10/28/09
For the Record
A Coding Balancing Act
The industry wide initiative to implement new HIT has added to the pressure facing coders who are learning new systems or working at facilities where records are partially electronic and partially on paper. During these transitions, they are still expected to uphold the primary directive of “do it all, do it fast, and do it right.” “I describe it as standing between a rock and a hard place with both sides beating on me,” Sturgeon says.

10/28/09
JournalTimes.com
Medical screening: Health care providers see savings, quality in switch to electronic medical records
The age of medicine on paper is not over, but it is passing and will pass more quickly because of the incentives which came along earlier this year in the federal stimulus bill. Simply put, medical providers must have electronic records systems in place by 2015. There are financial incentives to meet the deadline, and penalties for those who don’t.

10/28/09
NetworkWorld
Disaster Can Inspire Quick Move to Desktop Virtualization
Most companies that launch or rapidly increase their use of virtual desktops do it to cut their support costs or increase security. Many are now also considering virtual desktops as a way to migrate to Windows 7 with a minimum of cost and hassle, according to analysts. But sometimes, Mother Nature provides her own impetus for virtualization. A major disaster led the University of Texas Medical Branch-a sprawling campus of hospital and office buildings in Galveston plus a spray of clinics and smaller facilities all over Texas-to shift virtual desktops from a fringe technology to its main platform.

10/28/09
Reuters
Wellness Program Popularity Shakes Up U.S. Healthcare Markets
MarketResearch.com has announced the addition of Kalorama Information’s
new report, “The Market for Wellness Programs and Their Impact on
Pharmaceutical, Diagnostic and Device Product Markets,” to their
collection of Healthcare market reports.

10/28/09
The Sun
Kaiser Permanente has a long history in computerized patient records
Quick, accurate, thorough are hallmarks of the HealthConnect electronic record system, said Ku, a family medical practice doctor who also teaches other Kaiser Permanente doctors from Chino to Redlands and Victorville the finer points of the world’s largest civilian electronic health record system. HealthConnect allows Kaiser Permanente’s 14,000-plus physicians to electronically access the medical records of the health care system’s 8.6 million members nationwide.

10/23/09
Washington Technology
VA and industry join to develop health record strategy
VistA provides each military veteran with a digital medical record. The VA began developing and managing the system 25 years ago and uses it at its 153 hospitals and 768 outpatient clinics. The Indian Health Service also uses VistA. The task force will not be involved in deciding whether VA should deploy the system more broadly; that is beyond its purview, according to IAC. It will consider whether any wider deployment would best be performed with open-source code, cloud computing or some other business model, and will try to determine the effects of deploying VistA on private industry, the health care community and other key groups.

10/23/09
Web Newswire
American Hospital Association (AHA) names OnBase “RACTrac Compatible”
Lacking information about how RACs will impact hospitals, the AHA responded by creating RACTrac. Using RACTrac Compatible solutions, the program will collect RAC data quarterly. This will allow the AHA to evaluate why claims are being denied across regions and nationally. With this information, providers will be educated on what areas they should look at more closely and where specifically they need to improve. Also, the data will serve as evidence to propose RAC program changes to Congress.

10/21/09
Yahoo! Canada
Belluck & Fox Obtains $1.5 Million Mesothelioma Verdict And Punitive Damages Against Fisher Controls International
Belluck & Fox represented the family of Ronald Drabczyk, a factory worker at a chemical plant in Niagara Falls, NY. Drabczyk died from mesothelioma, a form of cancer caused by exposure to asbestos.

10/21/09
Yahoo! Finance – News & Opinion
Reportlinker Adds Global Healthcare Information Technology (2009 - 2014)
Reportlinker.com announces that a new market research report is available in its catalogue. The market research report analyses the key trends in global the healthcare information technology market, and segments it into various submarkets as per their sizes in various geographies. It also analyzes the key market drivers, restraints, and opportunities of the global healthcare IT market.
The global healthcare information technology market is estimated to be $53.8 billion in 2014. The market is expected to grow at a high CAGR of 16.1% (from 2009 to 2014) because of government initiatives to reduce healthcare costs; and the tremendous demand for healthcare IT applications such as electronic medical records, electronic health records, computerized physician order entry systems, and non-clinical systems.

10/21/09
Advance for Health Information Executives
Getting Connected
Integration of clinical systems has always been challenging. As the number of physician practices deploying electronic medical record (EMR) systems increases, so does the demand for electronically exchanging orders and results between the hospital system and the practice EMR. Without an interface, practices must manually enter results into the EMR, which is both labor-intensive and error-prone.

10/21/09
Newsblaze
VeriChip Corporation Enters Into Strategic Partnership with Diabetes Research Institute
DELRAY BEACH, Fla. & MIAMI - (BUSINESS WIRE) - VeriChip Corporation (”VeriChip”) (NASDAQ: CHIP) announced today that it has entered into a strategic partnership with the Diabetes Research Institute (”DRI”) to combine efforts on the further development of the glucose-sensing radio frequency identification (RFID) microchip in conjunction with VeriChip’s development partner, RECEPTORS LLC. VeriChip and DRI also intend to create a prospective, randomized, comparative clinical study that will seek to address the lack of appropriate, concise, and up-to-date patient health information available to both practitioners caring for diabetic patients and the patients themselves through the utilization of VeriChip’s interoperable personal health record, Health Link, and an electronic medical record system.

10/21/09
Health Management Technology
e-Telmed, Inc., Provides Insurers, Patients and Physicians with Viable Options for Healthcare Savings and Healthcare Reform
Based on data gathered from the Medical Expenditures Panel Survey (MEPS) and the New England Journal office, where 60,000 patients were surveyed, key savings and efficiency options were identified. e-Telmed’s built-in EMR/PHR (Electronic Medical Record/Personal Health Record) software allows physicians to analyze and amend patient’s medical records securely over the internet and allows patients to view their medical records at any given time or place. e-Telmed also provides the most comprehensive video conferencing program for physicians and patients, which helps to reduce or completely eliminate out-of-pocket costs like transportation and prescription renewal.

10/20/09
Review of Ophthamology
How Coding Changes Will Change Your Practice
Like just about all ophthalmologists, Michael Repka, MD, can rattle off the ICD-9-CM code for posterior subcapsular cataract, 366.14, without pausing to think. He knows in a few years it wont be so easy. Hell have to learn an entirely new code set as the United States catches up to the rest of the world and shifts to the ICD-10-CM code set.

10/20/09
The Denver Business Journal
S.F.’s Practice Fusion identifies 300K high-risk H1N1 patients
Practice Fusion Inc., which makes free electronic medical record and practice management software for physicians nationwide, said Tuesday it’s implemented a new software tool that allows its 21,000 physician-users to quickly identify all “Tier 1 candidates” for H1N1 vaccination.

10/19/09
WhatTheyThink.com
Xerox holds thought leadership workshop for healthcare professionals
Healthcare companies around the country are preparing for electronic medical record reform. Xerox is prepared to help the healthcare industry navigate the digital divide. The company is hosting a Healthcare Thought Leadership Workshop on Nov. 3-4, 2009 to give healthcare organizations a competitive edge and learn from best practices and tactics.

10/17/09
The Boston Globe
Federal grant helps move to electronic health data
Sen. Patrick Leahy, a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, says the money will help the Montpelier-based Vermont Information Technology Leaders work with both doctors and pharmacists to expand the electronic prescription network. The money will be used to provide technology and technical assistance as well as financial assistance for independent retail pharmacies to join the network. Leahy calls the program a good step toward a fully electronic medical record system.

10/08/09
Sun Tribune
Cerner in the spotlight
The fact is, there is no system, Patterson said of the current health care industry. The value of having a digital medical record is very considerable. In comments that Patterson admitted were politically past the line, he took the health insurance industry to task for failing to make any real investment in the kinds of disruptive innovations he thinks are needed.

10/12/09
healthcarefinancenews.com
First National Merchant speeds up payment
First National Merchant Solutions, based in Omaha, Neb., has launched First Paid Healthcare Solutions, a suite of products designed to help speed up the payment process, eliminate confusion and pare and cut costs for healthcare providers.

10/14/09
TickerTech.com
The National Association for Home Care & Hospice Announces the Completion of The BlackBerry Report - a Comprehensive Study on Technology and Home Care
Just over 65% of all agencies now have Electronic Medical Record Systems. Eighty-three percent of these agencies report that the use of these systems has led to improvement in quality of care coordination. — Nearly 40% of all agencies now use some form of POS system in the field. — Handhelds account for 6.3% of hardware presently being used and 36.8% of those agencies seeking to purchase new hardware report that they are interested in handhelds. — Twenty three percent of agencies report using telehealth systems.

10/14/09
Hi-Wire
UnitedHealthcare in Indiana Joins Groundbreaking Quality Healthcare Reporting and Disease Management Program From Indiana Health Information Exchange
Indiana Health Information Exchange (IHIE) today announced UnitedHealthcare in Indiana, which insures more than 500,000 people throughout the state, recently joined IHIE’s Quality Health First (QHF) program. The QHF program is designed to deliver better health outcomes for physicians and their patients, and will serve as UnitedHealthcare’s quality reporting tool for primary-care physicians in Indiana, helping them better manage patients’ health conditions and preventive care efforts.

10/14/09
Hi-Wire
Sharing Medical Records to Improve Care
If you need flu shots and live in the Adirondacks, by this time next year you might be receiving an e-mail reminder from your doctor to stop by the office. If you have a child running a 103-degree temperature at 5 a.m., you could have a number to call of a personal physician who would advise you whether to go to the emergency room.These are among the features of a new regional health care project announced Tuesday at a summit meeting at the Warren County Municipal Center in Queensbury.

10/14/2009
VisionCareProductNews
Navigating the Paperless-Practice Maze
Many questions arise when trying to decide whether or not to go paperless and which software program to choose.

10/14/09
GCN.com
Army’s MC4 comprehensive electronic medical records help improve care for the wounded
By implementing a battlefield electronic medical record system, the MC4 program is putting an end to the delay and confusion that can come with paper records, and as a result, the program is improving care for wounded warriors. “Now hospital staff knows who’s coming, what their wounds are, who the surgeons and specialists are who’ve already worked on them,” Geesey said.

10/15/09
SF Gate
Ellison touts new products at Oracle OpenWorld
So confident was Ellison that he promised $10 million to any customer who could find an application that didn’t run at least twice as fast on an Exadata Version 2 server than an IBM machine. IBM, “if you’d like to take us on, make our day,” said Ellison. “Anyone need $10 million? That’s all you need to do to get it.”Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger interrupted Ellison’s speech to give a pep talk to the California technology industry, which he said has been leading the world and will be looked to for solutions to a host of challenges, everything from global warming and stem cell research to smart grid systems and digital medical records.