Monday, March 22, 2010

Health Informatics News

Health Informatics News

Christus Picks Consumer Portal

Posted: 22 Mar 2010 09:56 AM PDT

Dallas-headquartered Christus Health has selected Birmingham, Ala.-based Medseek to help develop its consumer portal, the company says. According to Medseek, Christus plans to implement its eHealth ecosystem. Medseek says it will work to revitalize the health system’s Web presence and consolidate 18 sites into a single, enterprise-wide consumer portal. Existing vendor contracts require a June 2010 go-live date for the new community-facing site, which will drive increased Web traffic, greater brand recognition and high user loyalty, the vendor touts. In addition, it claims the solution will allow for future system integration, is scalable for future growth and positions the Christus network to continue effectively engaging and serving patients, residents and consumers. Christus Health, an international Catholic, faith-based, not-for-profit health system, is comprised of almost 350 services and facilities, including more than 50 hospitals and long-term care facilities, 175 clinics and outpatient centers and dozens of other health ministries and ventures.

Congress Passes Sweeping Healthcare Reform Legislation

Posted: 22 Mar 2010 07:11 AM PDT

The U.S. House of Representatives voted 219 to 212 last night to approve sweeping healthcare reform legislation, following more than a year of planning, debate, and a series of legislative delays and roadblocks. In a rare late-Sunday evening vote, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) led 219 Democrats (no Republicans joined the majority) to first approve the healthcare reform plan passed on Dec. 24 by the U.S. Senate, and then voted 220-211 to approve a bill containing changes to the Senate plan. In the coming days, the Senate will need to approve the House’s second bill; Senate Democrats plan to use the budget reconciliation process to get around Senate Republicans’ threatened use of the filibuster tactic. “We proved that we are still a people capable of doing big things and of tackling big challenges,” President Obama said in remarks shortly after the series of votes, which had followed hours of speechmaking on the House floor. In addition to the well-known provisions related to health insurance reform contained in the bill, which will expand health insurance coverage to as many as 32 million people, forbid insurers from discriminating against people with pre-existing conditions, and ban recision (the practice of dropping insureds once they become ill), the bill contains a wide range of provisions that will impact providers. Among them are the creation of a CMS Center for Innovation, the unleashing of a variety of reimbursement innovations via demonstration projects (such as accountable care organizations and bundled payments); and the establishment of a nationwide value-based purchasing program under Medicare to pay hospitals based on performance on quality measures. The legislation would also establish a national Center for Quality Improvement and develop a national quality improvement strategy to determine nationwide quality improvement priorities; create medical home programs under Medicaid for enrollees with multiple chronic conditions; and create a Center for Comparative Effectiveness Research. The Senate is expected to act on the “fix” legislation passed by the House within days. That action would complete the legislative process, leading to President Obama signing the final bill into law.

Sibley Memorial Outsources Infrastructure

Posted: 19 Mar 2010 11:55 AM PDT

Sibley Memorial Hospital , a 328-bed, nonprofit acute care community hospital serving the Washington, D.C. area, has signed a five-year, comprehensive infrastructure outsourcing contract with Troy, Mich.-based CareTech Solutions, Inc . CareTech’s outsourcing contract with Sibley Memorial includes infrastructure management (strategic planning, performance measurement, problem solving, testing and resolution), and a healthcare specific helpdesk with clinician support available 24/7/365.

Joint Commission Taps Mache as CIO

Posted: 18 Mar 2010 06:00 AM PDT

The Oakbrook Terrace, Ill.-based Joint Commission has appointment John C. Mache as chief information officer for the enterprise, which includes The Joint Commission, Joint Commission Resources and the Joint Commission Center for Transforming Healthcare. Most recently, Mache served as global vice president of the office products supplier ACCO Brands Corporation. He will be responsible for securing, promoting, planning, implementing, monitoring and maintaining The Joint Commission’s information and technology assets. Mache holds a master’s degree in finance and management policy and environment from the J.L. Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, and a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration and economics from Marquette University.

Survey: Privacy compliance has declined

Posted: 14 May 2006 01:56 AM PDT

Three years after federal rules governing the privacy of patients' medical records went into effect, compliance seems to have declined for 6 percent, according to an annual survey conducted by the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA). Read more about this at here.

E-book: Making E-Health Work

Posted: 14 May 2006 01:53 AM PDT

E-Health has become an integral part of present-day healthcare delivery. With healthcare consumers, increasingly the focus of most health systems, the widespread implementation of health information and communications technologies offers cost-effective opportunities to meet their increasingly sophisticated healthcare needs.Bankix Systems Ltd has released its latest e-book. It is a 200-page in-depth analysis of the issues involved in "Making E-Health Work," the e-book's title. Read more about this e-book at here.

Consumer tools: UCompareHealthCare Offers Free Reports on Hospitals, Nursing Homes and Physicians

Posted: 11 Mar 2006 01:01 AM PST

"UCompareHealthCare has just unveiled its Web site, ucomparehealthcare.com, which features free reports on the nation's nursing homes, hospitals and physicians to help consumers make informed healthcare decisions. I checked the web site and found it very informative for health consumers to help them make informed decision about their choices of doctors, hospitals and others." Read more about this at UCompareHealthCare

Articles: Direct to Consumer: Women are a powerful, but untapped, audience

Posted: 03 Feb 2006 12:04 AM PST

"Women influence many family decisions—from choosing what's for dinner to selecting the medications their children take. In fact, nearly two-thirds of women are responsible for family healthcare decisions, according to a 2004 national survey conducted by Plan for Your Health. Many women also assume the care-giving role outside their nuclear families. Today's middle-aged woman may also look after her parents and in-laws too, often determining how long they can live on their own and how to best care for them. In addition, she often influences the important health decisions of grandchildren, co-workers, and friends." Read more at PharmExec.

Consumer tools: Really Personal PHRs

Posted: 27 Jan 2006 01:05 AM PST

"If we're committed to fostering the adoption of personal health records, we should take a page out of the consumer marketing textbooks — not the primers of health IT marketers. This was my conclusion after attending a recent meeting in Washington, D.C., sponsored by the Markle Foundation, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Agency for Healthcare Quality Research and Quality. " Read more about this at iHealthBeat .

Consumer trends: Manhattan Predicts Online Health Trends

Posted: 27 Jan 2006 12:06 AM PST

"US healthcare specialist Manhattan Research has published a summary of the major trends for health and pharmaceutical marketers to consider in 2006. The trends chart the increased use of the web and other new technologies as a health information and communication tool for both patients and physicians." Read more at Daily Research News Online.

News: Wall Street Journal Looks at Tools That Identify Low-Cost Care Options

Posted: 26 Jan 2006 01:07 AM PST

"The Wall Street Journal on Thursday looked at efforts by insurers to provide patients with tools - including a cell phone Web browsing service - to help them find low-cost treatment options. Lumenos, a unit of WellPoint, in February will launch the cell phone service, which lets patients type drug names into their cell phones' Web browsers and get lists of lower-cost alternatives. The program is designed so that patients can ask their physicians about cost-effective alternatives while they still are at their appointments." Read more at iHealthBeat.

Consumer tools: Consumer Health Complete Now Available from EBSCO Publishing

Posted: 25 Jan 2006 12:09 AM PST

"In continuing with the company's goal of providing the most comprehensive collection of online health and wellness resources, EBSCO Publishing has announced the release of Consumer Health Complete (CHC). This full text database is designed to support consumer and patients' information needs as well as foster an overall
understanding of health-related topics." Read more at Managing Information News.
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