What's New

HIMSS08 Preview—MS-HUG Tech Forum

The MS-HUG Tech Forum at HIMSS08 in Orlando, gives HIMSS members an opportunity to connect with Microsoft experts, colleagues and the industry’s top thought leaders in an interactive, one-day forum.

This event will feature best-practices sharing and a knowledge exchange in a highly collaborative setting. See innovative, user-driven presentations that translate into working solutions. Choose educational sessions from either the IT Pro or Developer tracks, and get the big picture at joint sessions. The full agenda is available online.

Save $100 on HIMSS08 when you register for both events at the same time; separate MS-HUG registration costs $250. You must be a HIMSS member to attend the MS-HUG Tech Forum.

HIMSS Chapter RHIO Liaison Roundtable Call

The HIMSS Chapter RHIO Liaison Roundtable, scheduled for Jan. 17, at 12 p.m. (EST), is open to all members interested in learning more about RHIOs and HIEs. The guest speaker is Mark Jacobs, MHA, CPHIM, Director of Technology Services, WellSpan Health. Mr. Jacobs will share his experience working with a state-level initiative and discuss challenges, issues and successes.

Interested members can join the meeting through Webex. The meeting number is 925-896-319 and the password is “liaison.” To join the teleconference, the toll-free number (US/Canada) is 866-469-3239; the call-in toll number (US/Canada) is 650-429-3300.

HIT Definitions Project Announces Public Forums

As part of a project for the Office of the National Coordinator to define key healthcare IT terms, public forums will be held to gather industry input during HIMSS08 in Orlando.

A forum focused on defining the terms HIE and RHIO will be held Feb. 26, from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Another forum focused on defining the terms EHR, EMR and PHR will be held on Feb. 27, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

These meetings will follow a public forum scheduled for Jan.16, in Washington, DC, where the HIT terms will be discussed. Public forum participants will review work-in-progress from the project’s Network Work Group and Records Work Group which meet regularly to develop definitions for the five terms. Feedback and perspectives provided during the public forums will make important contributions to the development of consensus-based definitions.

More information about all three forums, as well as the registration form for participants, can be found online. No registration fees are associated with these events.

Book Review Praises HIMSS HIT Dictionary

Doody’s Review Service, which features an extensive database of expert reviews of healthcare-related books and software, gave a positive notice to the HIMSS Dictionary of Healthcare Information Technology Terms, Acronyms and Organizations.

The reviewer, LouAnn Schraffenberger, MBA, RHIA, CCS, CCS-P, of the University of Illinois at Chicago School of Biomedicine & Health Information Management, noted that the dictionary is “a very good reference tool for understanding health information technology terminology. It is compact, concise and reasonably priced. The book was reviewed by a panel of well respected informatics professionals to add credibility and ensure accuracy of the content. I like the book and have used it on numerous occasions to provide a reliable definition of a term I was not familiar with or prove to someone else that my use of a health information term was correct. I recommend it as a useful addition to any healthcare reference collection.”

You can order the HIMSS Dictionary of Healthcare Information Technology Terms, Acronyms and Organizations at the HIMSS Store.

HIMSS Returns to Military Health System Conference

HIMSS is heading back to Washington, DC for the 2008 Annual Military Health System Conference, the Military Health System’s senior leadership meeting for healthcare policymakers and hospital commanders across military healthcare. HIMSS will be one of many participating organizations at the Exhibitor Showcase during the Conference, which will run Jan. 28 to 30, at the Wardman Park Marriott.

The HIMSS booth will showcase the many professional and career development resources HIMSS offers for military personnel, including the new tools and resources catalog, theCertified Professional in Healthcare Information and Management Systems (CPHIMS) certification, training brochures and information about HIMSS08.

HIMSS members are encouraged to bring a friend to visit the HIMSS booth (#1012). For more information, contact Tom Leary, Senior Director for Federal Affairs. More information about the 2008 Annual Military Health System Conference is available online.

Tools & Resources

The Importance of Enterprise Integration

The Enterprise Integration Task Force has released its latest deliverable entitled “The Importance of Enterprise Integration.” The work product is designed as a high-level, summary that highlights various aspects of enterprise integration such as the models used as well as the strategies used to facilitate integration. For more information, contact JoAnn W. Klinedinst, CPHIMS, PMP, FHIMSS.

The Connected Clearinghouse: The Evolving Infrastructure

The Financial Systems Education Task Force has released “The Connected Clearinghouse: The Evolving Infrastructure” presentation at no charge for members. This presentation serves as an educational resource addressing clearinghouses and their evolving role in the healthcare industry. The presentation is available online.

Davies Website Launches New Feature

The Davies Web Site has launched a new feature called “Ask the Expert.” Have a question about the Davies Awards program? Have a question about the myriad of components of EHR implementation? Davies Committee members, many former Award winners, are available to provide you with insight. Check out the new Davies Web site today.

Member Connect Is Now HIMSS Connect

Member Connect, the online networking tool that allows members to locate and interact with others who share similar interests, has changed its name to HIMSS Connect.

HIMSS Connect (you must be logged in to access the site) allows members to reach out to peers with similar interests, helps members new to the industry find mentors, allows members to conduct individual and group meetings online and much more. As a HIMSS member you have exclusive access to HIMSS Connect.

Connecting is easy:

• Login to the Member Center.
• Click the “Connect with Members” button on the left side of the page.
• Click the Member Connect button. You must allow pop-ups in order to be redirected to the HIMSS Connect page.

Five Questions

Institute for Family Health Tracks Communicable Diseases and Improves
Population Health Through IT

Neil Calman, MD
President and CEO
The Institute for Family Health

At the Institute for Family Health in New York City, a 2007 Davies Public Health Award recipient, an electronic health record and practice management system has enhanced the services provided at a network of primary care practices serving the homeless, minority, uninsured and disadvantaged communities throughout the Bronx and Manhattan. Dedicated to developing innovative ways to provide primary health services to underserved urban populations, Institute for Family Health treats patients who suffer disproportionately from an array of health problems prevalent in low income, urban areas, such as diabetes, hypertension, mental illness and substance abuse.

With its Electronic Public Health Information Project, Institute for Family Health became one of the first community health center networks in the nation to implement an EHR and practice management system in its network of ambulatory clinical sites. With its EHR system in place, Institute for Family Health significantly enhanced the quality of patient care through tracking systems, best-practice alerts (BPAs), and printable visit summaries and increased compliance with preventive care guidelines. Much of this improvement resulted from implementing BPAs, or clinical decision supports, triggered by evidence-based practice guidelines, such as annual pap smears, flu vaccines and blood sugar testing for diabetics.

The HIMSS Weekly Insider recently spoke with Neil Calman, MD, president and CEO, Institute for Family Health, about how its EHR system improves health outcomes, aids in the reduction of racially—and ethnically-based disparities and illustrates the importance of consistent, preventive care.

HIMSS: How effectively is your organization using information systems to impact public health outcomes and influence public health policy?

Dr. Calman: Institute for Family Health has adopted the goals of the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, which involve reducing the major causes of morbidity and mortality in the communities we serve. We have worked with health department topic experts to develop state-of-the-art decision supports in our EHR, we provide syndromic surveillance data daily to the health department and have worked with them to develop primary care quality improvement initiatives based upon our experiences with data collection and data sharing that are now being implemented in the offices of over 1,000 healthcare providers in New York City.

HIMSS: What have been your organization’s greatest clinical and operational achievements since implementation?

Dr. Calman: We have been actively developing a bilateral flow of information between our community health center network and the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. This has enabled us to feed data into the health department which has enabled the detection of the onset of influenza outbreaks days before it can be detected from other data sources. This has significant implications for the identification of potential bioterrorism events in New York City and their rapid containment. We have also been able to take health department alerts regarding disease outbreaks that are reported to them and instantly program decision supports that alert our providers if patients meeting certain criteria should be considered for testing to see if they are affected.

HIMSS: Please provide an example/story of how your information system has positively impacted the population’s health?

Dr. Calman: Institute for Family Health views its enrolled patients as a population group and has committed to managing that population group through targeted outreach and educational programs. For example, when information came out last year regarding the high risk of serious cardiac and other birth defects in women taking ACE (Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme) inhibitors during the first trimester of pregnancy, we immediately ran a report of all women of childbearing age who had been prescribed ACE inhibitors and notified them of this new information. This enabled women to speak to their providers about changing their medication regimen if they planned to become pregnant and alerted providers as to this new information. In total, 220 women were contacted—all of whom were at potential risk of delivering a child with serious birth defects.

HIMSS: In what ways has the recognition from the Davies Award been valuable to internal staff, at the state and national level?

Dr. Calman: For those organizations that are not IT organizations but consumers of technology services, it is sometimes hard to know where you stand on a national level.   Our goal as an organization is to be creative, pushing the envelope on applying information technology to our work. The Davies Award confirmed for us and for those around us, the importance of our efforts to the community at large. It has helped us attract additional funding opportunities to continue our work.

HIMSS: What do you hope HIMSS08 attendees take away from your educational presentation?

Dr. Calman: For far too many years, public health was seen to be the exclusive domain of public health professionals. We are fortunate to have a health department in New York City that recognizes public health and community-based primary care must work hand-in-hand to effectuate positive change in the health status of New Yorkers. I would hope we can encourage other similar collaborations, show the importance of data sharing and collaboration between community-based primary care providers and health departments, and demonstrate the value information technology brings in building that bond.

Originally created by CPRI-HOST in 1995, the Davies Awards Program honors Dr. Nicholas Davies, an Atlanta-based physician who was committed to improving patient care through the use of health information technology. During the 2008 Annual HIMSS Conference and Exhibition, the 2007 Davies Award recipients, including Dr. Calman, will lead educational sessions on their award-winning EHR implementations. Also, check out the new and improved Davies Awards Program Web site online: It features a fresh look and new resources to garner insight from the Davies Awards Program.

Meet Our Members

“Spirit of HIMSS” Award Recipient Addresses Interests of Emergency Responders

Erik Pupo, MBA
Enterprise Architecture Practice Leader
Project Performance Corp.

Erik Pupo, MBA, recently accepted a job with Project Performance Corp. in Washington, DC, where he will be focusing on managing the company’s growing enterprise architecture practice, and developing the company’s health IT consulting strategy. Previously he worked as senior enterprise architect for Vangent Health Solutions Division and was responsible for providing expertise and advisement to many of the company’s healthcare clients. He worked at the US Department of Health and Human Services in Washington, DC, where he was responsible for the development and execution of HHS’ enterprise, data and security architecture approaches.

Prior to Vangent, Mr. Pupo worked as senior enterprise architect with the Internal Revenue Service, portfolio architect with American Express, and principal architect with Vignette and Oracle.

A recipient of the October 2007 “Spirit of HIMSS” Award, Mr. Pupo was pivotal in the success of the HIMSS 1st Responder HIT Work Group, which was launched on Oct. 31, 2006. As HIMSS continues to grow its involvement in bridging the gap between HIT and emergency response with its collaboration with the COMCARE Emergency Response Alliance, the work group was renamed to the HIMSS-COMCARE Emergency Responder Task Force and launched a joint HIMSS-COMCARE Emergency Response Advisory Board. Mr. Pupo is the task force’s chair and a member of the advisory board.

According to Mr. Pupo, the two organizations will work together to encourage the development of software systems that use federally sponsored data standards to share information between the various independent organizations involved in emergency medical response: 9-1-1, EMS, hospitals and others. “We’re working towards participating in the 2009 Interoperability Showcase at the Annual HIMSS Conference & Exhibition, and the task force is working to showcase to HIMSS members how healthcare IT can work in the emergency response setting,” he explained.

He also drove the task force’s completion of a 50-page white paper on the use of electronic health information in emergency response. According to Mr. Pupo, “It is beneficial to all HIMSS members because it provides background material on the intersect of emergency response and HIT, and the tremendous need for the use of HIT in emergency response settings—9-1-1, EMS, hospitals and others.”

Mr. Pupo has also spent numerous hours volunteering for the Healthcare Information Technology Standards Panel (HITSP) Care Delivery Technical Committee, Security and Privacy Technical Committee and Emergency Responder - EHR Technical Committee. According to Mr. Pupo, his involvement with HITSP blossomed from his work with the HHS and ONC, where Mr. Pupo performs modeling work. This led to his involvement in performing many of the modeling tasks for the HITSP Interoperability Specification documents.

As a two-year member of HIMSS, Mr. Pupo remarkably also served as chair of the Identity Management Task Force, is a member of the Privacy Impact Assessment Task Force, Information Systems Security Work Group, Privacy Advocacy Task Force, Legislative and Regulatory Review Task Force, Global Enterprise Task Force, Government Relations Roundtable, IPV6 Task Force, and HIT Technical Task Force. He also serves on the CCHIT Privacy Expert Panel.

Also relatively new to healthcare, Mr. Pupo said, “Joining HIMSS and participating in the Society’s efforts has been extremely educational and beneficial to my career. HIMSS staffers have served as my mentors and expanded my know-how in healthcare, which has helped in my career growth.”

Learn more about HIMSS Emergency Response initiatives online. Nominations for the “Spirit of HIMSS” Award should be submitted to HIMSS Member Services Manager Jessica Bird and should include a brief description explaining the accomplishments of the member and how he or she earns the recognition of the “Spirit of HIMSS.”

Calling All Members

2008 Davies Awards of Excellence Applications Open

The 2008 Davies Organizational, Ambulatory and Public Health Awards of Excellence applications are now open. Visit the Davies Web Site to download the pre-requisites and the applications. Join the healthcare elite and be recognized for your success in deriving value from your EHR system.

HIMSS Committee Applications Now Open

HIMSS is seeking volunteer members to serve on committees for FY2008-09. Interested members may electronically submit application forms available on the HIMSS Web site until March 7, for the following Steering Committees and Committees:

• Advocacy and Public Policy
• Ambulatory Information Systems
• Financial Systems
• CPHIMS Technical
• Enterprise Information Systems
• Healthcare Information Exchange
• Individual Membership
• MS-HUG
• Nursing Informatics
• Patient Safety & Quality Outcomes
• Personal Health Record
• Physicians’ Committee
• Privacy and Security

Applicants are asked to provide contact information for themselves and three professional references, details about prior HIMSS and other leadership experience, and a brief essay stating why they would like to serve on a committee. Committee participation is open to all individual and corporate HIMSS members who are not serving in other leadership positions within the Society, and have been a HIMSS member for at least the past 12 consecutive months. The HIMSS Board of Directors Chair-Elect will appoint individuals to serve for two years. E-mail Joan Flagg or call 734-477-0862 with any questions.

Submit your application now.

White Paper on Interoperability Open for Public Review

The Public Health Data Standards Consortium and the Integrating the Healthcare Enterprise invite public health, clinical and information technology experts to review a white paper on “Building a Roadmap for Health Information Systems Interoperability for Public Health.” The public review period will be open through Jan. 19.

The white paper was developed by the PHDSC-IHE Task Force participants to facilitate standardization of health information exchanges between clinical care and public health.

Reviewers may submit their comments on the Public Comments on PHDSC White Paper thread. The Radiology Society of North America, which serves as a host for the review process, does not require reviewers to register to submit comments. However, it is requested that all reviewers provide their name, affiliation and e-mail address at the end of comments.

For more information about the PHDSC-IHE Public Health Task Force, contact Dr. Anna Orlova, PHDSC Executive Director.

Call for Papers for The World of Health IT 08 Opens

If you are interested in sharing information on IT development in the EMEA region, (Europe, Middle East and Africa) consider submitting a presentation proposal to The World of Health IT 08 Conference & Exhibition, held in Copenhagen on November 4-6, 2008. The Call for Papers closes Jan. 31.

Presentations should stimulate discussion of issues and collaborative exchanges, and include practical information from hospitals, clinics and clinicians on their IT implementation experience in the EMEA region and other areas internationally. The majority of proposals selected will be from Europe, the Middle East and Africa and reflect geographic balance within the region as well as balance between topic areas and the practical users in the region.

Product or commercial perspectives are discouraged, but case studies that focus on solutions to business issues may be considered. Information for submitting a proposal is available online. For questions, e-mail Joanne Bartley, Global Program Manager, Education, or call 312-915-9251.

Awards Banquet Tickets Still Available

The Awards Banquet recognizes members for their significant contributions to HIMSS, their organizations and the healthcare IT profession. Whether it’s a lifetime achievement award, a scholarship or recognition for specific activities or publications, HIMSS honors individuals, groups and organizations that have made these outstanding contributions. This is the “must see” and “be seen” gala celebration at HIMSS08. The Awards Banquet is scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 26, at the Peabody Hotel. Presentations during the evening include:

• The CHIME-HIMSS John E. Gall Jr. CIO of the Year Award
• The 2008 Davies Awards of Excellence
• The ACCE-HIMSS Excellence in Clinical Engineering and Information Technology Synergies Award
• The SHS-HIMSS Excellence in Healthcare Management Engineering/Process Improvement Award
• The HIMSS Foundation Annual Scholarships
• The Nursing Informatics Leadership Award
• The Physician IT Leadership Award
• The Book of the Year Award

HIMSS Service Awards including the Distinguished Fellows Service Award, the John A. Page Outstanding Service Award, the Outstanding SIG Member of the Year Award, the Leadership Award, the Lifetime Member Award and the Board of Directors Service Award.

HIMSS Chapter Awards including the Chapter Leader of the Year Award and the Chapter Innovations Awards.

Purchase tickets with your HIMSS08 registration or add to your existing registration by updating online. Individual Tickets are $120; tables of 10 are $1,200. Contact awards@himss.org with specific questions. Visit the HIMSS Web site for more information on the annual Awards & Recognition Program.

CEO IT Achievement Award Nominations Open

Modern Healthcare and HIMSS announced that nominations for the 2008 CEO IT Achievement Award are open. This program recognizes and honors CEOs who demonstrate outstanding leadership and commitment to using information technology to advance the strategic goals of their organizations.

To submit a nomination, create an account using a valid e-mail address and a password of your choice. This account enables you to save, complete and edit your nomination at your convenience. The deadline for nominations is Feb. 29.

Modern Healthcare and HIMSS will honor the 2008 CEO IT Achievement Award recipient during a keynote presentation at the HIMSS Summit, June 9 and 10, in Washington, DC. The award recipient will be invited to speak about his or her successful IT implementation at a keynote session during the Summit.

Save the Date

Jan. 22—2:30 p.m. (EST)
Health IT Marketing Execs—Do You Need a Sanity Check?
Join Michael W. Davis, executive vice president, HIMSS Analytics, and Stephen W.T. O’Keeffe, founder, O’Keeffe & Company, to explore who and what influences healthcare technology purchasing decisions and what healthcare IT vendors can do to increase their marketing performance. Additionally, you will learn what information sources influence healthcare IT buyers; how healthcare IT buyers evaluate vendors; the challenges associated with communicating the value of technology to healthcare organizations; and how healthcare IT executives use information from new communication vehicles, such as blogs, podcasts, and Webinars.

Jan. 24
HIT 101 Webinar
HIMSS State Government Relations will hold a Web-based educational session, “HIT 101,” for state officials and their staff on Jan. 24, from 12 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. (EST). The session will educate participants on healthcare IT activities throughout the United States and how participants can play a role in transforming healthcare through IT in their state. The educational session will include overviews of healthcare IT and the national healthcare IT landscape, an update on state healthcare IT activities, and a discussion of how states can play a role in furthering the use of healthcare IT. HIMSS State Government Relations requests that a leader from each HIMSS Chapter attend the conference call. For more information, e-mail K. Meredith Taylor or call703-562-8847.

Jan 29
IHE-North America Connectathon Conference 2008
Members of the healthcare community are invited to attend a luncheon and tour of the IHE-North America Connectathon Conference, at the Hyatt Regency in Chicago. The day will include presentations from leaders in deploying national health information networks and an introduction to IHE Connectathon process. The IHE Connectathon is the healthcare IT industry's only large-scale interoperability testing event. More than 75 healthcare IT organizations have registered to test more than 150 systems at this year's event. Attendees will have the opportunity to witness the Connectathon as it takes place and learn about its significance in enabling the connected health system. Registration for the 2008 event is limited, and costs $125. Conference registration and hotel reservations at the Hyatt Regency Chicago are available online. You also may view the agenda on the Web.

Jan. 31—1 p.m. (CST)
The Physician Computer Connection: 25 Years of Progress
Dr. William Bria will host a presentation on helping healthcare information leaders get their organizations motivated, aligned and moving forward. Placing the EHR will be discussed, and what has and has not worked in an experience that spans the past 25 years of informatics in the United States.

Feb. 24
MS-HUG Tech Forum 2008
MS-HUG Tech Forum 2008 is a one-day event in Orlando that will concentrate on best-practice sharing between industry professionals. Leading users of Microsoft technology will share their insights and provide practical strategies for the healthcare setting. Don’t miss this opportunity to hear user-driven presentations that focus on real ideas and real tactics that have worked for your peers. Plus, you have the opportunity to enrich your knowledge by attending HIMSS08. Save $100 on the HIMSS08 when you register for both events. You must register for both events at the same time to receive the discount. Register online at www.mshug.org or www.himssconference.org.

Feb. 25
Community for Connected Health Summit 2008
Register now to attend the Community for Connected Health Summit 2008. Be among the first to learn the results of the “HIMSS-2007 Annual Leadership Survey” sponsored by Cisco. Network with Cisco experts and healthcare peers throughout the Summit. Attend best practices presentations on key topics including, mobility, collaboration, regulatory compliance and caregiver productivity. If you register for HIMSS08, you can register for the Community for Connected Health Summit for no additional cost.

March 28-30
Patient Centered Computing and eHealth: Transforming Healthcare Quality
This practical course presents the work of national experts in patient-centered computing and eHealth using a format that will enable acquisition of knowledge and skills. Through presentations, panel discussions and workshops, participants will interact with these experts about the opportunities and challenges that arise from the implementation and use of patient-centered computing. This course will take place at the Omni Parker House Hotel, in Boston, and is offered by Brigham and Women's Hospital, Department of Psychiatry, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Division of General Internal Medicine/Primary Care, Partners HealthCare System, Center for Information Technology Leadership, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Health e-Technologies Initiative.

Chapter Calendar

Jan. 25
Heart of America Chapter of HIMSS
Lunch Event
Kansas City, MO

Join the Heart of America Chapter of HIMSS for a special lunch event in Kansas City that will feature a healthcare IT legislation update and Congressman Dennis Moore. The event will take place at the Kauffman Foundation Building in Kansas City, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Visit the Heart of America Chapter of HIMSS Web site for more information. Registration is available online.