EMR Implementation & HITECH Act Blog
A blog for doctors and medical office staff seeking assistance with EMR and the HITECH Act.
Monthly Archives: November 2009
2009
The Acronyms of HITECH: What Do They All Mean? (Part 1)
The effort to create an NHIN and implement electronic medical records/electronic health records (EMR/EHRs) available through RHIOs while still complying with HIPAA has created an alphabet soup of terms, acronyms and initials in various combinations.
To help you sort out what all these terms mean, we have created a short glossary. This is Part 1 (Part 2 will be published tomorrow). Because almost everything here seems to be subject to change, this will be a living document of sorts.
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2009
CPOEs, EHRs and Massachusetts Law
Massachusetts takes its electronic health records (EHRs) very seriously. So seriously, in fact, that last year it passed a law requiring hospitals to use EHRs and doctors to be competent using EHRs by 2015. The same law also mandated hospital use of computerized physician order entry (CPOE) systems by October 1, 2012.
The law, signed by Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, also created and funded the Massachusetts e-Health Institute (MeHI) to be the guiding force behind the implementations of Electronic Health Records and CPOE. Part of the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (MassTech), a statewide development agency, MeHI is already looking at EHRs for use in Massachusetts hospitals.
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Filed under: CPOE, EHR, Electronic Health Records, HIT, HITECH Act
Tagged: CPOE, EHR, Electronic Health Records, HITECH Act
2009
New Organization, Credential Created For Health IT Professionals
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As more and more doctor’s offices add staff to help implement electronic medical records (EMR), a common complaint is that its hard to know when someone has the skills to do the job. Until now, there has been no standardized credential that says a job applicant knows not just about computers and health information technology (HIT) but also about the business of running a medical practice.
Filed under: Electronic Medical Records, HIT, Implementation
Tagged: CHISP Certification, EMR Implementation, HIT Implementation
2009
Want Proof That HIT and EMRs Can Work?
We know that many of you are asking if, at the end of the day, Health Information Technology (HIT) will really work. What benefits will you see after investing all this time and money in HIT? Well, we can say that not only can HIT work, but it can provide powerful, tangible benefits.
To see how well HIT can work, look no further than the Columbia Basin Health Association (CBHA), a group of four clinics in rural Washington State. CBHA serves roughly 25,000 patients per year — about half of whom are low income — in a 3600 square mile area. The entire CBHA system is paperless and has migrated 100 percent to electronic medical records (EMRs).
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Filed under: EMR, Electronic Medical Records, HIT
Tagged: Health Information Technology, HIT, HIT Benefits, HIT EMR Integration
2009
Call An Integrator To Help Ease Your EMR Implementation
When you are finally ready to take the plunge and begin implementing electronic medical records (EMRs), there are questions to be answered and decisions to be made during every step of the process. You don’t have to go through it alone! Problems that inevitably come with a major information system change like EMR implementation can be reduced or eliminated by working with what we call an “integrator.” An integrator is an outside company that can help manage, coordinate and organize the entire project while you continue to treat patients.
We spoke with Gary Sinewitz, President of PC Healthstop, about how an integrator can take the hassle out of implementing health information technology and EMRs.
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Filed under: EMR, Electronic Medical Records, Implementation
Tagged: EMR Implementation, EMR Integrator, EMR Software
2009
HHS Publishes New Data Breach Penalties
As we talked about in an earlier post (The HITECH Act and Encryption), there are penalties to be paid if all the medical data you are collecting in your electronic medical records (EMRs) should fall into the wrong hands. PC Healthstop is keeping close tabs on these new HITECH implementation regulations as they roll out, so we can provide you with any new details as they become available.
The government – specifically Health and Human Services (HHS) – has just issued an interim final regulation about breaches of the electronic medical records (EMRs).
The maximum penalties used to be $100 per violation, to a maximum of just $25,000 for all related violations. Under the new rules, the penalties start at $100 / $25,000. There will now be 5 levels of severity, ending at $50,000 per violation with a cap of $1.5 million!
To see all the details go to HIPAA Administrative Simplication: Enforcement , (page 56123).
Rich Silverman
PCHS Blogging Team
Photo by Jonathunder courtesy of Wikimedia Commons under a Creative Commons Attribution sharealike license.
Filed under: EMR, Electronic Medical Records, HIPAA, HITECH Act
Tagged: EMR Breach Penalties, EMR Breach Penalty, HIPAA Violations, HITECH Penalties
2009
PQRI and EMRs Get Closer Together
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Physicians who participate in the Physican Quality Reporting Initiative (PQRI) will soon be able to report directly from an electronic medical record (EMR). According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), this is a first. In the past, if you wanted the 2% PQRI incentive the CMS dangled in front of you, you had to recode everything.
Filed under: EMR, Electronic Medical Records, PQRI
Tagged: Electronic Medical Records, EMR, PQRI, PQRI Coding, PQRI Incentives
2009
ARRA Incentives for EHR Implementation: How Much and When?
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) includes reimbursements to hospitals and physicians for electronic health record (EHR) implementation. Amounts and schedules are subject to change as the rules and regulations are finalized, but we can go over what EHR implementation reimbursement specifics look like today.
There are four possible reimbursement scenarios. Let’s take a look at EHR implementation financial incentives for each:
2009
Demand for H1N1 Flu Vaccines Necessitates EMR Software Updates for Pediatrics
As the demands for H1N1 flu vaccines pour in from concerned parents, pediatric offices may be feeling the need for an update to their electronic medical record (EMR) software. Large volumes of patients and complicated billing issues can really put a strain on their practices’ systems. A recent article describes the need for updating EMR software to handle the unusual situation that the H1N1 vaccinations have created. Pediatric doctors and health care professionals are being advised to research the impact of H1N1 vaccine on their medical practices. They’re asked to invest the time needed to evaluate current billing protocols, templates, and reporting set up. Further, they should determine if the general EMR software they may have in place is sufficient or if they might require a system specifically catering to pediatric care.
David Hill
PC Healthstop Blogging Team
Image credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/alvi2047/ / CC BY 2.0
Filed under: EMR, Electronic Medical Records
Tagged: EMR, EMR Software, EMR Updates, Pediatric EMR
2009
Family Practices Can Help by Offering Web-Based EMR in Tough Times
Web-based electronic medical records (EMRs) can help moms and dads better manage their family’s health. Health care professionals in family practices know that parents are strapped for time and are now realizing that making medical records available through a web-based EMR can ease some of that burden. That’s one of the benefits of the “Safe and Sound” program at the Bon Secours Richmond Health System in Virginia, which seeks to help young families of child-bearing age. By making a web-based EMR system accessible to parents, Bon Secours is helping to reduce the frustration and the loss of time and money that often occurs when busy parents try to keep on top of family medical records. If your family practice is looking for a way to help busy families, a web-based EMR system may help to ease the strain they are under and make sure they have quick access to the information they need.
David Hill
PC Healthstop Blogging Team
Image credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/suzijane/ / CC BY-SA 2.0
Filed under: Electronic Medical Records, Web-Based EMR
Tagged: Electronic Medical Records, EMR, Family Practice EMR, Web-Based EMR
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