OMAHA  – EPOWERdoc’s EMRdoc has received the federal government’s “meaningful use” stamp of approval by earning Modular Certification. The designation officially deems the electronic health record (EHR) software capable of enabling providers to qualify for funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). Tested and certified under the Drummond Group’s Electronic Health Records Office of the National Coordinator Authorized Testing and Certification Body (ONC-ATCB) program, the EHR software is 2011/2012 compliant in accordance with the criteria adopted by the Secretary of Health and Human Services.  EMRdoc is a complete Emergency Department Information System.

Drummond Group’s ONC-ATCB 2011/2012 certification program tests and certifies that EHRs meet the meaningful use criteria for either eligible provider or hospital technology. In turn, healthcare providers using the EHR systems of certified vendors are qualified to receive federal stimulus monies upon demonstrating meaningful use of the technology — a key component of the federal government’s push to improve clinical care delivery through the adoption and effective use of EHRs by U.S. healthcare providers.

EMRdoc, which met the requirements for Modular Certification, is a full Emergency Department Information System with risk-fortified clinical content and essential modules that maximize speed and patient flow in the Emergency Department. The unique electronic charting system incorporates the data entry format that was pioneered in our widely accepted paper template systems.  Our electronic medical record that permits extraordinarily fast charting and ease of use. EPOWERdoc’s electronic chart design and data entry format allow the user, with the touch of a pen, to document their findings. Handwriting and voice recognition and keyboard entry capacities enhance the already simple data input process.

Charlottesville, VA, May 24, 2011 –(PR.com)– Unbound Medicine, a leader in knowledge management solutions for healthcare, today announced the extension of the Unbound™ Platform with multi-dimensional capabilities for Apple’s iPad®. This latest platform enhancement delivers in one application instant lookup of trusted content, powerful content personalization, push communications alerts, and knowledge sharing among friends and colleagues.

Unbound’s platform enhancement arrives as many students and practitioners adopt the iPad for day-to-day knowledge management. Manhattan Research estimates that 30% of US physicians already own an iPad and 28% plan to purchase one in the next six months (Taking the Pulse® U.S. v11.0, Manhattan Research). Medical schools, nursing programs, and healthcare systems are also exploring how the iPad and other tablet devices can support clinical decision-making from any location.

Unbound’s iPad-optimized solutions serve as a home base for healthcare professionals. With universal search, users find answers instantly from leading databases, texts, journals, news feeds, and interactive tools without the need for a continuous internet connection. Content, tools, and favorites can be customized to meet each user’s personal needs. Push communications alerts including news, product announcements, renewal messages, and sponsor messages can be sent to the device on a dynamic schedule and segmented by user geography, role, or area of interest. And using content creation and sharing tools such as Unbound’s Grasp™, users and organizations can build interactive learning and practice tools that can be shared informally with friends and colleagues or formally with class groups and association members.

“When it comes to a multi-purpose solution for education and point-of-care decision making, Unbound Medicine’s iPad solution is clearly the best choice,” said Brian Levine, MD, resident at Columbia University Medical Center. “Unbound continues to be at the forefront of delivering quality information and personalized features to support everyday work.”

“Our new iPad capabilities exemplify the power of the Unbound Platform to meet the rapidly changing needs of users and organizations,” said Bill Detmer, MD, president and CEO of Unbound Medicine. “Our end-to-end publishing platform and interactive capabilities enable our publishing and association partners to develop a daily relationship with users—providing up-to-date content, communications, and community on a device of their choice.”

iPad extends Unbound’s growing network of supported platforms, including the web, Apple iOS, Android™, Windows Phone®, BlackBerry®, Windows Mobile®, and Palm®.

To request information about Unbound Medicine’s new platform capabilities, click here.

About Unbound Medicine
Unbound Medicine is a next-generation healthcare knowledge company. Unbound produces award-winning mobile and web products for partners and healthcare professionals using its end-to-end digital publishing platform and information architecture expertise. Additional information is available at www.unboundmedicine.com.

HIMSS has honored 21 ambulatory care practices or clinics since introducing this Davies Award category in 2003

Rather than wait to make an appointment or learn lab results, today’s patients can go online to complete either of these tasks. Physicians may share information via tablet computer during an office visit with improved point of care delivery resulting from the best use of health IT. Leveraging efficiencies of the electronic health record, four independent physician practices have earned the position of finalist for the 2011 HIMSS Ambulatory Care Davies Award of Excellence, a pre-eminent industry award used to educate the industry on best practices.

Learn more about these practices with information below adapted from their application for the award.

Community Care Physicians, LLC, is a 200-provider multi-specialty group located in Latham, NY. With the electronic health record, the practice has experienced decreased chart pulls, lower costs associated with routine tasks and transcription, and the ability to recapture space once filled with paper charts. Community Care has been contributing data to its RHIO for 18 months, as one of the founding board members of Health Information Xchange New York (HIXNY) and has developed an interface that can automatically dump data to state mandated registries.

Fallon Clinic in Worcester, Mass., is a physician-owned and run not-for-profit multispecialty group practice with 357 providers representing 30 specialties located in 23 sites throughout central Massachusetts. Through a carefully planned and broadly inclusive needs assessment, vendor selection, and implementation and optimization of the EHR, Fallon Clinic was able to achieve measurable improvements in the quality, safety, efficiency and satisfaction with healthcare delivery.

James F. Holsinger, MD, FC, opened his solo family medicine practice in Keokuk, Iowa, a rural community of 20,000 in a county with the lowest unemployment rate in the state. The practice started in 2003 with no patients and two part-time visiting specialists renting space in the same building. Now, Dr. Holsinger has 1,400 active patients and is the first fully automated clinic in the area. Profitable in its first 20 months, the practice implemented, and uses in its day-to-day operation, nearly every EHR function and interface available. Dr. Holsinger has participated in Medicare’s Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS) and e-prescribing incentives and has achieved the highest level of quality in all but one area in its largest commercial insurer’s pay-for-performance program.

Women’s Health Advantage (WHA) is Fort Wayne and Northeast Indiana’s largest OB-GYN practice, serving a population of approximately one million people, with three full-time offices in Fort Wayne and four clinics in outlying communities. One cited improvement in patient care focused on the practice’s EHR tasking system with most wait time eliminated allowing the phone nurses to lower patient on-hold time by 24 percent while handling 44 percent more calls, all with one less phone nurse. The use of e-prescribing, improved coding systems and a patient portal, have also added to streamlined and improved processes with the use of health IT.

“We congratulate each of these finalists for their EHR implementation and ongoing delivery of quality patient care,” said Daniel Griffin, MD, chair of the HIMSS Ambulatory Care Davies Award Committee, and past Davies winner.  “We look forward to the next step in our award process, which includes a site visit team observing workflow and system use by various providers at each of the four ambulatory care finalists for the HIMSS Davies Award.” Dr. Griffin also explained that winners would be selected by the committee who will vote following completion of the site visits.  Up to four winners will be announced in September.

Contact David A. Collins, MHA, CPHQ, CPHIMS, FHIMSS, Director, Healthcare Information Systems, HIMSS, at dcollins@himss.org, for more information on the award application process. Since guidelines and deadlines vary for each award, visit the HIMSS website at http://www.himss.org/davies for more information.

Background on the HIMSS Davies Awards of Excellence:

•The HIMSS Ambulatory Care Davies Award of Excellence is designed to recognize the most exemplary implementations and utilizations of electronic health records in independent ambulatory practices.

•Applicants must be independent, physician-owned (not hospital-owned) ambulatory practices and must have leveraged technology to impact patient-centric practice of medicine and derived value.

•The four categories of the HIMSS Davies Awards program are: hospitals and health systems, independent physician practices, public health, and community health organizations.

•Each winner has successfully achieved value from electronic health records to improve healthcare delivery.

About HIMSS Davies Award of Excellence
The HIMSS Nicholas E. Davies Award of Excellence recognizes excellence in the implementation and use of health information technology, specifically electronic health records (EHRs), for healthcare organizations, private practices, public health systems, and community health organizations.  Created by CPRI-HOST in 1994, the first three recipients of the Davies Organizational Award were recognized in 1995.  In 2002, CPRI-HOST merged with the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS), and now, HIMSS manages the award program.  The Award honors Dr. Nicholas E. Davies, an Atlanta-based practicing physician, president-elect of the American College of Physicians, and a member of the Institute of Medicine Committee on Improving the Patient Record, who died in 1991 in a plane crash. Visit www.himss.org/davies for more information, including educational resources.

INDIANAPOLIS–(BUSINESS WIRE)–RealMed, a leading provider of revenue cycle management solutions for the health care industry, is pleased to announce integration of its award winning capabilities with Epic. The integration provides Epic billing software clients with seamless access to RealMed’s powerful claims editing and error management tools from within the same interface used for processing claims today. The result is cleaner claims and fewer rejections by the health plans, speeding the critical payment process for the physician practice.

Epic clients who use the RealMed services receive notification of claim errors with easy-to-understand messages for correcting the claims. When corrected, the user simply resubmits the claim using their system and RealMed manages delivery to the health plans. The process leverages the familiar user interface, workflow, and standard queues.

The integration also facilitates access to RealMed’s all-payer eligibility and benefits application. This enables users to verify eligibility and benefits in advance of appointments and to check walk-in patients during the registration process.

“Our clients and prospects are excited to learn that they are now able to use RealMed’s revenue cycle services within the Epic billing software,” said Scott Herbst, senior vice president of business development for RealMed. “The workflow enhancement is a real benefit and they still benefit from the outstanding service and support of our field teams.”

About RealMed

RealMed, an Availity company, is a national leader in revenue cycle management solutions for the health care industry. RealMed solutions connect physicians and health plans with essential real-time business information to streamline care delivery, drive staff productivity and facilitate better patient experiences. For more information, visit www.realmed.com.

Device Messaging connects clinicians quickly, quietly and securely

FORT WAYNE, Ind. – May 25, 2011 — (BUSINESS WIRE) — EXTENSION, INC. announced that it has expanded its suite of solution offerings to include Device Messaging as a standalone solution.  “We have identified a need for marrying the corporate phone systems in healthcare that nurses typically use, with the smartphone platforms utilized by physicians for more efficient communication,” said Todd Plesko, CEO of EXTENSION.  ”Most of us use text messaging in our daily lives – EXTENSION enables clinicians to securely emulate this functionality on their hospital’s communications network.”

EXTENSION Device Messaging includes the following features and benefits:

• Non-SMS text-based messaging
• Individual or Group Messaging/Texting
• Pre-defined or Custom Messaging/Texting
• Interactive Messaging – instant, two-way communication
• Message/Text Forwarding
• Intuitive, easily manageable interface
• HIPAA-compliancy – authentication, encryption and logging

Device Messaging addresses a number of common complaints among providers of health services, primarily: the ability to quickly locate another clinician treating the same patient, the ability to contact another clinician via text without worrying that protected health information (PHI) is being shared in violation of federal law, and the ability to connect with another health care provider without disturbing the healing environment of patients. EXTENSION Device Messaging uses native apps on the iPhone and Android platforms to allow for secure, logged and auditable messaging between clinicians.

Device Messaging is integral to the forward-looking medical facility that is seeking to replace outdated pagers with feature-rich devices. EXTENSION is also capable of delivering messages to ANY device including iPhone, Vocera badges, Android, and Cisco and Ascom handsets, which allows healthcare professionals to continue using the device that they are already comfortable with. EXTENSION, INC. is planning to release support for even more IP phone system devices and smartphones over the coming months.

According to Plesko, “What we take for granted in our personal lives – the ability to send a quick, text-based message to let someone know we are running late to an engagement; to let our significant other know we will pick up dinner; to let our children know what time we will pick them up from practice – should also be available to us in our professional lives. Healthcare professionals in particular have a pressing need to connect with each other quickly, but they must be able to do so without compromising sensitive patient information. EXTENSION enables them to do just that.”

Visit http://opentheredbox.com/messaging.php to learn more about Device Messaging and other EXTENSION enhanced communications solutions.

About EXTENSION, INC.
EXTENSION, INC. is based in Fort Wayne, IN and is the developer of the EXTENSION® Solution Suite (ESS). The EXTENSION Solution Suite of software expands Cisco Unified Communications, Vocera badges, Ascom handsets, Apple iPhones, or Android-based smart phones into clinical workflow tools automating notifications using text messages, phone calls, and emails, as well as turning the devices into user interfaces for clinical, administrative, and revenue cycle data. The result of combining the aforementioned endpoints and EXTENSION includes increased physician, management, and patient satisfaction, reduced cost and errors, immediate ROI, and increased revenues. EXTENSION tightly integrates any HL7-based or web services-based medical application or device with corporate telephony systems, smartphones and other common healthcare communication devices using standards-based protocols. EXTENSION earned the ‘Cisco Collaboration Partner of the Year for the US/Canada’ award at the 2010 Cisco Partner Summit. Visit the Apple AppStore to download a free demo of EXTENSION Mobile for HealthAlert  for Nurses and HealthAlert for Physicians.

GE Healthcare and Thomson Reuters announced a new data and analytics solution that combines commonly used outcomes research data from the Thomson Reuters MarketScan^® Research Databases with de-identified electronic medical records data. This solution will help researchers and physicians gain new evidence-based insights into treatment protocols, thus helping drive improved health outcomes.

Research Data Repository Combines Millions of De-identified Healthcare Claims and Electronic Medical Records to Measure the Efficacy of Drugs and Other Treatments

Pharmaceutical firms and other healthcare organizations will now be able to conduct evidence-based research on data that enables them to better quantify the effectiveness of medical treatments on discrete patient populations, thanks to a new data and analytics solution developed and delivered by GE Healthcare and Thomson Reuters.

When needed to answer appropriate population-based health economics and outcomes research questions, healthcare analytics teams at General Electric (NYSE: GE) and Thomson Reuters (NYSE: TRI) now have the ability to combine commonly used outcomes research data from the Thomson Reuters MarketScan^® Research Databases with de-identified electronic medical records data, while maintaining patient privacy and full compliance with HIPAA standards. As a result, researchers and physicians can now gain new evidence-based insights into treatment protocols. These insights can help drive improved health outcomes.

The addition of de-identified clinical data provided by healthcare providers using EMR means a research study can evaluate medical treatments — commonly called “outcomes research” or “comparative effectiveness research.” The addition of the de-identified clinical data from the EMR means a research study can link de-identified claims data from a population of patients diagnosed with a particular condition such as hypertension, with de-identified clinical data on everything from a patient’s body mass index, blood pressure, symptoms and more. This research would provide more specific evidence to enable clinicians and patients to make better informed decisions.

“We’ve tackled what was once considered an insurmountable barrier to outcomes-based research,” said Dr. Brandon Savage, MD, Chief Medical Officer at GE Healthcare IT. “We’re extremely enthusiastic about the opportunities this discovery creates for the field and the improvements it may someday bring to patient care, across the world.”

Researchers from GE Healthcare and Thomson Reuters first demonstrated this approach to linking de-identified data in a presentation at the annual meeting of the International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR) held in Atlanta in May 2010.

The ISPOR presentation, which used hypertension as a sample set, combined de-identified clinical data collected from more than 9,000 electronic medical records with MarketScan claims and prescription data from more than 30 million individuals. Each dataset has since grown considerably, resulting in an increasingly powerful data source.

Teams from both organizations have developed algorithms which enable the de-identification of patient data without loss of utility.

The companies subsequently proved the ability to use these proprietary methodologies to link additional therapeutic areas. They have now entered into a partnership to provide research and analytical services based on this proven capability.

“We can now conduct studies that assess the effectiveness of medical treatments, prescription adherence, and disease management initiatives based on both a deep set of clinical data and extensive data on the complete healthcare experience of a de-identified patient. This includes all hospitalizations and ambulatory visits as well as all filled prescriptions, costs, and reimbursements,” said Bill Marder, senior vice president at Thomson Reuters.

The companies are now engaging customers and planning studies that will demonstrate the value of these unique and comprehensive capabilities. For more information, please e-mail cds@ge.com or marketscan@thomsonreuters.com.

ABOUT GE HEALTHCARE:

GE Healthcare provides transformational medical technologies and services that are shaping a new age of patient care. Our broad expertise in medical imaging and information technologies, medical diagnostics, patient monitoring systems, drug discovery, biopharmaceutical manufacturing technologies, performance improvement and performance solutions services help our customers to deliver better care to more people around the world at a lower cost. In addition, we partner with healthcare leaders, striving to leverage the global policy change necessary to implement a successful shift to sustainable healthcare systems.

Our “healthymagination” vision for the future invites the world to join us on our journey as we continuously develop innovations focused on reducing costs, increasing access and improving quality and efficiency around the world. Headquartered in the United Kingdom, GE Healthcare is a $17 billion unit of General Electric Company (NYSE: GE). Worldwide, GE Healthcare employs more than 46,000 people committed to serving healthcare professionals and their patients in more than 100 countries. For more information about GE Healthcare, visit our website at www.gehealthcare.com.

ABOUT THOMSON REUTERS:

Thomson Reuters is the world’s leading source of intelligent information for businesses and professionals. We combine industry expertise with innovative technology to deliver critical information to leading decision makers in the financial, legal, tax and accounting, healthcare and science and media markets, powered by the world’s most trusted news organization. With headquarters in New York and major operations in London and Eagan, Minnesota, Thomson Reuters employs 55,000 people and operates in over 100 countries. For more information, go to www.thomsonreuters.com.

This unprecedented alliance was launched during HIMSS11 in Orlando, FL, with the objectives of implementing best practices to help practice-based physicians and small clinics navigate the potential complexities of health information technology (HIT) selection and implementation.  The partners agree that by identifying opportunities to simplify vendor selection, contract negotiation, and EHR installation and training, the ultimate beneficiary will be providers who rarely have the expertise or resources to dedicate to this important effort.

Washington, DC (May 24, 2011) The Regional Extension Center’s (REC) Vendor Selection & Management Community of Practice (VS&M CoP) and the HIMSS Electronic Health Record Association (EHR Association) held its first public event on May 11, delivering on the commitment announced in February 2011 to collaborate in the interests of provider organizations seeking to adopt EHRs and achieve meaningful use.

This unprecedented alliance was launched during HIMSS11 in Orlando, FL, with the objectives of implementing best practices to help practice-based physicians and small clinics navigate the potential complexities of health information technology (HIT) selection and implementation.  The partners agree that by identifying opportunities to simplify vendor selection, contract negotiation, and EHR installation and training, the ultimate beneficiary will be providers who rarely have the expertise or resources to dedicate to this important effort.

“We’re excited about this important initiative to bring RECs and vendors closer together across regions, and to encourage consistency and best practices, “said Beth Schindele, Director of Quality Insights of Delaware, Regional Extension Center.  “This will not only help us all to be more efficient, but ultimately the providers we serve will benefit,” Ms. Schindele went on to say.

The web conference presented plans for a shared web portal for both vendors and RECs to post and access information, including vendor training materials, contract forms, and other tools to help RECs and their clients make the best EHR decisions for their environments.  “We’re finding the right balance between sharing proprietary information in a secure environment, and ‘normalizing’  information such as pricing models,” said Justin Barnes, Vice President at Greenway and Chairman Emeritus of the EHR Association.  “The new portal is currently being pilot tested, and we’re anxious to learn from early users how we can make it more valuable.  We hope to have it up and running in the next 30 days,” Barnes concluded.

The REC VS&M CoP and the EHR Association will convene both web and in-person events over the next several months to get feedback from constituents so they can effectively serve their needs.  “Our objective is to help our providers succeed as they take on EHR selection and implementation projects,” said Travis Shank, Manager, Technical Assistance and Vendor Relations at Arizona Health-e Connection. “Vendors have expressed their commitment to collaborate with RECs in creating win/win opportunities that promote healthy competition and serve the public interest.” Shank added.

“It’s very encouraging to see this collaboration among the RECs and the vendors.  Our shared customers, mostly practice-based physicians and small clinics, will appreciate our efforts to provide tools to make their decision-making, implementation, and training processes more efficient and effective,” said Sue Popkes, Implementation Specialist at the Missouri Health Information Technology Assistance Center.

The May 11 event had more than 200 participants, with a roughly 50-50 split between commercial organizations and RECs, including providers, peer standards review organizations (PSROs), and other health IT suppliers.  “We want to encourage participation in both the planning and management of this important alliance, as well as in providing us feedback on our work,” Shank added.  Barnes concurred, “We need everyone at the table if we’re going to be successful.  And we encourage all health IT suppliers, not just EHR Association members, to join our efforts.”

The presentation that describes activities and resources to be provided to RECs is available at http://www.himssehra.org/ASP/index.asp.  For more information about how to get involved, contact Pam Brewer, Program Manager, EHR Association at pbrewer@himss.org or forum@hitrc.org, to reach a REC representative.

About the Regional Extension Centers

The RECs are nonprofit organizations that receive subsidized funding from the Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) to develop materials and provide technical assistance initially to priority primary care providers (PPCP) in the selection, implementation, and upgrades of EHR technology, enabling providers to meet Meaningful Use incentives. In performing their mission, 62 RECs are responsible for negotiating with EHR Vendors on behalf of 100,000 providers and leveraging the combined purchasing power of physicians they represent. RECs share tools, knowledge, and best practices through 14 Communities of Practice (CoP), one of which is the Vendor Selection and Management CoP. A primary goal of the VSM CoP is to educate providers on EHR Vendor Selection and to assist the providers in using their EHR systems in a way that will enhance the quality of healthcare delivered to patients. An advisory board of REC members governs each CoP where they invite the exchange of information via workgroup calls, onsite and web-hosted training, as well as the HITRC Portal (http://www.hitrc-collaborative.org)

About the HIMSS EHR Association

The HIMSS EHR Association is a trade association of 46 electronic health record (EHR) companies that join together to lead the health IT industry in the accelerated adoption of electronic health records in hospital and ambulatory care settings in the US.  The Association provides a leadership forum for the EHR software provider community to speak with a unified voice relative to standards development, the EHR certification process, interoperability, performance and quality measures, and other EHR issues as they become subject to increasing government, insurance and provider-driven initiatives and requests.  Membership is open to HIMSS Corporate Members companies that design, develop and market their own EHRs.  The Association is a partner of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) and operates as an independent organizational unit within HIMSS.  For more information, visit http://www.himssEHRA.org.

The Springfield, Ohio-based primary care practice purchased NextGen® solutions in 2003 through GBS, NextGen Healthcare’s leading value-added reseller. In April 2011, the practice leveraged NextGen® Ambulatory EHR to attest for Meaningful Use for four providers. To date, it has earned the maximum incentive of $18,000 per physician, totaling $72,000. Two additional physicians have completed attestation and are awaiting payment.

Springfield Center for Family Medicine Leverages NextGen Ambulatory EHR to Secure Maximum Incentive Payments

HORSHAM, Pa.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– NextGen Healthcare Information Systems, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Quality Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: QSII) and a leading provider of healthcare information systems and connectivity solutions, announced today that its client, Springfield Center for Family Medicine, Inc., is among the first providers to receive payment for demonstrating Meaningful Use under the Medicare incentive program. Dr. Peter Muir was honored by Dr. Farzad Mostashari, National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, on Friday, May 20, 2011, at an event hosted by HealthBridge and the Tri-State Regional Extension Center (REC).

The Springfield, Ohio-based primary care practice purchased NextGen® solutions in 2003 through GBS, NextGen Healthcare’s leading value-added reseller. In April 2011, the practice leveraged NextGen® Ambulatory EHR to attest for Meaningful Use for four providers. To date, it has earned the maximum incentive of $18,000 per physician, totaling $72,000. Two additional physicians have completed attestation and are awaiting payment.

“It is rewarding to see that all the time and effort put into the attestation process generated positive results for our practice and for many others across the country as well,” said Dr. Muir. “The flexibility of our EHR, coupled with the Meaningful Use education NextGen Healthcare offers its clients, was critical to making this experience a success. We’ve taken a major step in improving the quality of our care and our patients’ lives.”

As a member of the ONC Meaningful Use Vanguard Program, Dr. Muir works closely with the Tri-State REC to help other providers in Indiana, Kentucky and Ohio demonstrate Meaningful Use. He offers the following advice to providers preparing to attest:

			1)			Empower a single physician to take the lead in Meaningful Use attestation and encourage close collaboration with your business office.
			2)			Start with the toughest measures. Identify early which criteria you can meet already and then design your strategy around what will take the longest time and effort to achieve.
			3)			Seek the right resources from the right places – internally and externally. Partner with IT experts from your practice, region and vendors to access the best pool of knowledge.
			4)			Give regular feedback to your physicians on their status in meeting Meaningful Use thresholds. It will help enhance the process and speed to success.
			5)			Take advantage of educational opportunities and resources from your vendor, such as the NextGen Path to Meaningful Use, to walk you through the details of attestation.
			6)			Prepare one spreadsheet for each physician with all the required information for each measure. Having it handy and in the right order will speed the online attestation process.
			7)			Plan for about 45 minutes per physician to attest online.
						Sign up for CMS’ general email updates to keep well-informed about their evolving programs.

“For more than two years, we have been dedicated to education, product development and counseling of providers through Meaningful Use preparations. This first wave of incentive payments is a major milestone for both NextGen Healthcare and its clients,” said Scott Decker, president of NextGen Healthcare. “Springfield Center for Family Medicine’s success is a telling case study of how clinical benefits and financial results can be realized through partnerships between providers, RECs and EHR vendors. With thousands of practices on their way to demonstrating Meaningful Use through NextGen Healthcare’s solutions, we’re looking forward to many more success stories.”

About NextGen Healthcare

NextGen Healthcare Information Systems, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Quality Systems, Inc., provides integrated clinical, financial and connectivity solutions for ambulatory, inpatient and dental provider organizations. For more information, please visit www.nextgen.com and www.qsii.com. Follow NextGen Healthcare on Twitter at www.twitter.com/nextgen or Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/NextGenHealthcare.

Advancing Seamless Workflow between Provider Institutions

Karos Health announced today that it has signed an agreement with Hospital Diagnostic Imaging Repository Services (HDIRS) to deploy Rialto Connect, which enables seamless sharing of diagnostic information between providers.

HDIRS is an independent corporation responsible for operating a shared diagnostic imaging repository (DIR) that enables storage and retrieval of diagnostic images and corresponding reports. Started in 2006 between ten Ontario hospital corporations, it is now the second largest DIR in Canada, servicing 37 healthcare facilities with a combined annual volume of 3 million imaging exams.

Rialto Connect was selected after a rigorous RFP process for its comprehensive ability to create seamless radiology reporting workflow between the PACS systems in the participating health facilities and the DIR, and low total cost of ownership. Rialto Connect is based on the IHE Cross Enterprise Document Sharing for Imaging (XDS-I) integration profile, a key integration capability in compliance with Pan-Canadian EHR standards. This adherence to open standards was a key HDIRS requirement to ensure future connectivity to other Canadian healthcare projects.

“After a competitive process, I am pleased with the selection of Karos Health as a HDIRS strategic partner. Karos Health’s solutions will enhance the benefits of HDIRS to our 37 member hospitals and their patients.” says Pat Ryan, General Manager of HDIRS.

“Progressive healthcare partners are critical to the advancement of our Rialto platform. We are thrilled to partner with HDIRS to enable their vision for seamless diagnostic workflow between multiple provider institutions while fully leveraging the existing infrastructure and information systems,” says Rick Stroobosscher, President of Karos Health. “We will be deploying Rialto Connect in partnership with HDIRS to the participating health facilities enhancing the value of the DIR service.” he added.

About Karos Health
Karos Health is focused on elevating the quality of patient care by enabling the sharing and storing of clinical information. Karos’ Rialto platform empowers healthcare enterprises to enable cross community access to information, facilitating collaboration between healthcare providers and patients. Rialto is based on open standards that ensure safe and secure handling of patient health information and is backed by a team with decades of experience in healthcare interoperability. For more information about Karos, visit www.karoshealth.com.

Texas’ Baylor Health Care System announced plans to extend GE Healthcare’s Centricity EMR across its entire HealthTexas Provider Network (HTPN), which includes more than 500 community doctors in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex.

Multi-Specialty Care Network Extends Deployment of Centricity EMR

With more than 500 doctors serving North Texas, the Baylor Health Care System recently affirmed its plans to extend the reach of its Centricity* EMR solution, supplied by GE Healthcare, across its entire HealthTexas Provider Network.

Since 2006, the HealthTexas Provider Network (HTPN) has been implementing Centricity EMR across its provider community with more than 250 active physicians on the system today. This announcement affirms HTPN’s commitment to implement Centricity EMR for the organization’s remaining 250 physicians. By the time the installation is complete, Centricity EMR will help Baylor physicians manage more than 1.3 million patient visits each year. GE Healthcare and HTPN are currently engaged on several initiatives to prepare HTPN for the achievement of meaningful use incentives established in the HITECH Act of the American Recovery and Reimbursement Act of 2009.

“HTPN has long-been a valued customer and we are extremely pleased to see a continued commitment to Centricity EMR in the HTPN clinical setting,” said Jim Corrigan, Vice President and General Manager of GE Healthcare IT. “We are thrilled to continue to work with a world-class organization like HTPN to deliver patient-centered enhancements through clinical technology.”

Centricity EMR is an electronic medical record (EMR) system that enables physician office-based care providers and clinical staff to effectively document patient encounters, streamline clinical workflow, and securely exchange clinical data with patients, other providers of care and service providers throughout the healthcare delivery system.

Used by thousands of physicians to manage millions of patient records, Centricity EMR is among the most widely-used electronic health records in the world. It empowers healthcare providers to deliver quality care at lower costs and supports the mission of practices in urban, rural, suburban, academic and community health settings across the country.

*Centricity is a Registered Trademark of General Electric Company.

ABOUT BAYLOR:
Baylor Health Care System is a faith-based, not-for-profit health care provider serving nearly 1.4 million patients through its network of more than 280 access points. Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas, a major research and teaching facility for the Southwest, anchors the Baylor network which includes a total of 27 hospitals. In addition, access points include: ambulatory surgical/endoscopy centers, satellite outpatient locations, senior centers, and physician clinics through the HealthTexas Provider Network. Patient-centered medical research is conducted at the Baylor Research Institute and fundraising to support the System’s mission is led by the Baylor Health Care System Foundation.

Baylor employs more than 20,000, making it the third largest private-sector employer in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex. More than 4,500 physicians comprise the current medical staff. For fiscal year 2009, Baylor recorded $4.4 billion in total assets and $513.5 million community benefit.

Known for its quality initiatives, Baylor became the first health care system in the State of Texas to receive the National Quality Healthcare Award from the National Quality Forum. Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas has been named in US News & World Report’s “Best Hospitals” guide for 17 consecutive years and has the highest patient satisfaction ratings of any teaching hospital in the country according to Consumer Reports.

For more information, visit BaylorHealth.com.

ABOUT HEALTHTEXAS PROVIDER NETWORK:

HealthTexas Provider Network, formed in 1994, has grown to become one of the most effective physician-directed patient-centered organizations in the nation. Approximately 2000 people are employed in our organization, including more than 500 physicians practicing in 156 locations. Our practice is comprised of 69 primary care centers, 57 specialty care centers, 9 physiatric medicine centers, 5 CT centers, 5 hospitalists programs, 10 liver disease outreach centers, 4 senior health centers, 3 MRI centers and a family practice residency program.

ABOUT GE HEALTHCARE:
GE Healthcare provides transformational medical technologies and services that are shaping a new age of patient care. Our broad expertise in medical imaging and information technologies, medical diagnostics, patient monitoring systems, drug discovery, biopharmaceutical manufacturing technologies, performance improvement and performance solutions services help our customers to deliver better care to more people around the world at a lower cost. In addition, we partner with healthcare leaders, striving to leverage the global policy change necessary to implement a successful shift to sustainable healthcare systems.

Our “healthymagination” vision for the future invites the world to join us on our journey as we continuously develop innovations focused on reducing costs, increasing access and improving quality around the world. Headquartered in the United Kingdom, GE Healthcare is a unit of General Electric Company (NYSE: GE). Worldwide, GE Healthcare employees are committed to serving healthcare professionals and their patients in more than 100 countries. For more information about GE Healthcare, visit our website at www.gehealthcare.com.

For our latest news, please visit http://newsroom.gehealthcare.com/