Friday, April 26, 2013

HIMSSNYS MINI-HIMSS 2013 has begun

Looking forward to learn and network
@HIMSSNYS@NYeHealth

Thursday, April 25, 2013

NYS Patient Portal Challenge NYC Demo Day

Looking forward to seeing you there! SV

The New York eHealth Collaborative is looking to provide 19.5 million New Yorkers with safe and secure access to their records through the statewide health information exchange via an online portal, essentially a website where New Yorkers will be able to log in and access their health data. In order to design the best possible and most user-friendly portal interface, the New York eHealth Collaborative (NYeC) launched the Patient Portal for New Yorkers Design Challenge, asking the country’s talented developers and designers to create innovative prototypes that showcase the information that can be made available to patients accessing the statewide health information exchange. The public will have a say in selecting top finalists during a public voting phase that will take place from April 13 – 23, 2013.
The Patient Portal for New Yorkers Design Challenge will culminate in two ‘Demo Days’ taking place in NYC (April 30th) and Buffalo (May 2nd) that will include live presentations by the 10 finalists chosen during the public voting phase. We invite you to join us for these demo days to support these incredible innovators! Register for the NYC demo day using the link below.

Register for April 30!

Venue

Arena NYC

135 West 41st Street
(6th Ave. & Bway)
New York NY 10036
Map and Directions
 

3:00pm

Doors Open

Doors will open at 3pm. Make sure to arrive early so you can get a good seat!
3:15pm

Welcome Remarks

Welcome remarks from New York eHealth Collaborative and partners.
3:30pm

Presentations From Top Finalists

From 3:30 - 6pm, check out what the top finalists have to offer for New York's patient portal! Each presenter will have 5 - 7 minutes followed by Q&A from the judges.
6:00pm

Networking Session

Celebrate the evening with a networking session from 6 - 7pm, complete with an open bar and Hors d'oeuvres!

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

CMS: A RECORD OF PROGRESS ON HEALTH INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY April 2013



Here is the CMS retrospective of the progress made to date in the US.

We all need to to stay involved and participate in the many forums to help shape the future of HIT. SV

CMS

BACKGROUND:

In 2009, the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act, a part of the Recovery Act, created the Medicare and Medicaid Electronic Health Records (EHR) Incentive Programs to promote the adoption of EHRs in support of the ultimate goals of improving the quality of patient care and reducing health costs. Through this program, eligible hospitals and doctors earn incentives by demonstrating “meaningful use” of certified technology, which means that health care providers use EHRs in ways that improve care and lower costs. Examples of “meaningful use” include electronic prescribing of medications and ensuring patients have access to their digital records. 

In addition to providing incentive payments, the HITECH Act calls for assistance and technical support to help providers implement EHRs, enables coordination within and among states to support the implementation of EHRs, and develops a properly trained health IT workforce to support providers in becoming meaningful users of certified EHRs.

These programs, administered by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Office of the National Coordinator of Health Information Technology (ONC), are building the foundation for every American to benefit from an EHR as part of a modernized, interconnected, and improved system of care delivery. By putting in place EHR systems that meet rigorous functionality and ease-of-use standards, providers and patients will reap tangible benefits in quality and affordability. These include easy access to health records and data, reminders and alerts for providers and patients, and reductions in medical errors.

The Affordable Care Act includes numerous reforms to improve the quality of health care and lowers costs for taxpayers and patients. Health IT is critical to implementing and making these new payment and delivery models work. Health IT provides the kind of smart data and analytics that is already helping programs such as Accountable Care Organizations, bundled payments, patient-centered medical homes, and value-based purchasing. For example, CMS has reported a significant decrease in the hospital readmission rate of Medicare patients returning to the hospital after being discharged. After fluctuating between 18.5 percent and 19.5 percent for the past five years, the 30-day all-cause readmission rate dropped to 17.8 percent in the final quarter of 2012, preventing 70,000 readmissions last year. Health IT enabled hospitals to measure and achieve these results.

PROGRESS TO DATE:

  1. Robust Participation in the EHR Incentive Programs:
    • Hospital Participation: More than 85 percent of eligible hospitals are participating in the Medicare and Medicaid EHR Incentive Programs, and more than 75 percent have received incentive payments for meaningfully using EHR technology as of March 2013.
    • Physicians and other Health Care Provider Participation: More than 388,000 of the nation’s eligible professionals have registered to participate in the Medicare and Medicaid EHR Incentive Programs, representing 73 percent of all providers eligible to participate. More than 230,000, or 44 percent of all eligible professionals, have received an EHR incentive payment for meaningfully using EHR technology as of March 2013.
    • Assistance from Regional Extension Centers: HITECH funds established 62 Health Information Technology Regional Extension Centers (RECs) to offer technical assistance and guidance that is critical to accelerating the provider adoption and meaningful use of EHRs, particularly in rural areas and other underserved settings.
      • RECs are providing assistance and support to more than 44 percent (130,000) of primary care providers and 48 percent (20,000) of Nurse Practitioners nationwide.
      • More than 80 percent of all Federally Qualified Health Centers are enrolled with a REC.
    • Effect on the Health IT Marketplace: Federal investment and standard setting have helped to create a robust market for eHealth IT products. As of March 2013, there are 941 vendors providing more than 1,700 unique certified EHR products.
  2. Rapid Adoption of Advanced Technology: Survey data shows that the HITECH Act has dramatically accelerated providers’ use of key health IT capabilities nationwide:
    • E-Prescribing: Office-based physicians’ use of e-prescribing has increased from 0.8 percent in December 2006 to 53 percent through January 2013, and more than 94 percent of all pharmacies are now actively e-prescribing.
    • Hospitals:  between 2008 and 2012, the number of hospitals using EHR systems with certain advanced functionalities that go even beyond the requirements of Meaningful Use Stage 1 (including physician clinical notes and electronic imaging results) more than quadrupled from 9.4 percent to 44 percent.  
    • Doctors: Physician adoption of EHR systems with the same advanced functionalities more than doubled between 2008 and 2012, from 17 percent to 40 percent.

  • Economic Impact:
    • According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, more than 50,000 health IT-related jobs have been created since HITECH was enacted.
    • As of January 2013, community colleges have trained 17,049 professionals in health IT, and as of September 2012, universities had graduated over 820 post-graduate and masters-level health IT professionals. This is the result of four ONC-supported workforce development programs that are helping to train the new health IT workforce to meet the increased demand for these workers.
    • As of February 2013, the Medicare and Medicaid EHR Incentive Programs have paid $12.6 billion in incentives to hospitals, doctors, and other health care professionals.


OTHER KEY HITECH PROGRAMS AND INITIATIVES:

  • Beacon Community Program: This grant program funds 17 pioneering communities across the country that are using health IT as a foundation for bringing together doctors, hospitals, local health program administrators, and patients to achieve measurable improvements in health care quality, safety, efficiency, and population health. For example, the Beacon Communities in the Mississippi Delta and Southeast Michigan are working to improve diabetes care through the use of IT-enabled care management and coordination strategies. The Keystone Beacon in Pennsylvania and the San Diego and Maine Beacon Communities are using health IT to reduce emergency department visits and hospital admissions and readmissions.
  • State Health Information Exchange Program: This grant program supports efforts in 56 states and territories to set up health information exchange (HIE) capability among clinicians and hospitals within and across state lines.  The 56 HIE entities are increasing the connectivity of health information between providers to help improve the quality and efficiency of care.
  • Medicaid funding for Health Information Exchanges: This program provides administrative funding to help states build HIT infrastructure and support enrollment of providers in the Medicaid program. States must demonstrate a sustainable HIE business model to qualify for funding.  This program facilitates the adoption and use of HIE and helps Medicaid providers meet meaningful use criteria.
  • Strategic Health IT Advanced Research Projects (SHARP) Program: This grant program funds innovations in health IT to address well-documented problems that have impeded HIT adoption in areas such as health IT security and the secondary use of EHR data.

MOVING FORWARD

HHS recently announced a plan to accelerate health information exchange (HIE) development and build a seamless and secure flow of information essential to transforming the health care system in 2013.  Steps include:

  • Setting Aggressive Goals for 2013: HHS is setting the goal of 50 percent of physician offices using EHRs and 80 percent of eligible hospitals receiving meaningful use incentive payments for using EHR technology by the end of 2013. 

  • Increasing the Emphasis on Interoperability: HHS will increase its emphasis on ensuring electronic exchange between providers and across settings of care. We will leverage HHS programs and resources to promote interoperability through multiple channels.   Recently, we issued a request for information (RFI) seeking public input on policies that will strengthen the business case for electronic exchange between providers to ensure that patients’ health information will follow them seamlessly and securely wherever they access care.

  • Enhancing the Effective Use of EHRs through Initiatives similar to the Blue Button Initiative:  Today, Medicare beneficiaries can access their full Medicare records online.  HHS is also encouraging Medicare Advantage plans to expand the use of Blue Button to provide beneficiaries with one-click secure access to their health information. An HHS challenge facilitated the creation of an app that makes information downloaded from Blue Button easy for a patient to understand and use. HHS is also working with the Veterans Administration and more than 450 different organizations to adopt initiatives similar to Blue Button to make health information available to patients and health plan members. 

  • Implementing Stage 2 of Meaningful Use:  HHS is implementing the next stage of the Medicare and Medicaid EHR Incentive Programs, which focuses on increasing health information exchange between providers and promoting patient engagement by giving patients secure online access to their health information.

  • Highlighting Program Integrity: HHS is taking new steps to ensure the integrity of EHR Incentive Programs and that technology is not being used to promote fraudulent activity. For example, CMS has implemented audits of providers and hospitals who have adopted health IT.  CMS is also working with state program integrity directors to establish new strategies focused on claims and clinical data from these providers. In addition, EHR technology is creating spillover benefits for program integrity in other federal programs: the Social Security Administration reports that Disability Insurance initial decisions are 21 percent faster for cases based on electronic medical evidence, with greater accuracy than paper records.

CMS has also launched its eHealth initiative  to align existing Medicare and Medicaid quality measurement programs (e.g., Physician Quality Reporting System, Hospital Inpatient Quality Reporting), EHR standards and usage requirements through the EHR Incentive Programs, ICD-10 implementation, and other health IT-focused efforts to better support the ultimate goals of improving the quality of patient care and reducing health costs. With the increased use of EHRs, providers now have the ability to use standardized processes to send quality clinical data to Health Information Exchanges, state Medicaid agencies, and CMS.

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Wednesday, April 17, 2013

PharmEHR Summit 2013 #9

EHRs-Transforming the Physician and Patient Interaction

Moderator, Rich Altus

Physician Panel

PharmEHR Summit 2013 #8

Communicating with Prescribers inside EHRs:Insights from the Interface
#pharmehr

Barbara Senich, Marketing and Business Line Management, PDR
Vita Larkin, Principle, Vital Market Research

. Demographics
. Internal Medicine, general and subspecialists, engage with patients more, engage with Pharma reps less
. A Day in the Prescriber's Life, EHR centric
. EHRis like Outlook
. Under a severe time crunch
. Struggling with Integrated Technology
. Still wary of Electronic Communication with Patients
. Two major segments: enthusiastic acceptors and begrudging acceptors
. Patient Engagement: Technology even used in the exam room to share information
. Content must be deemed valuable and clinical valuable within the workflow from a trustworthy source

. Over 25 physician support features were evaluated
. Most valuable; full drug label and dosing information
. Leaset valuable: side effect by body system, condition image database

PDR Brief: Clicks and Motion Time Study
. using Brief reduced clicks by 65% compared to a Google search
. twice as many physicians were able to find safety and REMS information
. 70% of Prescribers welcomed BRIEF

. Research to help Prescribers Increase Patient Understanding and Engagement

PharmEHR Summit 2013 #7

EHRs: The Clinician's Perspective, #pharmehr

Michael Golub MD,CMO,Digitas Health

. Malcom Gladwell, Outliers, 10,000 hours of intensive training/effort can help make one an expert
. EHRs help make evidence based medicine a reality
. Usability is the key to success, compare Apple Newton vs Apple iPad
. ARRA and Hitech are a pradigm shift

PharmEHR Summit 2013 #6

Crossing the Chasm: Successful Navigation Through Medical-Legal-Regulatory
Review for Digital Innovations, #pharmehr

Moderator: Jennifer Russo, Sr Director

Panel Discussion
Dr Mukesh Mehta, Jeff Davis, Andrew Gelman

.EHRs are a strategic imperative
.PDR Brief: current prescribing information useable and easily accessible, treatment triggered only have a decision has been made, prescriber-designed dashboard
.FDA, Janet Woodcock has stated that the full prescribing information be made available in the EHR
.Value to Pharma partners is value to the prescribers to provide care

PharmEHR Summit 2013 #5

EHRs: The View from Wall Street, #pharmehr

Sean Wieland, Sr Research Analyst
Ed Fotsch MD, Executive Chairman

.You can't buy Epic
. Most "certified" EHRs based on 20+ year old technology
. Massive upgrade opportunity to move client/server to the Cloud, Mobile, Social,
. Big data is the solution looking for the problem, from Retail to Healthcare: comparative effectiveness research
. ACOs differ from prior attempts at capitation is access is access to timely data
. ACOs injects competition in a market that was formally "cost plus"
. ACOs will drive EHR adoption
. Common Well: Google model: multiple data silos from which to search; data has to become a commodity
. Epic is written in Mumps, relies on a datawarehouse

PharmEHR Summit 2013 #4

EHRs: A Tool for Patient Communications and  Education

Dr Brian McDonough CMO St Francis Hospital,  TV/Radio expert, #pharmehr

. Social media, to practice, to promote and to learn
. Inconsistent data on Docs using Social Media
, 25% of doctors use social media daily to scan for new medical information
. 61% of patients trust data posted by physicians posted on social media

Pharma Panel Discussion

Delivering Solutions and Services in the Exam Room

.Patient education material is highly desired (51%) according Manhattan Research: Taking the Pulse 2012
. Letting prescribers know that they can prescribe more than a pill, ie. education medication adherence, financial assistance, clinical trials
. Brand name versions of medications providing support for education, adherence, financial assistance and clinical trials are additional "value added" that one may want to consider when comparing brand versus generic medications
. You are more likely to survive a plane crash than click on a banner ad (Solve Media)
. One survey of patients showed that a majority wanted educational tips or information to help live a better life.

PharmEHR Summit April 2013 #3

EHRs Changing How Healthcare is Delivered- Implications for providers, patients and everyone else
#pharmehr

Andrew Gelman introduces the panel
Dr Steve Merahn, moderator
Charlie Jarvis
Kamal Hashmat
Chris Reilly
Paula Brucker

PharmEHR Summit April 2013, #2

Dr Ed Fotsch, Exeutive Chairman PDR and Dr Douglas Gentile, Allscripts CMO

EHR Adoption, Meaningful Use and Patient Engagement Requirements,
#PharmEHR

Douglas Gentile
. recommends Pharma focus on "selling" solutions to providers instead of drugs
. patient portals and information needs to be personalized
. mobile solutions are key
. Social networks will be important
.ROI: for providers reduced paperwork
.Chronic disease is biggest problem in the USA
. Mint.com

Ed Fotsch
. Meaningful Use: patient education needs to patient specific
. drugs change more often than diagnosis
. automate in workflow solutions for Infobutton
. providers want : free, trusted, info button enabled, integrated, regularly updated
. many providers are not aware of Meaningful Use 2 requirements
. patient information should be contextual vs referential
. key benefits of patient portals reviewed: medication adherence, feedback from enduser (the patient),  notification of medication and device recalls, address the last Mile Problem
.

PharmEHR Summit April 17 2013

Richard Altus, President, gave highlights of EHR adoption, usage, patient adoption of patient portals.#PharmEHR

Thursday, April 11, 2013

NYS Patient Portal Design Voting begins Saturday

Here is a chance for New Yorkers to get more involved in their healthcare future. SV

New York eHealth Collaborative Asks New Yorkers to Help Shape State's Healthcare Future -- Vote on Patient Portal for New Yorkers PrototypesPublic Voting for Patient Portal Designs Begins Online April 13th

NEW YORK, April 10, 2013 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- The New York eHealth Collaborative (NYeC) announced today that starting April 13th, New Yorkers across the state are invited and encouraged to start voting for their favorite Patient Portal designs online at: www.patientportalfornewyorkers.org. Once built, the portal will be a website where New Yorkers can securely access their healthcare records from their healthcare providers. The portal will begin to be available to the public in 2014.

To build an innovative design that New Yorkers can easily use, NYeC ran a design challenge, asking designers and developers to submit portal prototypes. Now, the general public is being asked to vote on which designs they like best--helping to shape the future of healthcare in New York State.

"The Patient Portal was created with one goal in mind: to make it easier for any patient to access their medical records online," said David Whitlinger, Executive Director of the New York eHealth Collaborative. "The Patient Portal is being designed by New Yorkers, for New Yorkers, tapping into the innovative, creative, and community spirit of New Yorkers."

New Yorkers will have from April 13th until April 23rd to vote for their favorite portals based on user friendliness, format, and design. The prototypes with the strongest responses will be invited to present their project at two different public presentations--New York City, NY on April 30th, and Buffalo, NY on May 2nd.

After first, second, and third place winners are announced in early May, NYeC will begin building the portal and coordinate its function on top of the Statewide Health Information Network of New York (SHIN-NY), a secure network for sharing clinical patient data across New York State via Regional Health Information Organizations.

The Patient Portal for New Yorkers will allow New Yorkers full access to their health records online safely and securely. Once patients log into the portal, they will be able see a list of people who have viewed their medical records, as well as grant access to select providers to view their medical records online. The final Patient Portal will comply with all national and federal policies and standards to ensure that all personal health data and information remains private and secure.

"The Patient Portal, by enhancing the effectiveness and efficiency of health records access, is a prime example of how health IT informs and empowers patients and improves healthcare delivery," said Nirav R. Shah, M.D., M.P.H., New York State Commissioner of Health.
For more information, and to vote for your favorite portal, please visit www.patientportalfornewyorkers.org.

About The New York eHealth Collaborative (NYeC): NYeC is a not-for-profit organization, working in partnership with the New York State Department of Health to improve healthcare for all New Yorkers through health information technology (health IT). Founded in 2006 by healthcare leaders, NYeC receives funding from state and federal grants to serve as the focal point for health IT in the State of New York. NYeC works to develop policies and standards, to assist healthcare providers in making the shift to electronic health records, and to coordinate the creation of the Statewide Health Information Network of New York (SHIN-NY), a network to connect healthcare providers statewide. For more information about NYeC, visit www.nyehealth.org and @NYeHealth.

Thursday, April 04, 2013

2013 Annual HIMSS NYS Conference: Health IT - When Disaster Strikes

I encourage you attend this timely event and learn more about the HIMSS NYS Chapter. SV


2013 Annual HIMSS NYS Conference
Health IT - When Disaster Strikes

Register Today!

Date: Friday, April 26, 2013
Location: Lighthouse International, 111 E 59th St (between Park & Lexington), New York, NY 10022

The annual HIMSS New York State conference is one of the premier gatherings for those interested in health information technology in our state. This year's focus will be the role of Health IT in disaster preparation. New for this year are separate afternoon tracks for nurses, pharmacists, and physicians.

Register today!

8–9 AM Continental Breakfast/Registration

9–9:15 AM Welcome/Intro: Joe Wagner, President, HIMSS New York State Chapter

9:15-10:15 AM Keynote Speaker: Dave Whitlinger, Executive Director, New York eHealth Collaborative

10:15-11:45 AM Panel Discussion: Moderator: Anthony Ferrante; Bert Robles, CIO, New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation; James Song, Vice President, IT Infrastructure Engineering & Operations for NYU Langone Medical Center; Kristen Myers, Mt. Sinai; Sam Benson, Assistant Operations Section Chief for DR-4085 New York (Hurricane Sandy)

11:45–1:30 PM Lunch/Vendor Fair

Breakout sessions:

Central Park Room: Physician Track
  • 1:30-2:30 PM: Hurricane Sandy
  • Moderator: Wen Dombrowski, MD; Brooklyn - Lisa Eng, DO, President of the Medical Society of the County of Kings; Addabbo Family Health Center - Jinpin Ying, PhD, CIO of Addabbo Family Health Center; Langone NYU Medical Center - Sheryl Bushman, MD, CMIO, NYU Langone Medical Center; Perspective from a Small Practice - Sal Volpe, MD, Private practice, Staten Island

  • 2:30-3:30 PM: Meaningful Use
  • Moderator: Sal Volpe, MD; Our Medicaid Audit - Jitendra Barmecha, MD, St. Barnabas Hospital; e-Measures - Alice Loveys, MD, IT Practice Consulting; Patient Engagement: Isn't There an App for That? - Ken Ong, MD, MPH, CMIO, New York Hospital Queens

  • 3:30 - 4:30 PM: Controversies in Health I.T. - Open Discussion Moderator: Ken Ong, MD, MPH

Bryant Park Room: Pharmacy Track
  • 1:30 - 2:30 PM: NYSDA response to physical loss - Deb Weisfuse

  • 2:30 – 3:30 PM: Utilizing Normal Business Processes to Enhance Situational Awareness in Disaster - Erin Mullin

  • 3:30 – 4:30 PM: Pharmacy Engagement: Lessons Learned from Sandy - Vibhuti Arya

Battery Park Room: Technology Track
  • 1:30 – 2:30 PM HealthIx: After Disaster Strikes - Tom Check, CIO, HealthIX

  • 2:30 – 3:30 PM HIE’S as a driver for growth: Dr. Dan Newman

  • 3:30 - 4:30 PM: How a NY Firm Went to the Cloud to Recover from Hurricane Sandy - Shelagh Montgomery, EVP Strategic Client Management, QTS and Aditya Joglekar, Director of Cloud Services, QTS
Please join us for a day of education followed by a relaxing reception to end the day.

Registration fees:
  • Student $25
  • HIMSS-Member $175
  • Co-Sponsor $175
  • Non-HIMSS Member $200

Register today!

NYec Summits:Beyond EHRs: Information Exchange and Your Practice

I strongly encourage readers in the Tri-State area to attend. SV

Summits

Beyond EHRs: Information Exchange and Your Practice


The 2013 Summit Series will bring together some of the best resources in your region to help answer questions about how EHRs and your Regional Health Information Exchange (the RHIO) can benefit your organization.
Learn from those with first-hand experience about the Statewide Health Information Network of New York (SHIN-NY), and what resources are available locally to help you and your patients benefit from it.
Summits will be held across the state at locations near you.
Ask questions. Get answers. Get connected.