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In the past, surgery simulation was a crude approximation of what doctors really encounter – and they needed to be close to a teaching hospital to even try it. But surgery simulation is finally coming of age, thanks to breakthroughs in mobility, cloud-based software, and 3D imagery.
Over the past two decades, America has experienced a societal revolution led by the Internet and the availability of "big data," – defined by the Wall Street Journal as “the ability to collect, process and interpret massive amounts of information.”
No matter how you feel about the federal incentive program to drive the adoption of healthcare it, the numbers speak for themselves. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced in early May that the federal government had paid out more than $5 billion in meaningful use incentives as of April. This money went to 93,650 physicians – $287 million to Medicare providers and $299 to Medicaid providers.
It’s near the end of May, and any organization that had something to say about the government’s proposed rules for meaningful use of electronic health records, Stage 2, has said it.
While Delaware is moving slowly on health insurance exchanges and other pieces of health reform, it has demonstrated it is an innovator, having established the first operational statewide health information exchange in the country in May 2007.
The changes taking place in U.S. healthcare as a result of rapid healthcare IT adoption leave the nation's health IT chief Farzad Mostashari optimistic – especially about improving quality, he told the audience at a recent meeting of the National Quality Forum as he urged: "Keep our eyes on the prize."
There is room for improving how the government measures whether hospitals and physicians have met the requirements for meaningful use of EHRs to prevent improper payments, according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO).
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services plans to develop verification data and services to support coverage and eligibility infrastructure for health insurance exchanges and seeks industry information about applications that are available.
Most hospital CIOs would agree that achieving meaningful use of electronic health record systems is not for the faint-hearted. It’s a rigorous, complex program that demands difficult and bold action from even the most seasoned IT experts. Most seem ready to tackle the work, both to improve patient care – and to collect the attendant incentive money.
The Michigan Pioneer ACO through its affiliate Detroit Medical Center has established a case manager program so physicians can extend their care for patients between appointments and after hospitalizations with personalized services at home.