Since I have HIMSS on the mind (as has probably been seen from my previous posts), I figured I’d talk about what we can expect from meaningful use at HIMSS 2012 in Las Vegas.

Meaningful Use Conversations Dominate
I think with all certainty all of us will be tired of hearing the word meaningful use after HIMSS. I might have to try and keep track of how many conversations I have where the words meaningful use aren’t used. Notice I’m counting the ones where it’s not used since I know that almost every conversation will include meaningful use.

I’m not sure that’s very healthy for the industry, but I think that’s the reality of where we’re at. While I’m sure I’ll ask plenty of questions about meaningful use as well, my favorite EHR vendors are probably going to be those that say: we meet meaningful use, we’ve abstracted meaningful use so its not an annoyance to doctors, and here’s what we’ve done to innovate our product outside of MU.

Meaningful Use Stage 2
Any day now I think that ONC/CMS is going to announce the final details for meaningful use stage 2. I imagine the regulatory process could push this so that ONC/CMS announce meaningful use stage 2 at HIMSS, but from what I’ve read I think they want to get it out before HIMSS. I hope they’re successful in making this happen.

Either way, I’ll be surprised if we don’t know about meaningful use stage 2 before/during HIMSS. So, if you want to be in the know, be prepared to talk about the final details of meaningful use stage 2. In the mean time, check out Lynn’s previous MU Monday post about meaningful use stage 2.

Federal IT Participation at HIMSS 12
Every healthcare related part of the federal government is going to be represented at HIMSS 12. HIMSS has been nice enough to provide a page listing all of HHS, CMS, ONC, AHRQ, CDC, HRSA, NIST, OCR, SSA, and VA sessions at HIMSS 2012. My only complaint with that page is that there are still a bunch of details missing on a number of the sessions. I imagine this is the government dragging their feet, but it sure makes it hard to plan.

While many of the government sessions can be dry and boring (partially attributed to what I call the government muzzle), it can be a really good place to hear the direction of the federal government when it comes to healthcare IT directly from their own mouth.

I also suggest that Farzad Mostashari’s keynote address won’t be nearly as interesting to someone familiar with healthcare IT as his ONC Townhall: Advancing Health IT into the Future session on Wed, 2/22 at 2:15 in San Polo 3503. I know I also want to work in a session on MU stage 2 and the future of EHR certification from the federal perspective as well.

“Meaningful” References
Is it just me, or do other people have a problem using the word meaningful now. At least it’s a challenge with many of my healthcare friends. Although, sometimes I throw it in there just for irony’s sake. Hopefully this post was meaningful to you.

Also, a big thanks to all those that filled out the EMR and HIPAA reader survey. I’ve loved all the feedback. Interestingly enough, one of the more common feedback items was that you liked the Meaningful Use Monday series. We’ll do what we can to keep it going.