The final rule for meaningful use is here, and now begins the transformation. Now begins the hard work for hospitals and physician practices that have to make sure their technology means something. No one we’ve spoken with in the healthcare field has ever suggested they wanted to use technology for technology’s sake – just to put what they have on paper in electronic form.
What they want to do is improve care, make the patient safer every step of the way, and become more effective and more efficient.
To that end the meaningful use rule may seem unwieldy at times, the timetable may not be just right for some. But most providers, even those that have trouble with certain aspects of the rule, have to admit it’s brilliant.
“Brilliant” is not my word. It’s a word the nation’s healthcare IT chief David Blumenthal, MD, has used to describe the concept. At the conference where Blumenthal was speaking when he called meaningful use “brilliant,” a reporter from another publication leaned nearer to me and whispered something like “of course, he thinks it’s brilliant; it’s his idea.”
It may have been Blumenthal’s idea, or perhaps a group effort on the part of his team.
The bottom line is, the industry has been hoping, asking, imploring the government to do something to spur information technology uptake for decades. Now the government is stepping up – not only with the billions in incentives for providers, but also billions in aid for training the workforce, helping small physician practices get going with IT, highlighting so-called beacon communities, taking on interoperability and more.
The pace is breathtaking – and invigorating.
Throwing money at a problem never solved anything. Hasn’t that been drummed into our heads whether it’s from the local school board member dealing with a budget crunch to U.S. senators who serve on some of the most prestigious committees in Congress.
So, government officials have distributed millions of dollars and plan to divvy up millions more toward the goal of moving the nation’s behemoth healthcare system into the modern day. But they are not merely throwing money at a huge problem. With the promulgation of the meaningful use rule, they are doing their best to assure the real goal of improved patient care is achieved.
I don’t mean to have my rose-colored glasses on while considering meaningful use, though I’ve noticed the word meaningful has crept into my vocabulary on any number of topics. When we look back 10-20 years from now, it’s almost certain we’ll recognize this time, these initiatives as a turning point for healthcare.
The government programs coupled with the challenging work required of healthcare providers in proving meaningful use is a public-private partnership that has potential for new meaning.
Visionary or extremist?
At the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid, Harvard Medical School Professor Donald Berwick. MD, has rolled up his sleeves and gone to work, a recess appointment by President Obama that bypassed Senate confirmation.
CMS, which has been without an administrator since 2006, needs a leader, especially now. Whether he’s described as a visionary or extremist may have to do with one’s political leanings. We tend to believe the people to point to his lifelong record of commitment to patient safety.
Let Dr. Berwick get on with his work.
