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KLAS Names MRO Leader in Release of Information Services Market for Third Consecutive Year
MRO is the Category Leader for ROI in 2015/2016 Best in KLAS report
NORRISTOWN, PA – January 28, 2016 — MRO, a leader in the secure, compliant and efficient exchange of Protected Health Information (PHI), announced today it has been named Category Leader for the release of information (ROI) services market segment as part of the 2015/2016 Best in KLAS: Software & Professional Services report. This is MRO’s third year in a row receiving this honor.
Every year, KLAS researchers collect feedback from thousands of healthcare providers to provide an honest, accurate and impartial overview of vendor performance in the industry. The Category Leader award is given to the software and services vendor/solutions that have outperformed all others in their specific field. It is entirely based on provider feedback.
As the 2015/2016 Category Leader, MRO was rated No. 1 for ROI by its clients with an overall performance score of 91.9 out of 100 — the highest score among KLAS-rated vendors in that market segment. KLAS scores are weighted in the following key areas: sales and contracting; implementation and training; service and support; and general and overall services.
MRO was evaluated by a sample of healthcare providers using its ROI Online® solution. MRO’s ROI Online is a cloud-based solution that empowers healthcare organizations to drive compliance, standardize PHI disclosure processes, increase policy enforcement, decrease turnaround time, improve customer service and easily document all disclosures.
“We are ecstatic and proud to be recognized as the KLAS leader for Release of Information for the third year running,” said Steve Hynes, CEO for MRO. “Our continuously upward-trending performance scores and positive comments from clients are a testament to our unwavering focus on service, quality and innovation. We use KLAS feedback as one of the key measurements of our success, in addition to direct client feedback and our extremely high client retention rate.”
In addition to being the 2013, 2014 and 2015/2016 Category Leader for ROI, KLAS also named MRO the leader for quality and overall performance in ROI in the June 2015 HIM Services Performance 2015: Coding, Transcription, Release of Information report. In that report, 100 percent of surveyed MRO clients said they would partner with MRO again.
To review MRO’s KLAS performance data and read comments from their customers, please visit www.klasresearch.com.
About MRO
MRO empowers healthcare organizations with proven, enterprise-wide solutions for the secure, compliant and efficient exchange of Protected Health Information (PHI). These solutions include a suite of PHI disclosure management services comprised of release of information, government and commercial payer audit management and accounting of disclosures. MRO’s technology-driven services reduce the risk of improper disclosure of PHI, ensure unmatched accuracy and enhance turnaround times. MRO additionally supports its clients’ current and future initiatives, including interoperability, meaningful use and health information exchange. To learn more, visit www.mrocorp.com.Posted 1.28.2016 -
MEDITECH Recognized in 2015/2016 Best in KLAS Awards
January, 28, 2016 — For the second year in a row, global healthcare research firm KLAS has recognized MEDITECH in their annual Best in KLAS:Software & Services report.
For the 2015/2016 Best in KLAS report, MEDITECH’s C/S ranked Best in KLAS for Community HIS and the 6.x platform was rated KLAS Category Leader for Global (Non-US) Acute Care EMR in Northern America (Canada).
“We’re so proud to receive Best in KLAS Awards two years in a row,” says Helen Waters, MEDITECH Vice President of Sales and Marketing. “I’d like to thank our customers for their commitment to providing excellent care by improving quality, efficiency and safety to their communities with the use of our integrated EHR.”
Waters will accept MEDITECH’s awards at the Best in KLAS Awards Reception at HIMSS16 in Las Vegas, Feb. 29.
Posted 1.28.2016 -
Iatric Systems Named No. 1 in “Best in KLAS” Report for Patient Privacy Monitoring for Second Consecutive Year
Security Audit Manager includes privacy analytics to help improve how customers protect patient privacy
BOXFORD, MA – January 28, 2016 -– Iatric Systems, Inc. today announced that its Security Audit Manager™ product was named KLAS Category Leader in the Patient Privacy Monitoring segment of the 2015/2016 Best in KLAS Awards: Software & Services report. Security Audit Manager, which was named Category Leader in the 2014 report as well, once again received high marks in every category.
Security Audit Manager automates patient privacy monitoring through integrating and correlating data from all access to Protected Health Information (PHI) across disparate systems. It also provides alerts on potential privacy breaches, identity theft, snooping, and other suspicious activity.
With the Auditor’s Desktop™ module, Security Audit Manager provides privacy analytics, which allows the solution to learn from previous audits to help continuously make better audit determinations. Analytics capabilities help Security Audit Manager improve productivity by ranking violations within multiple audits by severity so auditors can take appropriate action.
“Proactively protecting patient privacy is becoming increasingly important, and it’s also becoming increasingly more complicated. Through Security Audit Manager and privacy analytics, Iatric Systems is helping hospitals streamline patient privacy monitoring processes and reduce the risk of a breach or other malicious activity,” said Rob Rhodes, Vice President at Iatric Systems. “With more than 10 years of experience developing and implementing Security Audit Manager, we know what to look for in EHRs to better recognize what might be a breach. This expertise has led to Iatric Systems creating unique products and processes for finding the needle in the proverbial haystack.”
Security Audit Manager, initially released in 2003, has been implemented in nearly 1,000 healthcare facilities in the US and Canada. The Iatric Systems suite of patient privacy solutions also includes Privacy Risk Manager™, which monitors the risk of business associates accessing PHI to help fight external threats to patient data.
“We’re proud to be recognized as a KLAS Category Leader for the second year in a row because it reflects customers’ confidence in the value Security Audit Manager brings to their healthcare organizations,” said Frank Fortner, President of Iatric Systems. “It is especially rewarding that 100 percent of our customers surveyed considered Security Audit Manager part of their long-term plans. While it’s exciting to be the recognized leader in solving one of the healthcare industry’s most pressing problems, it is an honor to know so many hospitals trust us with their patient privacy strategy; that’s a responsibility we take very seriously and work tirelessly to support.”
Iatric Systems will be exhibiting at the HIMSS16 tradeshow in Las Vegas, Nevada, Feb. 29-March 4 in booth #7730. To schedule a meeting, contact Iatric Systems at [email protected]. For information about the HIMSS16 conference, please visit www.himssconference.org.
About Iatric Systems
Iatric Systems is a healthcare technology company dedicated to helping healthcare organizations enhance their IT investments. They do so with their diverse healthcare experience, an extensive partner network, and their proven capabilities in patient privacy, analytics, EHR optimization, and interoperability. For more than 25 years, Iatric Systems has delivered solutions to more than 1,300 healthcare organizations. For more information, contact [email protected] or visit www.iatric.com. Connect with Iatric Systems on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.Posted 1.28.2016 -
Huntzinger Management Group Announces New Regional Sales Directors
As Regional Sales Directors, Boylan and Ehrman will be responsible for new business development and growing Huntzinger’s portfolio of healthcare clients in their respective regions. Their efforts will be concentrated on determining new client needs/requirements for Huntzinger’s entire scope of offerings including IT Advisory, Implementation and Staff Augmentation services. Both Boylan and Ehrman bring a history of business development success and credibility in delivering value-driven solutions to healthcare clients.
Jay Boylan – Regional Sales Director, Southeast
Boylan has over 25 years of combined experience in health information technology (HIT) new business development, project management and national account management with former companies such as Baxter, GE, HP and McKesson. In addition, he has full-desk recruiting experience placing C level and director level positions in the HIT market. “Jay has a proven track record of providing solutions and personnel to healthcare delivery organizations while assisting them with their strategic initiatives. He is a senior business development executive who is recognized by his peers as a leader and will be a key resource in helping us grow our company,” said Robert Kitts, CEO of Huntzinger.Boylan is a member of HIMSS and currently serves the GA chapter as Co-Chair of the Advocacy Committee. Boylan earned a BA, Government and Business Administration from Franklin & Marshall College.
Bill Ehrman – Regional Sales Director, Midwest
Ehrman’s career in IT consulting and health information technology exceeds 25 years with a concentration in providing Electronic Medical Record (EMR) implementation expertise to large hospitals and healthcare systems where he supported their needs with a broad range of senior level consultants. As a former National Account Director Ehrman was responsible for providing key project resources to assist healthcare organizations with Epic, Cerner, and other EMR systems to perform application build, testing, workflow analysis, project management and training. “Bill’s sales career is marked with many President’s Club and Pace Setter awards which are reflective of his drive to excel in supporting his client’s needs and will be a welcome addition to our growing sales organization,” added Robert Kitts.Ehrman is active in many healthcare IT associations and advocacy initiatives. He earned a B.A. Business Management from Metropolitan University, St Paul, MN.
“Both Jay and Bill have invested their entire careers in healthcare IT and have a real passion for the industry. Their backgrounds are a strong addition to our team and will provide significant value for our clients as well. We welcome Jay and Bill as we continue to work on being a preeminent force in helping our clients improve their IT performance.”
About Huntzinger Management Group, Inc. (Huntzinger)
Huntzinger provides IT Advisory, Implementation and Staff Augmentation services to the healthcare industry. Their consultants have deep healthcare experience with expertise to assist their clients in improving their IT performance. For more information, visitwww.huntzingergroup.com.Contacts
Huntzinger Management Group
Craig Kasper, VP Sales & Marketing
570.824.4721
[email protected]Posted 1.26.2016 -
Imprivata Cortext Achieves SOC 2 Certification
Distinction recognizes secure messaging platform for meeting the strictest security & safety standards; underscores Cortext’s ability to facilitate the delivery of care in a secure manner
LEXINGTON, MA – January 21, 2016 — Imprivata® (NYSE: IMPR), the healthcare IT security company, announced today that Independent service auditor, KPM & Associates, P.C. has completed an in depth security audit of the Imprivata Cortext secure messaging system and has issued an unqualified opinion that Imprivata Cortext meets the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) criteria for SOC 2 Type 1 certification, recognized worldwide as one of the strictest audit standards for service providers. SOC 2 Type 1 certification offers Imprivata Cortext customers an independent verification of the infrastructure and operating controls for a highly secure and available system.
“As concerns over cyber-attacks and data breaches continue to grow into 2016, a reliable secure messaging platform gives healthcare providers one less thing to worry about,” said Ed Gaudet, General Manager of Imprivata Cortext. “Although it’s not mandated by the industry, we sought out SOC 2 certification to ensure that Cortext meets the highest standards for security, a distinction that all service providers should aim to achieve for the safety of their customers.”
SOC 2 Type 1 certification offers Imprivata Cortext customers an independent verification of the infrastructure and operating controls for a highly secure and available system. Based on the fairness of presentation of the description, suitability of design, and the operating effectiveness of controls, the certification assures customers that Imprivata has effective systems in place to protect the data transmitted through secure messaging.
Endorsed for secure messaging by the American Hospital Association, Imprivata Cortext is the secure communication platform for healthcare that enables providers to quickly and easily communicate using their mobile device, tablet, or desktop to better coordinate care across groups and multiple affiliated sites. According to a new report from KLAS, providers considering secure messaging consider Imprivata Cortext in potential purchases twice as many times as any other strategic vendor.
About Imprivata
Imprivata® (NYSE: IMPR), the healthcare IT security company, provides healthcare organizations globally with a security and identity platform that delivers authentication management, fast access to patient information, secure communications, and positive patient identification. Imprivata enables care providers to securely and efficiently access, communicate, and transact patient health information to address critical compliance and security challenges while improving productivity and the patient experience. For more information, please visit www.imprivata.com.Media Contacts
John Hallock
617.615.7712
[email protected]Kerry Pillion
781.761.1452
[email protected]Posted 1.21.2016 -
MRO Launches MROeLink®, Suite of Health Information Technology Integrations for Automating Release of Information
Time study shows integrations cut Release of Information validation & data entry times in half: improving accuracy and efficiency
NORRISTOWN, PA – January 21, 2016 — MRO, a leader in the secure, compliant and efficient exchange of Protected Health Information (PHI), announced today the general availability of its new suite of health information technology (HIT) integrations for Release of Information (ROI) called MROeLink®. At the core of MROeLink is a direct synchronization between MRO’s PHI disclosure management platform ROI Online® and the ROI module within the Epic electronic medical record (EMR) system. Some MRO clients have already implemented the technology and report sweeping improvements in productivity.
“The traditional ROI process is highly manual, but with MROeLink, we have been able to automate every part of the ROI workflow that could be automated,” said David Borden, chief technology officer for MRO. “This is appreciated by all stakeholders: ROI staff is more efficient and their jobs are easier; health information management (HIM) leadership is pleased with improved productivity; and IT teams express positive experiences. We look forward to rolling out the solution to more clients in 2016.”
MROeLink is comprised of links between MRO’s platform and other HIT systems including the master patient index (MPI), enterprise document management (EDM) system, clinical document repository (CDR) and EMR. The list of its components includes:
- MPI patient lookup: Enables HIM staff to electronically access patient identifiers, demographics and encounter history directly within the MRO ROI Online® platform, eliminating the need for copying or retyping information.
- Request documentation archiving: Sends ROI request documentation, such as cover letters and patient authorizations, to the hospital’s EDM system, so that the hospital can retain a copy without having to scan the documentation into two systems.
- Epic ROI module interface: Automatically synchronizes requester information and delivery status between ROI Online and Epic’s ROI module. This synchronization includes MPI patient lookup and request documentation archiving, plus the following items:
- Record uploader: Moves patient records from the hospital network into the ROI Online system, streamlining the export process, bypassing EMR print server delays and minimizing the need to repeatedly switch between systems.
- Clinical document extraction: Leverages clinical document repository (CDR) standards to facilitate the sharing of CCD or C-CDA structured content. A common use case is to automatically route patient information to the Social Security Administration (SSA) to accelerate disability claim determinations.
MRO client, Beaumont Health (formerly Oakwood Healthcare) in Dearborn, Mich., transitioned from a variable step ROI processing workflow to the automated MROeLink platform in September 2015. Time studies, conducted by MRO, show Beaumont’s ROI logging times have been cut in half since deploying the technology which eliminates the need for dual data entry in Epic and ROI Online.
“The technology helped increase efficiencies in our data entry and validation process allowing us to fulfill more requests, faster” said Kathleen McKibbin, HIM operations manager for Beaumont Health. “In addition to improved productivity, we have also seen decreases in operational costs and increases in service quality, customer satisfaction and accuracy.”
MRO’s cloud-based ROI Online platform empowers healthcare organizations to standardize PHI disclosure across an organization and improve compliance, processes and efficiencies. In June 2015, KLAS named MRO the leader for quality and overall performance in ROI in the “HIM Services Performance 2015: Coding, Transcription, Release of Information” report. MRO is the reigning KLAS Category Leader for ROI (2013, 2014).
About Beaumont Health
Beaumont Health is Michigan’s largest health care system, based on inpatient admissions and net patient revenue. A not-for-profit organization, it was formed in 2014 by Beaumont Health System, Botsford Health Care and Oakwood Healthcare to provide patients with the benefit of greater access to extraordinary, compassionate care, no matter where they live in Southeast Michigan. Beaumont Health has budgeted net revenue of $4.1 billion and consists of eight hospitals with 3,337 beds, 168 outpatient sites, nearly 5,000 physicians and 35,000 employees and about 3,500 volunteers. In 2014, the combined organizations had 175,675 inpatient admissions, 16,229 births and 492,148 emergency visits. For more information, visit beaumont.org.About MRO
MRO empowers healthcare organizations with proven, enterprise-wide solutions for the secure, compliant and efficient exchange of Protected Health Information (PHI). These solutions include a suite of PHI disclosure management services comprised of release of information, government and commercial payer audit management and accounting of disclosures. MRO’s technology-driven services reduce the risk of improper disclosure of PHI, ensure unmatched accuracy and enhance turnaround times. MRO additionally supports its clients’ current and future initiatives, including interoperability, meaningful use and health information exchange. To learn more, visit www.mrocorp.com.Posted 1.21.2016 -
Inside CHIME: National Patient ID Challenge – Game On!
1.21.16 by Matthew Weinstock
Director of Communications and Public Relations, CHIMEThe wait is over. CHIME’s patient ID initiative kicks off with a bang, including endorsements by patient safety leaders and the head of ONC.
Near the end of her remarks endorsing the CHIME National Patient ID Challenge, National Patient Safety Foundation President and CEO Tejal Gandhi, M.D., succinctly framed the issue that spurred creation of a $1 million global competition: “I am here to support this initiative today because patient misidentification is a preventable event.”
It’s that simple. Or, as CHIME President and CEO Russell Branzell likes to say, we can do better.
The CHIME National Patient ID Challenge officially launched during a January 19 press conference at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. Along with Gandhi, Branzell was joined by CHIME Board of Trustees Chair Marc Probst; Nidhi Chaudhary, vice president of challenge success, HeroX, CHIME’s partner in the competition; and Karen DeSalvo, M.D., national coordinator for health information technology and acting assistant secretary, Department of Health and Human Services.
Needless to say, it was a pretty stellar lineup. Probst, Gandhi and DeSalvo put the issue of patient identification into context. Gandhi emphasized the implications on patient safety. Probst, vice president and CIO at Intermountain Healthcare, also highlighted the impact on patient care, and noted that as recently as five years ago, the Salt Lake City-based health system was spending between $4 million and $5 million annually to fix patient identification problems in their record system. Misidentification can also have a huge impact on billing and finance, he said.
For her part, DeSalvo said that the federal government can’t advance delivery system transformation on its own; the private sector needs to be a part of the solution, especially when it comes to using technology to advance better and more efficient care.
“This patient identification challenge is a perfect example of how people and organizations like CHIME can step up and show leadership and help us to get to a place that we know we all want to be,” DeSalvo said.
Citing other examples of successful challenges not just in HeroX’s past, but throughout history, Chaudhary said that these types of competitions “create a sense of urgency for critical issues and invite people with just the spark of an idea to nurture and develop it.”
Branzell acknowledged that the CHIME National Patient ID Challenge will not solve all of the problems associated with interoperability and health IT, but it is a cornerstone issue, and one that probably should have been addressed before we started down the path of digitizing healthcare.
“It will be a catalyst; a huge jump for us to change an industry and empower patients,” he said.
Click here to view the full event, which runs about 40 minutes.
Since the challenge opened on Tuesday, 43 competitors have already signed up. Click here to learn more about the challenge.
PHOTOS FROM THE PRESS CONFERENCE:
More Inside CHIME Volume 1, No. 9:
- What Do You Really Know About Your Patients? – Matthew Weinstock
- This Week’s Washington Debrief (1.18.16)
Posted 1.21.2016 -
Inside CHIME: What Do You Really Know About Your Patients?
1.21.16 by Matthew Weinstock
Director of Communications and Public Relations, CHIMEAt next month’s CHIME-HIMSS CIO Forum, Aetna’s Gary Loveman is sure to challenge health IT leaders to become more proactive in building customer loyalty.
Healthcare organizations collect a lot of data on patients, yet they know surprisingly little about their consumer base. As the industry moves toward population health, greater patient engagement and other delivery system changes, there needs to be a fundamental shift in how organizations approach data to drive consumer loyalty, says Gary Loveman, executive vice president, consumer health & services, Aetna; and president of Healthagen.
“There are a lot of forces converging as we move toward consumerism is healthcare,” Loveman told me during a recent interview. “But we are still a long way away. Everything in healthcare is organized around the product. In my previous job, if someone came to visit us, we would know everything about them. We would organize around them.”
The former chairman, CEO and president of Caesars Entertainment Corp., Loveman certainly knows a thing or two about consumer engagement. Having developed Caesar’s Wellness Rewards program, and chairing the Business Roundtable’s health and wellness committee, he’s also well versed on many of the issues facing the nation’s healthcare industry.
Loveman is one of the keynote speakers at this year’s CHIME-HIMSS CIO Forum, Monday, February 29, in Las Vegas. During his speech, “Closing the Gap: Using Analytics and Behavioral Science to Improve Health Care Quality and Efficiency,” Loveman will detail how and why healthcare organizations need to switch their mindset to become more consumer-centric.
While acknowledging that healthcare is different than gaming or retail, Loveman notes that decisions are still made by individuals whose interests and experiences shape their choices.
“Stop a 25-year-old woman on the street and ask her to define her interests in her own healthcare,” he says. “She probably won’t talk about comorbidities or renal failure. It will be fitness and wellness, or a catastrophic incident. Health is different and as we age, ideas change. Consumer-oriented organizations meet the consumer where they are at that point in their life.”
Behavioral science factors into this. Organizations could make better use of incentives to change consumer behavior. For instance, offer patients who regularly keep and make their appointments the best time slots, or have an appointment Hall of Fame. Give them the ability to cancel an appointment an hour ahead of time without penalty.
At the same time, healthcare organizations need to better understand the multitude of factors going on in a patient’s life. For instance, think about the parent scheduling visits for an autistic child. Are there other kids at home? Can the parent take a variety of shifts off of work in order to bring the child to a series of poorly coordinated appointments?
Data analytics will also play a big part in this shift. However, he says the industry needs more open platforms between all stakeholders so that there is greater information sharing.
Loveman’s speech is sure to generate spirited conversations at the CHIME-HIMSS CIO Forum, as will the other stellar lineup of speakers. The CIO Forum is only open to CHIME members. If you haven’t done so already, register now.
More Inside CHIME Volume 1, No. 9:
- National Patient ID Challenge – Game On! – Matthew Weinstock
- This Week’s Washington Debrief (1.18.16)
Posted 1.21.2016 -
Survey: Most Healthcare Organizations Unprepared for Precision Medicine
But academic medical centers are leading the way with adoption of genomics to develop more precise diagnoses & targeted therapies
SALT LAKE CITY, UT – January 20, 2016 — When President Obama announced a $215 million precision medicine initiative in his State of the Union address one year ago, many observers predicted that healthcare would quickly jump on the bandwagon. Unlike the one-size-fits-all approach to medicine, precision medicine – often called “personalized medicine” – leverages advances in genomics and analysis of large data sets to personalize care and greatly accelerate medical research and drug discoveries.
But according to a new survey of healthcare executives in hospitals nationwide, few organizations are moving to adopt precision medicine. The exception seems to be academic medical centers, which have historically led the adoption of new technologies in healthcare.
Fifty-nine percent of respondents to a survey by Health Catalyst said precision medicine will not play a significant role in their organizations in the next five years. Among respondents from non-academic hospitals and health systems, the number rises to 68 percent who say precision medicine will play an average, small or non-existent role in their organizations between now and 2020.
The online survey also revealed that few organizations are building genomics capabilities into their electronic health record (EHR) systems. Sixty-three percent of respondents overall said their organizations had no plans to integrate genomic data into their EHRs. Proponents of precision medicine envision healthcare organizations collecting and sequencing patients’ genomic data and using EHRs to generate analytical reports that physicians could use to take note of genes related to a multitude of hereditary diseases.
The survey’s EHR finding is striking considering that half (50%) of the survey respondents believe that DNA sequencing – the source of genomic data – could have a positive impact on their organizations’ patient treatment strategies. Recent advances in DNA sequencing technology have made the procedure, which cost up to $50,000 just a few years ago, relatively affordable at about $1,300, leading to broader use and important disease discoveries.
“The disconnect between the recognition that genomics holds great promise and yet the lack of preparation for precision medicine may reflect the fact that technology adoption is often driven by research efforts at major academic medical centers, with others following in their footsteps,” said David Crockett, Ph.D., Senior Director of Research and Predictive Analytics for Health Catalyst.
Survey results for respondents from academic medical centers were nearly the mirror opposite of those from smaller non-academic organizations. Seventy-one percent of the academic respondents said precision medicine will play a significant role in their organizations in the next five years, and 64 percent said they plan to integrate genomic data into their EHRs.
“This survey shows that leaders in academic medicine are already moving to adopt precision medicine but the rest of healthcare has a lot of catching up to do,” said Crockett. “We live in a remarkable era of information, when all that is known about a person—from family history and genetics to location history and environment—can be balanced against all that is known in the medical domain. This big-picture view of medical decision making can allow providers to focus both prevention and intervention on appropriate individuals, while avoiding unnecessary costs and unwanted side effects for those patients who wouldn’t benefit.”
Survey results reflect the opinions of healthcare professionals who responded to an online survey by Health Catalyst between November and December 2015. Eighty-eight percent of the respondents were healthcare executives, including several Chief Information Officers, Chief Medical Information Officers and Chief Medical Officers. The organizations represented included many well-known multi-hospital and multi-state health systems.
About Health Catalyst
Health Catalyst is a mission-driven data warehousing, analytics and outcomes-improvement company that helps healthcare organizations of all sizes perform the clinical, financial, and operational reporting and analysis needed for population health and accountable care. Their proven enterprise data warehouse (EDW) and analytics platform helps improve quality, add efficiency and lower costs in support of more than 50 million patients for organizations ranging from the largest US health system to forward-thinking physician practices. For more information, visit www.healthcatalyst.com, and follow them on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.Media Contact
Amendola Communications for Health Catalyst
Todd Stein
916.346.4213
[email protected]Posted 1.20.2016 -
Leading Healthcare IT Association Announces $1 Million Initiative to Protect Patients from Life-Threatening Medical Errors
Ann Arbor, MI, January 19, 2016 — Imagine a scenario in which a patient goes to a doctor’s office or a hospital and is misidentified or matched to the wrong medical record. Imagine a doctor making critical decisions based on someone else’s medical history. Imagine if that patient is a loved one.
Unfortunately, this scene plays itself out too often in today’s healthcare environment — potentially as high as 20 percent of the time — largely because there’s no universal way of accurately identifying a patient, regardless of where they seek care. In the past, manual processes could reduce the accuracy gap that existed, but as electronic health records become ubiquitous, the challenge takes on new dimensions.
To solve this complex problem, the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME) today launched the CHIME National Patient ID Challenge, a $1 million crowdsourcing competition encouraging innovators from around the world to develop a solution that is private, accurate and safe. CHIME has teamed with HeroX, co-founded in 2013 by XPRIZE CEO Peter Diamandis, to run the year-long competition.
“Healthcare faces some immense challenges,” said Marc Probst, vice president and chief information officer, Intermountain Healthcare, Salt Lake City; and chair of the CHIME board of trustees. “As we digitize healthcare and patients move from one care setting to another, we need to ensure with 100 percent accuracy that we identify the right patient at the right time. Anything less than that increases the risk of a medical error and can add unnecessary costs to the healthcare system.”
Probst noted that Intermountain Healthcare spends between $4 million and $5 million annually on technologies and processes to try to ensure proper patient identification. At the Mayo Clinic, each case of misidentification costs at least $1,200, according to the Office of the National Coordinator’s 2014 report, “Patient Identification and Matching: Final Report.”
As ONC reported, healthcare organizations have made strides in improving patient identification and matching, but those solutions have not been universally adopted. For instance, providers vary greatly in how they format names and addresses. Also, the quality of the data entered into systems can be mixed. Additionally, CHIME data show that hospitals differ in how they identify patients. More than 60 percent of CHIME members use some form of a unique patient identifier to match patient data within their organizations, others rely on complicated algorithms. Nearly 20 percent of CHIME members surveyed in 2012 could attribute at least one adverse medical event to incorrect patient matching.
“The National Patient Safety Foundation recognizes patient identification as an important safety issue,” said Tejal K. Gandhi, M.D., MPH, CPPS, president and CEO, NPSF. “We are pleased to see this challenge by CHIME get underway to focus attention on helping find solutions.”
With today’s launch, the CHIME National Patient ID Challenge is now open for innovators from around the world to submit solutions. In the spring, CHIME and HeroX will announce participants moving on to the Concept Blitz Round. Innovators will then further develop and refine their ideas as they prepare for judging and the Final Innovation Round. They will need to produce working prototypes of their designs. CHIME intends to announce the $1 million winner in February 2017 at the CHIME-HIMSS CIO Forum.
“HeroX is proud to be partnering with CHIME to drive the next big breakthrough in national patient identification so that we can live safer, healthier lives,” said HeroX Co-founder and CEO Christian Cotichini, who noted that incentive challenges have a history of advancing innovation in healthcare and patient safety.
“Patient mismatching and our inability to accurately identify patients across the continuum of care has been an ongoing problem for the industry,” said CHIME President and CEO Russell Branzell, FCHIME, CHCIO, who noted that federal law currently prevents the government from spending funds on a national patient identifier. “We deserve better. Our patients deserve better. We hope that this competition will bring forth a solution that ensures that we can identify patients the right way every single time. If we can achieve that, it will propel us further down the road of being able to effectively and efficiently exchange data between caregivers, improving patient safety and reducing healthcare costs.”
For more details on CHIME’s National Patient ID Challenge, please visit herox.com/PatientIDChallenge.
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 1,700 CIO members and over 150 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 chimecentral.org.About HeroX
HeroX is a platform where anyone can spur innovation and solve problems by launching a challenge. A spinoff of XPRIZE, the leading organization solving the world’s Grand Challenges by creating and managing large-scale, high profile, incentivized prize challenges, and a joint venture with City Light Capital, HeroX harnesses the power and momentum of challenge-based innovation to solve both philanthropic and commercial challenges. We provide the tools to make it easy for anyone to frame a problem and to inspire teams to compete to solve it. Everyone wants a chance to be a hero and we’ll show you how. For more information, go to HeroX.com.Contact
Matthew Weinstock
Director of Communications and Public Relations, CHIME
734.249.8917
[email protected]Posted 1.19.2016 -
St George Hospital Selects Spok for Timely Delivery of Radiology Results to Smartphones
PERTH, AU – January 13, 2016 (BUSINESS WIRE) — Spok today announced that St George Hospital in Sydney, Australia, has selected Spok® solutions for Radiology result notification and web directory to improve clinician communications and patient care. By sending all Radiology test results directly to the requesting clinicians’ smartphones, the solutions help St George improve turnaround time for communicating the findings—thus accelerating patient treatment plans and care.
St George Hospital wanted a system to allow Radiology to automatically communicate the report to the requesting doctor in addition to sending the report to the electronic medical record (eMR). “With Spok solutions in place, all Radiology test results, including Preliminary and Authorised results, are automatically sent to the doctor who requested the test,” said Dr. Derek Glenn, Director of Radiology for St George Hospital.
The Spok Mobile secure smartphone messaging app encrypts messages from the Radiology Information System (RIS) and sends them to the requesting clinician. The test results reach the right clinician’s preferred device based on the requesting doctor identity received from the eMR and the list of matching registered users in the secure Spok directory. Spok Mobile enables St George Hospital’s clinicians to accept or reject the notifications and securely forward messages to other registered clinicians as needed.
“We needed a way to measure the turnaround time it takes for requesting clinicians to actually receive and acknowledge test results after they are made available. The reporting and audit trail capabilities of Spok’s solutions give us a clear view of the communications from start to finish,” said Dr. Glenn.
St George Hospital’s Department of Radiology also uses Spok’s Radiology result notification solution to notify referring clinicians when images are available in the system, before the report is generated. “This was a request from the referring community that we hadn’t considered before. Keeping doctors up-to-date on where their patients are in the imaging chain goes a long way in expediting the patient journey. This means that the requesting doctor receives an automatically generated ‘Images Available’ message as soon as the images are created,” said Dr. Glenn.
About St George Hospital
As part of South Eastern Sydney Local Health District (SESLHD) in Australia, St George Hospital is the major teaching hospital for University of New South Wales. The 627-bed hospital provides Level 1 Trauma care for the district and has one of the busiest emergency departments in the state, providing care for many. In addition, St George Hospital offers comprehensive services to the community including many centres of excellence. Learn more about St George Hospital at www.seslhd.health.nsw.gov.au/SGH/.About Spok
Spok, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Spok Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: SPOK), is proud to be a leader in critical communications for healthcare, government, public safety, and other industries. They deliver smart, reliable solutions to help protect the health, well-being, and safety of people around the globe. Organisations worldwide rely on Spok for workflow improvement, secure texting, paging services, contact centre optimisation, and public safety response. When communications matter, Spok delivers. Visit them at spok.com/apac or find them on Twitter @Spok_APAC.Spok is a trademark of Spok Holdings, Inc. Spok Mobile is a trademark of Spok, Inc.
Posted 1.14.2016 -
Sunquest Information Systems Expands Executive Team to Support Growth and Innovation
Strategic hires support expansion in precision medicine & community connectivity
Tucson, AZ – January 12, 2015 — Sunquest Information Systems Inc. today announced the addition of three new leaders to the company’s executive team. These additions will support acquisitions and planned growth in precision medicine and community connectivity.
Sunquest’s parent company Roper Technologies’ recent acquisitions of Data Innovations, Atlas Medical and CliniSys Group will bring new capabilities to the Sunquest portfolio, improving laboratory connectivity with the diagnostic care community. Additionally, Sunquest is co-owner of a genetics information system, GeneInsight, as part of a strategic alliance with Partners HealthCare. The company believes these investments will better equip their clients to respond to reimbursement changes and market needs such as population health.
“The constantly evolving needs of our clients demand a partner that can be nimble and help them solve their most pressing business challenges,” said Matthew Hawkins, president of Sunquest. “Innovation in genetics and connectivity are key to positioning Sunquest as that partner. With the right technology, laboratories can enable precise and improved healthcare across the care community.”
New Sunquest executives include:
- Rob Atlas, founder of Atlas Medical and Sunquest’s senior vice president of strategic solutions – As a well-known and respected industry expert, he will work to expand Sunquest expertise outside of the hospital lab and further enhance connectivity to diagnostic care communities.
- Tom Arena, senior vice president of North American sales – Arena recently served as the chief growth officer for General Genetics and held leadership positions at hc1.com, Solstas Lab Partners and Accumen (formerly aLabs). His experience will guide Sunquest’s growth efforts and increase traction with the GeneInsight platform.
- Andrew Branski, Sunquest’s new vice president of finance – Branski will enable Sunquest to advance as a market-leading, global organization – built upon a foundation of financial rigor and discipline. Branski comes to Sunquest from GE Healthcare, where he led all commercial finance activities for one of their primary software divisions.
“As we move to further innovate and realize our mission of smarter healthcare and safer patients, we need the right leaders to ensure our success. We are confident that the experience and knowledge they each bring will be an invaluable addition to Sunquest and our clients,” said Hawkins.
For more about Sunquest and its management team, please visit www.sunquestinfo.com/company/executive-team/.
About Sunquest Information Systems
Sunquest Information Systems Inc. provides diagnostic and laboratory information systems to more than 1,700 laboratories. For the past 30 years, Sunquest has delivered solutions that optimize financial results, enhance efficiency and improve the quality of patient care. The company’s pathology-focused mission, outreach awareness and point of care solutions establish Sunquest as a leader in the healthcare technology industry. Headquartered in Tucson, AZ, Sunquest also has offices in the United Kingdom and India.Posted 1.13.2016
