it with a voice recognition app – that would be very cool. Even though it was only released yesterday we already have CIOs blogging about it – click here
Here’s a link to the specs – click here
The Healthcare Notification Network
I have signed up for the HCNN. The HCNN is an online service designed to improve the speed and efficacy of the delivery of U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-mandated Patient Safety Alerts to physicians, prescribers and their staff. By accelerating delivery of these important Alerts, the HCNN protects patient safety and reduces medical liability.
Alerts (also known as “Dear Doctor Letters” or “Dear Health Care Professional Letters”) are currently sent to prescribers on paper via traditional U.S. mail – a slow, error-prone process. Snail mailed safety Alert letters are frequently delivered to prescribers along with large volumes of marketing materials, which dilutes the efficacy of the time-sensitive Alerts and delays the arrival of these important notifications. In some cases, Patient Safety Alerts may never reach the intended health care professional at all.
Since the HCNN uses a dedicated online network as the Alert notification vehicle, prescribers can have confidence that they will receive recall Alerts quickly and effectively – and before their patients learn about the Alerts from the news.
Liability carriers, medical societies, health plans, government officials and other healthcare leaders support the HCNN because it improves patient safety, reduces physician liability, and ensures the fast and convenient delivery of Patient Safety Alerts.
The HCNN may also be used to notify prescribers in the event of national public health emergencies or bio-terror events.
You may create an account with HCNN using the online registration form, by contacting HCNN Customer Service or by responding to a fax back letter or email activation sent by your medical malpractice carrier or medical society. Our online form is secure and all data is stored by HCNN under strict privacy and security standards. Take a look at www.hcnn.net
Operation Rainbow
I just wanted to tell you about a project I am involved in. In February I will be part of team of docs and nurses who will travel to Nicaragua as part of “Operation Rainbow”. Check out www.operationrainbow.org Operation Rainbow is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to performing free orthopedic surgery for indigent children and young adults in developing countries worldwide who do not have access to related medical procedures or equipment. We aim to perform about 45 to 65 surgeries depending on their complexity and on the number of operating rooms available to us . In addition, will treat many patients (once as many as 500) on whom we do not operate. We will bring all the equipment, medications and consumable supplies.
This will be my first trip with this organization. One of my partners, Dr Taylor Smith, is a veteran of OP and has attended many of the trips to South America and Asia. The needs for orthopedic care in the countries served are tremendous and, without our efforts many young people are doomed to a limited life as an invalid. Operation Rainbow runs 7 to 9 missions per year. In 2009, they sent help to Nicaragua, Guatemala, Ecuador, and the Dominican Republic. The teams usually consist of 30-35 professionals, including seasoned surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurses for the OR’s and recovery, technicians, physical therapists, and translators.
The doctors are unpaid; they pay for their own airfare and local living expenses, and the other caregivers pay their living expenses (not their airfare). The entire team works for free and gives up vacation days to do so. Even so, each mission costs $25,000 to $30,000; that money covers mostly the airfare for the nurses and technicians, the transportation of equipment, and the medications and supplies we cannot get donated.
We are in need of additional funding and I am asking for your help. If you could spare a few dollars please go to operationrainbow.org to make a donation. Thank you for any help you may be able to provide.
The latest on “Meaningful Use”
On Wednesday, December 30, the Department of Health and Human Services released the Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) establishing the Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive Program, commonly referred to as the Meaningful Use of an EHR, and the Interim Final Rule (IFR) establishing the Initial Set of Standards, Implementation Specifications and Certification Criteria for EHR Technology.
I have posted 2 pdf documents to my Box Files – on the right hand side of this page. The documents are entitled MU Regulation 1 and 2. The first set of regulations lists the “meaningful use” criteria that healthcare providers must meet to qualify for federal IT subsidies based on how they use their electronic health records. The second set of regulations lays out the standards and certification criteria that those EHRs must meet for their users to collect the money.
On Wednesday, January 6 at 2:30pm CT, Martin Harris, MD, MBA, FHIMSS will present a 90-minute HIMSS overview webinar of the NPRM and IFR. Complimentary for HIMSS members, the webinar as led by Dr. Harris – CIO & Chairman of the Technology Division at Cleveland Clinic, Executive Director of the e-Cleveland Clinic, Chairman-Elect of the HIMSS Board of Directors, and member of the HIT Standards Committee – will highlight the themes and major components of the regulations. See HIMSS.org for details.
Healthcare Reform
The Senate is expected to go forward with a major overhaul of the US healthcare system following a vote on Xmas eve. There are several IT issues that are part of the bill and there have been several amendments which include the following;
Items related to health IT include the following:
1. Directing the Secretary of HHS to establish an overall strategic framework for the public reporting of quality measures (integrating health IT in the efforts)
2. Calling for the establishment of a crosswalk between ICD-9 and ICD-10 (updating the crosswalk as appropriate to reflect new revisions of the International Classification of Diseases) and the posting of the crosswalk on the CMS Web site
3.The Secretary of HHS to award grants on a competitive basis to eligible entities to establish national centers of excellence for depression to engage in activities related to the treatment of depressive disorders. Among many things, each Center shall use EHRs and telehealth technology to better coordinate and manage, and improve access to care.
Other exciting news from Capitol Hill includes the introduction of H.R. 4216, the Personal Health Record Act of 2009, a bill to accelerate the use of personal health records (PHRs) by individuals and their providers in order to further engage individuals in their medical care, reduce healthcare costs, and avoid medical errors. The bill is co-sponsored by Rep. David Reichert (R-WA), and Rep. Charles Boustany Jr. (R-LA), and has been referred to the House Energy & Commerce and Ways & Means Committees.
Get educated on the stimulus package
Check out http://www.healthitcertification.com/stimulus_course.php
This is a free course which outlines very well the Healthcare IT implications of the Govt Stimulus package. The organization “Health IT Certification” provides professional training and certification for those responsible for planning, selecting, implementing, and managing electronic health records and other health information technology and those engaged in the creation and management of Health Information Exchanges (CPHIEs).
Today’s EHR and HIT applications are focused on the core business of health care: providing information and decision support for clinicians at the point of care. Such clinical transformation requires new knowledge and skills for all stakeholders. Whether you are a practice administrator, information technology steering committee member, information systems analyst, or clinician evaluating electronic prescribing systems, clinical messaging, electronic health records, or any of the myriad of other options – check out the link above. Get educated and spread the knowledge.
HIMSS meeting on PHRs.
Currently at HIMSS meeting in San Francisco. The first presentation was from Microsoft outlining the use of their Amalga product at NYP. (NYP.org). Amalga is a powerful tool that can pull info from many disparate systems and output the info in a CCR format.
Second presenatation was from Dr Chan at Palo Alto Medical Foundation. He talked about the use of their tethered patient portal. Check out pamfonline.com. 48% of PAMF patients are active users of the system. PAMF also incentivizes docs to perform e-consults – very cool stuff.
Top Stories for 2009
Hello everyone,
I hope you all had a good Thanksgiving break. I have been doing some extra biking – trying to work off some of the excesses! Does anyone read the Harvard Health letter? Looks like a nice publication. I was browsing around and found a nice article on their top 10 stories for 2009. It highlights some interesting discussion points. Here is the link http://spedr.com/963z
Have you heard about Slideshare Presentations?
I have decided to try Slideshare within my LinkedIn account – looks like it could be a very useful tool. Here’s an example of a presentation I found on Slideshare………..
An interesting new iphone app….
Check out this link to a quicktime video – it highlights a new iphone app all about the H1N1 virus – http://spedr.com/tjdg
