Healthcare IT News For VARs — May 9, 2014
By Megan Williams, contributing writer
In the news this week: ICD-10 delay confirmed, industry shifts focus to rev cycle and financial modeling, and HIM pros pushed toward higher educational standards.
Hospitals Show Growing Interest In Revenue Cycle And Financial Modeling
Hospitals are approaching 90 percent implementation of certified EHR technology and development teams are shifting their focus to new territory. EHR Intelligence reports that industry attention has moved to revenue cycle, bed management and financial modeling. A reduction in inpatient care has opened up a new focus on non-clinical operational capabilities and the optimization around them.
Rapid Changes In Healthcare Data Analytics Landscape
In a survey conducted by TCS Healthcare Technologies, almost half of respondents reported a positive return on investment in data analytics and reporting technology. Users emphasized the importance of dashboard and visualization capabilities, specifically the ability to manipulate reports and data to view trends in both populations and for individual patients. You can read additional findings of the study at Fierce Health IT.
Concerns For Healthcare Outlined In Big Data Report
Large-scale collection of consumer data is examined in a recent report from the Obama administration. The report focuses on how public and private sectors in multiple industries (including healthcare) can benefit from the use of big data. iHealthBeat indicates that one of the highlights of the report is a review of efforts by CMS to use predictive analytics to find reimbursement fraud before claims are actually paid.
Higher Educational Standards Proposed For HIM Pros
The American Health Information Management Association has revealed in its Reality 2016 education initiative, that it will be pressing for higher educational standards for all information professionals. To keep pace with other professions in healthcare, the organization is encouraging the pursuit of advanced degrees in business, HIM, or another tech-related field. FierceHealth IT reports that the move is also meant to keep in line with the growing importance of data in the industry overall.
ICD-10 Implementation Delay Confirmed By CMS
CMS announced on May 1 that all testing for ICD-10 implementation is cancelled. The new implementation date has been confirmed as October 1, 2015. The delay has been met with mixed reactions, ranging from no change in plans, to complaints that it encourages organizations who did not prepare for the earlier implementation date to continue to lag behind in preparedness. More details are available from MedCity News.
Healthcare IT Talking Points
iPatientCare, a leader in cloud based ambulatory EHR discusses the directions in which it is steering its customers in the wake of the recent ICD-10 delay. Of those surveyed, 46 percent reported a positive return and only 14 percent reported negative returns.
“A year’s delay will ease the burden for some organizations coping with ongoing financial pressures, and parallel regulatory mandates. If we are to improve patient outcomes and safety, enable modern-day research, promote innovations in healthcare delivery, and achieve cost-saving efficiencies, the healthcare industry must have an access to high quality information afforded by ICD-10 coded data. We believe ICD-10 is important for efficient delivery of quality care and emerging value-based payment models,” said Sean Pandya, Clinical Application Specialist with the company. More details available at PR Web.
For more news and insights, visit BSMinfo’s Healthcare IT Resource Center.