Healthcare IT News For VARs — January 23, 2015
By Megan Williams, contributing writer
In this week’s news, the president addresses cybersecurity in the State of the Union, and military pharmacies are adopting e-prescriptions.
Military Pharmacies Adopting E-Prescriptions
Electronic prescribing has been deployed across military pharmacies in the U.S., Guam, and Puerto Rico, according to The Bayonet & Saber. The chief of the Defense Health Agency Pharmacy Operation Division says that the new feature will make the pharmacies “more attractive” to both doctors and patients, and help the Military Health System get more closely in line with pharmacy industry best practices. Beneficiaries will be able to request that their providers look up local military pharmacies in existing e-prescribing databases or networks.
SOTU Data Security Plug Boosts Awareness
Modern Healthcare discusses the implications of President Barack Obama mentioning cybersecurity in his most recent State of the Union Address. Researcher and information security expert, Lillian Ablon, at RAND Corp sees it as an exciting time. The presidential proposal would require the Department Of Homeland Security to bring on a private entity to create the federal criteria for information sharing and analysis organizations. While the proposal is not specific to healthcare, it would certainly have an impact on the industry.
Smartphone Access Of EHR Not Common Among Doctors
Spyglass Consulting has released its report, “Point Of Care Communications For Physicians 2014,” highlighting the challenges physicians have around mobile communications use. According to the report, smartphones are used heavily by doctors (96 percent reported using devices as the primary device in clinical communications) but most still feel that hospital IT departments do not fully understand their needs. It also reported that doctors and other clinicians dislike the communications options that EHRs (electronic health records) currently offer.
CDI, ICD-10, And Revenue Cycle Management Improvement
Health IT Analytics reports on the relationship between clinical documentation improvement (CDI), ICD-10 implementation, and their impact on revenue cycle management. The article proposes that CDI is the answer to both achieving ICD-10 implementation goals, and moving toward revenue cycle targets. It also covers specific examples from Summit Healthcare Regional Medical Center that ended up saving the facility $550K in one year.
ONC’s First Chief Health Information Officer Named
National Coordinator, Karen DeSalvo, MD, MPH, MSc, announced that Michael James McCoy, MD, will become the first person to hold the position of Chief Health Information Officer at the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC). The assignment will be effective January 26, putting McCoy in charge of developing clinical policy and reports. The position also holds the responsibility of being the department expert on interoperability. McCoy is a board certified obstetrician/gynecologist with more than 20 years clinical experience, and 10 years experience in health IT, with a focus on interoperability, user experience, and person-centered care. Read more at EHR Intelligence.
Healthcare IT Talking Points
CHIME Vice President, Jeff Smith discusses the implications of the success of Meaningful Use in 2014 on the concerns around the initiative for this coming year.
With almost 82 percent of hospitals attesting in 2014 for either Stage 1 or Stage 2, many see the program as a success. Still though, the industry faces challenges in meeting tightening requirements for 2015, as it fights for flexibility, and tries to navigate a shortage of Certified EHR Technology that was initially addressed in 2014. Read more at Healthcare Informatics.
For more news and insights, visit BSMinfo’s Healthcare IT Resource Center.