Health Management Technology articles from July 2005

Health Management Technology archives from July 2005

Doodads and chotchkes.(From the Editor)(Editorial)
July 1, 2005... It takes a lot to get on my radar screen. That's because the HMT office, like most editorial offices I suppose, is the Land of the Deluge. Everything comes through here in super-size portions--press releases, emails, phone calls, faxes, even...

Feds promise to "transform" healthcare.(Nationwide Health Information Exchange)(formation of American Health Information Community )
July 1, 2005... Three days after HHS released its 80-page report summarizing 500-plus responses on what's required to build a nationwide network of interoperable health data exchange, HHS Secretary Mike Leavett announced on June 6 a multipoint plan for the...

IT adoption triples in three years, but ...(Physician Practices)(Taking the Pulse v 5.0: Physicians and Emerging Information Technologies)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... The number of physicians saying that information technology is essential to their medical practices tripled from only 114,000 in 2002 to more than 380,000 in 2005, according to Manhattan Research's fifth annual study of physician IT adoption...

House bill would create more RHIOs.(Legislative Watch)(21st Century Health Care Information Act)
July 1, 2005... Drawing rare and rapid support from both sides of the Congressional aisle and wide agreement from healthcare organizations, a bill introduced in mid-May looked by early June to be headed for quick passage in the 109th Congress. The 21st Century...

Poor progress in five years.(Patient Safety)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Despite the focus on patient safety since the landmark Institute of Medicine report, "To Err is Human," as many as 98,000 Americans still die each year because of medical errors. That is the conclusion of a new study published in May by The...

Rewards program take off.(Pay for Performance)(awards to hospitals providing quality care)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... The Leapfrog Group has launched a new, national Hospital Rewards Program aimed at inpatient care, created with input from healthcare providers and health plans, but designed to be implemented by payers and employers in certain markets. The...

Hospitals adopt new strategies.(Hospital-based IT)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... The drive to save money--and the need to determine whether IT represents a "core competency" of a healthcare organization in the first place--may change the look of tomorrow's hospitals. One strategy is for a hospital to spin off its IT...

Accenture acquiring Capgemini's healthcare practice.(Accenture Ltd.)(Capgemini Canada)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Accenture is buying the North American healthcare practice of European consulting firm Capgemini LLC for $175 million. Both consulting firms are based in New York. Six hundred Capgemini professionals, including about 70 clinicians, will join...

Document management on the rise.(electronic document management systems)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... The U.S. market for electronic document management systems totaled $120.4 million in 2004 and will grow to $209.6 million in 2008, according to a recent report from research firm Frost & Sullivan. Increasing hospital adoption of clinical...

New initiative links lab results with EHRs.(Electronic Health Records )(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... The EHR-Lab Interoperability and Connectivity Standards (ELINCS) project is developing a national standard for real-time reporting of lab data to EHRs. The ELINCS project aims to develop the new standard by the end of 2005, or beginning of next...

All roads lead to Soarian: a Virginia healthcare system prepared well for the lessons--and months--involved in installing a new HIS.(Hospital Information Systems)
July 1, 2005... If the future of patient care includes a permanent and life-long medical record that can be accessed by any healthcare organization treating that patient, then Riverside Health System in Newport News, Va. is on the threshold of a brave new...

CPOE makes smooth "doc-ing": Michigan hospital uses physician-led planning to involve docs in decision-making and innovative training and support to achieve high CPOE adoption rates.(computerized physician order entry)
July 1, 2005... At a time when some research is questioning the efficacy of computerized physician order entry (CPOE) in reducing medical errors, how do you get physicians to put down their prescription pads and adopt CPOE? Get an M.D. to champion the cause...

Strategy-driven growth: a Florida health plan employs a host of process changes and IT improvements to redirect its growth to a small business market. CRM plays an important role in automating the sales cycle.(CRM, Health Plans & Technology)(Customer relationship management software)
July 1, 2005... "Qualified lead" is a phrase most often whispered at healthcare IT trade shows. It is what every vendor in every exhibit hall across America wants from the flow and ebb of conference attendee traffic through the exhibit hall. Pivotal...

Beam me up, Scotty: a new emergency department in Ohio goes live with a wearable, push-button communication system on opening day, reducing noise, improving staff communication and increasing patient privacy.(Wireless: Case History)
July 1, 2005... Knowing that "time is muscle," Riverside Methodist Hospital staff started planning in 2000 to consolidate its fragmented heart and emergency services into a new, six-story, free-standing building so that the new McConnell Heart Hospital at...

Collaborative disease management: leveraging MCO data to improve patient outcomes: a unified and coherent payer-based health record can become the cornerstone upon which true collaboration can be built.(Disease Management; Managed Care Organizations)
July 1, 2005... The notion of healthcare providers, patients and care managers electronically accessing patient health information is creating an increasingly compelling vision that promises better patient care, reduced medical costs and an improved work...

The greatest defense is a good offense: surgery and ORs are a serious revenue stream for hospitals. Smart ones can enhance their financials by stretching IT into OR materials management.(Materials Management)
July 1, 2005... As the flux in healthcare reimbursements continues, the operating room (OR) is increasingly being targeted for business optimization. Administrators facing the challenges of declining reimbursements, diminishing profits and inaccessible...

High-speed thermal printer.(Hardware: Printers, Copiers and Scanners)
July 1, 2005... The TSP800 thermal printer allows medical professionals to employ automated prescription printing with a MediNotes EMR interface. The TSP800 uses thermal technology to print secure and legible prescriptions in approximately 2 seconds. The...

New series of ink-jet printers.(Hardware: Printers, Copiers and Scanners)
July 1, 2005... New AS series of address printing systems use high-speed ink jet printing to print addresses and barcodes directly onto envelopes and mail pieces. The fully automated printers produce up to 600 x 600 dots-per-inch printed images, Through the...

Biometric scanner.(Hardware: Printers, Copiers and Scanners)
July 1, 2005... The UltraTouch Desktop Enrollment Station is an all-in-one kiosk that captures multiple biometric and demographic data for large-scale identity management systems. It can combine up to four data sources, including fingerprint, digital photo,...

RFID label printer.(Hardware: Printers, Copiers and Scanners)
July 1, 2005... A compact RFID printing solution, the R2844-Z model prints and encodes smart media such as wristbands and smart labels. It connects standard serial, parallel and USB ports and optional internal Ethernet. It also offers a wide range of supported...

Multifunction printer.(Hardware: Printers, Copiers and Scanners)
July 1, 2005... HIPAA compliant X634e monochrome laser printer has an e-task interface that can be customized to perform complicated tasks in the areas of admissions, point of care and physician-order routing at the touch of a button. Electronic storage and...

Color laser printer.(Hardware: Printers, Copiers and Scanners)
July 1, 2005... The 8008 model provides printing speeds of 31 pages per minute in monochrome and eight pages per minute in color and standard network connectivity. With a workload of 30,000 pages per month, the 8008 color laser printer pro-vides an alternative...

Maximum performance, minimum disruption: the nation's second largest orthopedic practice revitalizes its WAN and helps internal users take seconds, not minutes, to open apps and attachments and access the data they need.
July 1, 2005... The doctor's assistant anxiously waits for medical records to appear on the screen in time for the doctor's visit with the patient. The scheduling staff has to keep patients on hold while appointment bookings slowly come up on the screen. These...

Hospital information systems HotList.
July 1, 2005... Information in the HotList is based on survey responses collected from companies with products in the category covered. The HotList is not intended to reflect the quality of products or services, nor is it intended to be an inclusive list of...

A giant step forward: healthcare organizations can expect error-free coding and reimbursement from a carefully planned use of Web services.(Web Services)
July 1, 2005... Enormous payment errors are occurring within the healthcare industry as a result of inaccurate coding and reimbursement practices. While a significant part of this problem is the result of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' (CMS)...

Messaging security.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... CipherTrust Inc. has enhanced its IronMail messaging security appliance with the unveiling of Compliance Control, for customers concerned with HIPAA, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act and the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Compliance Control is standard in...

Clinical decision support.(New Products & Services)(Isabel Healthcare Ltd introduces Isabel Diagnoses Reminder System)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Following on the heels of its success with a specialized pediatric decision-support system, Isabel Healthcare has released the Isabel Diagnoses Reminder System for adults. Developed using Autonomy software, the system covers diagnosis decision...

PO discrepancy resolver.(New Products & Services)
July 1, 2005... My Exchange is a Web-based tool that provides instant access to real-time order status and information on purchase order discrepancies. Buyers can log on to a home page to see the continuously updated status of all of their purchase orders, as...

Cardiology coding software.(New Products & Services)
July 1, 2005... ProVation MD Cardiology replaces the dictation/transcription process, allowing clinicians to create multimedia procedure notes with compliant codes at the point of care. The software, driven by cardiology-specific medical content, prompts...

Keyboard Monitor Mouse.(New Products & Services)
July 1, 2005... American Power Conversion has introduced a IU rack-mount Keyboard Monitor Mouse (KMM) product designed to save valuable space in racks and enclosures, available with either a 15-inch or 17-inch monitor. The design leaves room to mount...

Network storage management.(New Products & Services)
July 1, 2005... File Director is a network appliance that integrates with servers and storage to manage unstructured data and allow the creation of scalable, simple-to-manage, heterogeneous NAS and file server infrastructures. Administrators can consolidate...

HIPAA Compliance module.(New Products & Services)(Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996)
July 1, 2005... The Policy and Regulatory Compliance module of the Preventsys Enterprise Security Management system has been updated to provide large healthcare organizations with the on-demand ability to audit their compliance with HIPAA across all IT and PHI...

Medical Grade Network upgraded.(New Products & Services)(Cisco Systems Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Two additions to Cisco's Medical-Grade Network include an assessment tool and e-Radiology solution. The Medical-Grade Network Assessment tool enables healthcare executives to evaluate network capacity and capabilities against CISCO SYSTEMS the...

Streamlined coding and reimbursement.(New Products & Services)(3M Health Information Systems)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... 3M Health Information Systems has upgraded its 3M Coding and Reimbursement System to streamline coding and promote greater accuracy and compliance. With Fast-forward Coding, coders can look ahead to the next set of choice to determine where a...

LighthouseMD.(NewsMakers)(physicians select CareTracker, a comprehensive billing and practice management solution)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Thirty physician practices have selected CareTracker, LighthouseMD's comprehensive billing and practice management solution to simplify practice administration and enhance operating efficiency. The practices will use the CareTracker...

Emageon Inc.(NewsMakers)(Sisters of St. Francis Health Services signed an agreement for digital healthcare information management with Emageon Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Sisters of St. Francis Health Services Inc. has signed a 10-year, digital healthcare information management agreement with Emageon Inc., Birmingham, Ala., provider of enterprise intelligent visual medical systems. Sisters of St. Francis Health...

AmerisourceBergen Technology Group.(NewsMakers)(The University of Iowa to install AmerisourceBergen Corp's Bridge-MedPoint point-of-care patient safety system)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... The University of Iowa (UI) has signed an agreement to install AmerisourceBergen Technology Group's Bridge-MedPoint point-of-care patient safety system. The system will help UI hospitals and clinics eliminate preventable medical errors,...

FINAO Corp.(NewsMakers)(SportsMed Orthopaedic Surgery & Spine Center selects sIMon-Medical suite)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... SportsMed Orthopaedic Surgery & Spine Center in Huntsville, Ala., selected FINAO Corp.'s sIMon-Medical suite to electronically manage its medical records. With this system, SportsMED medical staff and physicians will have multiple, secure and...

Meta Health Technology.(NewsMakers)(University Hospitals of Cleveland (Cleveland, Ohio) adopts Internet-based PowerSign)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... University Hospitals of Cleveland (UHC) has added Meta Health Technology's Internet-based PowerSign product to provide their physicians with secure electronic signature capability. UHC is part of University Hospitals Health System, also...

Initiate Systems Inc.(NewsMakers)(Northeast Georgia Health System gets Initiate Identify Hub software)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Gainesville-based Northeast Georgia Health System, a nonprofit healthcare corporation serving more than 20 counties in Georgia, selected Initiate Systems Inc.'s Initiate Identify Hub software to accurately link patient records across its...

Mitreteck Systems.(NewsMakers)(Health Care Research and Innovations Congress award)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... The Health Care Research and Innovations Congress gave Mitretek Systems the Best New Advancement in Patient Safety and Disclosures Award for its Risk And Safety Management Alert System (RASMAS). RASMAS is a Web-based subscription service that...

Oracle.(NewsMakers)(Lahey Clinic upgrades to latest version of Oracle)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... To continue to automate and streamline administrative business processes, Lahey Clinic, a nonprofit healthcare delivery network in Mass., completed its upgrade to the latest version of Oracle's (formerly PeopleSoft) financial management,...

McKesson Corp.(NewsMakers)(acquires IntelliClaim Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... McKesson Corp., San Francisco, has acquired IntelliClaim Inc., a Norwalk, Conn.-based vendor of claims checking software. IntelliClaim Inc. becomes part of the clinical auditing and compliance division of the McKesson Health Solutions' business...

GE Healthcare.(NewsMakers)(General Electric Co. will supply Centricity Pharmacy Information System to Tricare Management Activity)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... The U.S. Government's Tricare Management Activity has chosen GE Healthcare, a division of General Electric Company, to supply its Centricity Pharmacy Information System. Tricare Management Activity manages more than 800 facilities worldwide,...

Ultra-Scan Corp.(NewsMakers)(Livescan Ultrasonic Identification System)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Advanced Ambulatory Surgical Center, a multi-specialty, outpatient surgical center in Chicago, has fully implemented Ultra-Scan Corp.'s Livescan Ultrasonic Identification System (LUIS) for enrolling patients as they enter the surgical facility....

Payerpath Inc.(NewsMakers)(Aetna Inc. agreement)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Aetna has selected Payerpath to perform Internet-based financial transaction processing services. Aetna now can expand provider connectivity and increase electronic transaction volumes. Providers will also benefit from Payerpath's Web-based...

Imprivata.(NewsMakers)(single sign-on appliance)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Five new healthcare facilities nationwide--Good Samaritan Indiana, Lancaster General Hospital, NorthEast Medical Center, Pathways Community Mental Health, and Southwest Washington Medical Center--selected Lexington, Mass.-based Imprivata's...

NovaRad Corp.(NewsMakers)(picture archiving communications system)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Three radiology facilities in NovaRad Corp.'s western region--Madison Memorial Hospital in Rexburg, Idaho, Las Cruces Radiology Associates in Las Cruces, N.M. and Sunnywise Community Hospital, Sunnyside, Wash.--went filmless by installing the...

The promise of ICD-10-CM.(Thought Leaders)(health care information services)
July 1, 2005... The healthcare industry is making significant strides toward the adoption of electronic health records (EHRs). However, increased deployment of EHR technology only partially addresses the crucial need for better health information in the U.S....