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CHIME Announces New Board Members
ANN ARBOR, MI, September 19, 2014 – The College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME) is pleased to announce the election of members Myra Davis, Liz Johnson and Albert Oriol to its Board of Trustees.
Davis is the Senior Vice President of Information Management and Chief Information Officer at Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston. A member of CHIME since 2007 and the recipient of the 2013 CHIME Transformational Leadership Award, Davis has 25 years of experience leading IT.
“I feel privileged and deeply honored to have been appointed and hope to contribute to CHIME’s ongoing success so the organization and its members thrive far into the future,” said Davis. “I’d like to extend my sincere gratitude and appreciation to the CHIME Board and my colleagues for this nomination.”
Johnson RN-BC, BSN, MS is Chief Clinical Informatics Officer and Vice President of Applied Clinical Informatics at Tenet Healthcare in Dallas, Texas. A member since 2003, she has served several advisory roles for CHIME including the Advocacy Leadership Team and Policy Leadership Council. Johnson, who was recently honored with the 2014 CHIME Federal Public Policy Award, is also a faculty member of the CHIME Healthcare CIO Boot Camp. She is both a Certified Healthcare CIO (CHCIO) and CHIME Fellow, and has more than 30 years of combined executive and nursing experience.
“I am honored to serve on the board of an organization that is dedicated to enhancing our profession and the industry at large,” said Johnson. “I look forward to contributing to CHIME’s role in providing quality services and education to those leading the transformation of healthcare and working alongside such a committed and extraordinary group of professionals.”
With over 20 years of IT experience, Oriol is Vice President of Information Management and CIO at Rady Children’s Hospital and Health Center in San Diego, Calif. A CHIME member since 2006, Oriol has served on several committees including the Policy Steering Committee and Advocacy Leadership Team.
“I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to serve this outstanding organization,” said Oriol. “CHIME has meant a lot to me both professionally and personally, and I look forward to stepping up my contribution.”
CHIME is also pleased to announce the election of Frank A. Nydam to its Foundation Board of Directors.
Nydam is the Sr. Director of Healthcare Solutions and Healthcare CTO at VMware were he leads healthcare solutions, strategy and market development. He joined VMware in 2002 and has been focused primarily on the application of virtualization technologies in the Life Sciences and Healthcare Provider industry segments.
“I am honored to serve the CHIME Foundation as a member of the board,” said Nydam. “I look forward to helping ensure that the healthcare IT professionals of CHIME and the CHIME Foundation continue to work together to provide a cohesive and collaborative environment in support of enhancing our industry.”
CHIME’s newly elected Board members will begin their three-year terms January 1, 2015.
In addition, the current CHIME Board of Trustees elected officers for the 2016 board: Marc Probst, CIO and Vice President of Information Systems, Intermountain Healthcare, will serve as Chair; Indranil “Neal” Ganguly, MBA, FCHIME, CHCIO, Vice President and CIO, JKF Health System, as Treasurer; and Cara Babachicos, CHCIO, CIO and Corporate Director of Information Systems, Community Hospitals and Non-Acute sites at Partners Healthcare, as Secretary. Marc, Neal, and Cara will serve in an “elect” role next year along with the 2015 Board Officers: Chuck Christian FCHIME, LCHIME, CHCIO-Chair, Gretchen Tegethoff, FCHIME, CHCIO-Treasurer, and Pamela Arora-Secretary.
About CHIME
The College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME) is an executive organization dedicated to serving chief information officers and other senior healthcare IT leaders. With more than 1,400 CIO members and over 140 healthcare IT vendors and professional services firms, CHIME provides a highly interactive, trusted environment enabling senior professional and industry leaders to collaborate; exchange best practices; address professional development needs; and advocate the effective use of information management to improve the health and healthcare in the communities they serve. For more information, please visit www.chimecentral.org.Contact
Stephanie Fraser
Director of Communications and Corporate Relations, CHIME
734.665.0000
[email protected]Updated: 9/19/2014 9:31:37 AM
Posted 9.19.2014 -
CHIME Honors Liz Johnson with Federal Public Policy Award for CIO Leadership
ANN ARBOR, MI, September 18, 2014 – The College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME) has named Liz Johnson RN-BC, BSN, MS, FCHIME, CHCIO as the recipient of the organization’s second annual Federal Public Policy Award for CIO Leadership. Johnson is Chief Clinical Informaticist and Vice President of Applied Clinical Informatics at Tenet Healthcare in Dallas, Texas.
Johnson is being acknowledged for her active role at the Federal level in educating policy makers on the value of health IT and her commitment to furthering the advancement of EHR adoption. Johnson’s commitment extends to her service as a member of the Health Information Technology (HIT) Standards Committee, under the Office of the National Coordinator (ONC). Appointed to the position by former HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Johnson also co-chairs the HIT Standards Committee Implementation Workgroup, bringing the provider perspective to standards setting and implementation.
“Liz has demonstrated thought leadership and policy acumen over the past several years for CHIME, contributing significantly to the policy positions we’ve developed,” said CHIME Vice President of Public Policy Jeffrey Smith, MBA. “She has also been instrumental in bringing the voice of CIOs to policy decision makers in Washington.”
The award recognizes policy leadership by a CHIME member for a range of activities, including demonstrating leadership in educating policymakers on the value of health IT, testifying before federal workgroups or Congressional committees, visiting representatives, and providing feedback on federal initiatives.
“Liz has given selflessly of her time to help CHIME, her CIO colleagues, and the entire industry,” said CHIME President and CEO Russell P. Branzell, FCHIME, CHCIO. “Her vision, leadership and enthusiasm have helped to greatly advance our efforts with policy stakeholders and improve the digital transformation of healthcare. I’m thrilled that we are able to acknowledge her efforts with this award.”
Johnson has been a CHIME member since 2003 and has served in several volunteer and advisory roles for the organization, whose membership includes CIOs and other healthcare senior IT executives.
Johnson expressed appreciation for the award, emphasizing the need for organizations to be proactive in advocating for healthcare IT and healthcare delivery among lawmakers and policy makers.
“In today’s rapidly changing and complex healthcare environment – with factors such as Meaningful Use, provider consolidations, outcomes-based reimbursement, technological advances, patient engagement and security concerns – it is imperative that healthcare organizations have a voice in shaping the policies that govern our health systems and affect our patients,” Johnson said.
“CHIME gives us this voice by putting us at the table with the decision-makers to provide our input and advice. I am very proud to be a part of one of the strongest advocacy groups that is clearly geared toward representing the strategic leaders in our industry, such as our chief information officers, chief clinical informatics officers, chief security officers, and others.”
Johnson was honored during yesterday’s awards ceremony as part of National Health IT Week in Washington, D.C.
About CHIME
The College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME) is an executive organization dedicated to serving chief information officers and other senior healthcare IT leaders. With more than 1,400 CIO members and over 140 healthcare IT vendors and professional services firms, CHIME provides a highly interactive, trusted environment enabling senior professional and industry leaders to collaborate; exchange best practices; address professional development needs; and advocate the effective use of information management to improve the health and healthcare in the communities they serve. For more information, please visit www.chimecentral.org.Contact
Stephanie Fraser
Director of Communications and Corporate Relations, CHIME
734.665.0000
[email protected]Updated: 9/18/2014 8:27:18 AM
Posted 9.18.2014 -
Chadron Community Hospital Achieving Big Benefits from EHRs
ANN ARBOR, MI, September 17, 2014 – Implementing an electronic health records system took significant planning and staff involvement at Chadron (Neb.) Community Hospital and Health Services, but the organization now is achieving a range of benefits from digital records.
The Critical Access Hospital has been using its electronic health records (EHR) system for more than three years, achieving Stage 1 of the Meaningful Use program. Even clinicians who were dubious about the EHR system now depend on it, said Anna Turman CHCIO, the hospital’s CIO and COO.
In addition to having hospital records readily available, the system enables providers to gain quick access to other information that’s crucial to giving care. For example, Chadron Community’s system helps clinicians query state records to find immunization information on patients. Also, images from the hospital’s digital radiological system are accessible from the EHR.
Chadron Community’s journey to using EHRs is the subject of a new case study released by the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME), an Ann Arbor, Mich.-based professional association. The case study highlights some of the positive accomplishments of IT and CHIME members’ efforts to better serve their communities.
Chadron Community went live with its records system in July 2011, but preparations for the change started many months prior. “A great deal of work went into the planning,” said Cheryl Cassiday, Director of Nursing for Chadron Community Hospital. “We did a lot to prepare and teach staff, physicians and other providers.”
“We went from a complete paper record to completely paperless, and when you do that, the computer becomes one of the training aspects,” Turman said. “Even while preliminary planning was under way, the hospital began to offer staff classes in how to use computers and productivity software, and email was used as a tool to get workers used to communicating electronically. Our goal was to have users reach a high comfort level with technology.”
“Early on, we came to the conclusion that our sys¬tem had to be something that fit our processes, rather than something that we had to adjust our processes to,” she added. “We knew in advance there would be a lot of ‘building’ with this approach, and we encouraged front-line user involvement. An unintended benefit was a better understanding of and background in the system, which in turn developed their skills to become exceptional trainers and support.”
While communication and cross-function teamwork were easier at a smaller organization, other challenges existed. “We were using our regular full-time staff to work on this, not someone who could dedicate 100 percent of his or her time,” Cassiday said. “Still, it was a plus to have the people who are actually doing the job designing the system. They could see it from the staff perspective.”
While Chadron Community was able to attest to Stage 1 of the Meaningful Use program, it’s made slower progress toward attesting to Stage 2, Turman said.
“MU2 has been a tough haul,” she admits. “The slow progress has been disheartening for people. We had a powerful group to implement this, and we’re so proud of everyone here. It’s just a steeper path now. The biggest thing wearing us down is pushing so hard so fast with multiple high priorities. It is constant rapid cycle change of adjusting one thing to meet a requirement that creates unintended ripple effects, which create other problems that constantly adjust workflow. Staff experiences this as constant change. We are making progress but could use some breathing room to celebrate our successes.”
The case study, entitled “Chadron Community Sees Hard Work and Benefits in Implementing an EHR,” can be accessed here.
About CHIME
The College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME) is an executive organization dedicated to serving chief information officers and other senior healthcare IT leaders. With more than 1,400 CIO members and over 140 healthcare IT vendors and professional services firms, CHIME provides a highly interactive, trusted environment enabling senior professional and industry leaders to collaborate; exchange best practices; address professional development needs; and advocate the effective use of information management to improve the health and healthcare in the communities they serve. For more information, please visit www.chimecentral.org.About Chadron Community Hospital and Health Services
Chadron (Neb.) Community Hospital and Health Services provides quality healthcare to the panhandle of Nebraska and surrounding communities. The 25-bed Critical Access Hospital provides medical and surgical care, obstetrics and newborn care, emergency care, and rehabilitation services. Chadron Community Hospital was named a 2014 Most Wired winner for the second consecutive year. Chadron Community Hospital has become the first facility in Nebraska to exchange data with Nebraska Immunization NESIIS in the production environment in real-time, via PHINMS and one of the first to be able to in real time receive Nebraska State Immunization data into its health records system. For more information, visit www.chadronhospital.com.Contact
Stephanie Fraser
Director of Communications and Corporate Relations, CHIME
734.665.0000
[email protected]Updated: 9/17/2014 10:00:26 AM
Posted 9.17.2014 -
CHIME Praises Introduction of the Flexibility in Health IT Reporting (Flex-IT) Act
Statement from Russell P. Branzell, FCHIME, CHCIO, President and CEO
ANN ARBOR, MI, September 16, 2014 – This afternoon Congresswoman Renee Ellmers (R-NC) and Congressman Jim Matheson (D-UT) introduced the Flexibility in Health IT Reporting (Flex-IT) Act granting the nation’s healthcare providers the additional flexibility in meeting Meaningful Use requirements through a shortened reporting period in 2015.
CHIME commends Congresswoman Ellmers and Congressman Matheson for their immense leadership on this critically important issue following the industry’s joint call to action earlier today. The Flex-IT Act would negate the latest final rule and adjust the program reporting timeline; giving providers the option to choose any three-month quarter for EHR reporting in 2015.
The misstep by officials to require a full-year of reporting using 2014 Edition certified EHR Technology (CEHRT) in 2015 puts many eligible hospitals and physicians at risk of not meeting Meaningful Use next year and hinders the intended impact of the program. To date; only 143 hospitals have met Stage 2 to date, representing a very small percentage of the 3,800 hospitals required to be Stage 2-ready within the next 14 days.
With just two weeks remaining in the fiscal year, Congress’ swift passage of the Flex-IT Act would help hundreds of thousands of providers meet Stage 2 requirements in an effective and safe manner, and ensure long-term vitality of the program itself.
About CHIME
The College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME) is an executive organization dedicated to serving chief information officers and other senior healthcare IT leaders. With more than 1,400 CIO members and over 140 healthcare IT vendors and professional services firms, CHIME provides a highly interactive, trusted environment enabling senior professional and industry leaders to collaborate; exchange best practices; address professional development needs; and advocate the effective use of information management to improve the health and healthcare in the communities they serve. For more information, please visit www.chimecentral.org.Contact
Stephanie Fraser
Director of Communications and Corporate Relations, CHIME
734.665.0000
[email protected]Updated: 9/16/2014 5:05:56 PM
Posted 9.16.2014 -
Industry Leaders Call for Immediate Action to Amend 2015 EHR Reporting Period
ANN ARBOR, MI, September 16, 2014 – In a letter to HHS Secretary Sylvia M. Burwell, the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME), the Association of Medical Directors of Information Systems (AMDIS) and 15 other healthcare organizations issued an immediate call to action to adjust the 2015 EHR reporting period to help hundreds of thousands of providers meet Meaningful Use Stage 2 requirements in an effective and safe manner.
Responding to the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services’ (CMS) final rule on Meaningful Use flexibility, the letter states the agency’s decision to require a full-year of reporting using 2014 Edition certified EHR technology (CEHRT) in 2015 puts many eligible hospitals and physicians at risk of not meeting Meaningful Use next year and hinders the forward trajectory of the program.
“We implore you to take immediate action by shortening the 2015 EHR reporting period to 90 days and by adding flexibility in how providers meet the Stage 2 requirements,” the letter states. “The additional time and flexibility afforded by these modifications will help hundreds of thousands of providers meet Stage 2 requirements in an effective and safe manner. This will reinforce investments made to date and it will ensure continued momentum towards the goals of Stage 3, including enhanced care coordination and interoperability.”
While the final rule does provide flexibility in meeting MU requirements for 2014, most hospitals who take advantage of the new pathways will not be in a position to meet Stage 2 requirements beginning October 1, 2014 (FY 2015).
“With just two weeks to go before the start of Fiscal Year 2015, immediate attention to this requirement is essential,” said CHIME President and CEO Russell P. Branzell, FCHIME, CHCIO. “There are thousands of hospitals right now desperately trying to determine how to appropriately install and configure software for Stage 2, and how to start collecting data by the end of this month.”
The letter outlines that to date; only 143 hospitals have met Stage 2, representing a very small percentage of the 3,800 hospitals required to be Stage 2-ready within the next 14 days.
“This additional time is vitally important to ensure that hospitals and physicians continue moving forward with technology to improve patient care,” the letter states. “By making such changes, HHS would improve patient safety, without compromising momentum towards interoperability and care coordination supported by health IT.”
By adjusting the timeline, providers would have the option to choose any three-month quarter for an EHR reporting period in 2015 to qualify for Meaningful Use.
“This sensible change to the 2015 reporting period, from 365 days to 90, will ensure broad program participation and will enable providers to continue their Meaningful Use journey,” said CHIME Board Chair Randy McCleese FCHIME, LCHIME, CHCIO, Vice President of Information Services and CIO at Morehead, Kentucky-based St. Claire Regional Medical Center. “Carrying forward the 2014 policy requiring providers submit data covering one quarter of their choosing in 2015 is the right decision, and it is our hope that officials act quickly.”
CHIME leaders will reiterate this call to action as they meet with officials this week as part of National Health IT Week in Washington, D.C.
About CHIME
The College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME) is an executive organization dedicated to serving chief information officers and other senior healthcare IT leaders. With more than 1,400 CIO members and over 140 healthcare IT vendors and professional services firms, CHIME provides a highly interactive, trusted environment enabling senior professional and industry leaders to collaborate; exchange best practices; address professional development needs; and advocate the effective use of information management to improve the health and healthcare in the communities they serve. For more information, please visit www.chimecentral.org.Contact
Stephanie Fraser
Director of Communications and Corporate Relations, CHIME
734.665.0000
[email protected]Updated: 9/16/2014 7:53:03 AM
Posted 9.16.2014