EMR/EHR

Electronic medical records (EMR) are a digital version of a patient’s chart that store their personal information, medical history and links to prior exams, texts and reports. The goal of these systems is to enable immediate access to the patient's data electronically, rather than needing to request paper file folders that might be stored in fragment files at numerous locations where a patient is seen or treated. EMRs (also called electronic health records, or EHR) improve clinician and health system efficiency by making all this data immediately available. This helps reduce repeat tests, repeat prescriptions and repeat imaging exams because reports, imaging or other patient data is not not immediately available. 

Study: Ultrasound can sub for x-ray in infant hip dysplasia diagnosis

Ultrasound has been shown to be reliable in diagnosing hip dysplasia in five-to-seven-month old infants and offers an alternative to x-ray in screening for the condition, according to research presented Feb. 9 at the 2012 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) in San Francisco.

Sen. Grassley asks FDA for details on employee monitoring

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) wrote to FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg, MD, asking her why the agency accessed an alleged whistleblowers emails in an instance that appears to be an act of retribution.

Meaningful use: Lessons to share and learn

Meaningful use will be a huge topic at this years Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) Annual Convention & Exhibition. Its been 10 months since hospitals could begin the attestation process of the EHR Incentive Program. That means there will be numerous sessions all about meaningful use led by people from hospitals that have gone through the process and can share their lessons learned.

Meaningful Use Risk Analysis: Does Yours Measure Up? 02.24, 11:15am-12:15pm

Organizations pursuing meaningful use incentive dollars must meet a myriad of requirements including the security risk analysis. This session covers a framework for conducting yearly security risk analysis/assessments.

EP MU Readiness and Attestation: What are the Key Ingredients for Success? 02.23, 9:45-10:45am

Learn how UMass Memorial developed a comprehensive MU EP strategy and attestation project plan for a physician-centric community and transitioned practices to workflows focused on data entry and collection.

Ready, Set, Measure: Michigan Prepares to Harness Meaningful Use: 02.22, 8:30am-9:30am

This presentation discusses a framework for managing incentive payments by states participating in the EHR Incentive program while also considering the groundwork for measuring meaningful use demonstrated by their providers.

Emergency Medicine EHR Helps Drive Enterprise Meaningful Use Readiness: 02.21, 11am-12pm

Though their meaningful use attesting schedules differ, two large hospital networks leverage the emergency EHR to integrate with inpatient systems as an easier strategy to drive compliance and data integration.

Zero to 60 in 90 Days: The Attestation Fast Lane: 02.21, 9:45-10:45am

Learn how seven Tenet hospitals deployed a certified EHR, attested within 90 days, and leveraged data, tools, and governance to drive process improvement while focusing on Stage 2 and beyond.

Around the web

U.S. health systems are increasingly leveraging digital health to conduct their operations, but how health systems are using digital health in their strategies can vary widely.

When human counselors are unavailable to provide work-based wellness coaching, robots can substitute—as long as the workers are comfortable with emerging technologies and the machines aren’t overly humanlike.

A vendor that supplies EHR software to public health agencies is partnering with a health-tech startup in the cloud-communications space to equip state and local governments for managing their response to the COVID-19 crisis.