Nationwide Health Info Network Progress
With the release of a Request for Information (RFI) earlier this month, HHS signaled advancement of the Nationwide Health Information Network (NHIN). According to HHS.gov, the network is a set of standards, services and policies that support trusted health information exchange nationwide. The RFI seeks public comment on NHIN governance, a requirement of the NHIN sponsoring legislation, the...
Read MoreNew US CTO to Push EHR in the Cloud?
With the White House announcement of Todd Park, HHS Chief Technology Officer (CTO), as the new U.S. CTO, we could see federal EHR initiatives focus more specifically on the cloud. Prior to serving as HHS CTO from 2009 to 2012, Mr. Park founded athenahealth with partner Jonathan S. Bush. The partners had worked at the same consulting firm and both attended Harvard University. Despite leaving the...
Read MoreHealth IT Workforce Shortage?
Widely publicized studies predict a healthcare workforce shortage over the next 8-10 years. Numbers from The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) indicate that the Health IT workforce accounts for a significant portion of the shortfall. The BLS estimates that 51,000 health IT professionals are needed to meet projected growth in the Health IT industry. The federal government is fueling the growth...
Read MoreEHR: Even in a Disaster Environment
When the life is upset by natural disaster, war and other events, documenting medical care and saving that information for future reference can be both highly beneficial to patient care and highly problematic. Two recent examples of this situation are Hurricane Katrina and the war in Afghanistan. Electronic Health Records (EHRs) have been shown to facilitate quality patient care as noted in our...
Read MoreStaffing: Recruit, Train and Retain
In 2008 Forbes named healthcare the largest and fastest growing industry in the nation. While other industries are shrinking, the healthcare industry continues to make strides in growth. According to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics (BLS), the healthcare industry supports approximately 14.3 million jobs. Furthermore, the BLS states the healthcare sector grew by 720,000 jobs from December...
Read More