Workshop on mobile apps and FDA regulations to launch next month • Get the latest updates on HIMSS14 • Take the Nursing Informatics survey

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What’s New

HIMSS & HHS Collaborate on Patient Identification and Data Matching
Through HHS’s existing Innovator in Residence (IIR) program, HIMSS and the HHS are collaborating to move forward on the creation of a nationwide patient data matching strategy. HIMSS is currently recruiting an IIR to develop a vision, strategy, and implementation plan for the near-term deployment of consistent patient data matching in health that builds on the body of work from the ONC and healthcare community partners. Click the link above to read more.

Workshop on Mobile App Development and FDA Regs
FDA recently published its final guidance on mobile medical apps, and while helpful, the guidance leads to more questions. The MMA Roadshow, co-sponsored by mHIMSS, will dive deeply into the regulatory issues associated with bringing new mobile apps into the healthcare space. The four-hour program will be hosted across the country in January, March, May and June. If you are a HIMSS member and part of the mHealth Community, you are eligible for a registration discount by e-mailing mHIMSS@HIMSS.org. Click the headline above to dates, locations and the agenda. Register here.

HIMSS14—Orlando

Maximize Your HIMSS14 Experience: Part II
We asked veterans to the Annual Conference and HIMSS staff to offer their best tips and advice to help you better manage your time and improve your experience at the largest health IT conference in North America. In this installment, the second of six parts, we’ll provide some useful tips on travelling to HIMSS14 in Orlando. Check back every week for additional installments on planning your education, networking and exhibit hall time. Read Part I: Preparing & Planning here.

HIMSS Career Services to Focus on Veterans
U.S. military veterans and their families will have a chance to take part in a special program designed to introduce them to future careers in the health IT industry, during “A Hero’s Welcome to Health IT” at HIMSS14 in Orlando. Click the link above to read more.

HIMSS14 Brochure Available for Download
The HIMSS14 brochure is out, with detailed information on the upcoming conference, scheduled for Feb. 23-27, 2014, in Orlando. The brochure offers conference information, specialty programs, education, Career Services, networking opportunities, exhibition, and registration and travel. Click the link above to access and learn more.

Vote for the 2014 H.I.T. MEN & WOMEN Awards
Voting is now open for Healthcare IT News’ 2014 H.I.T. MEN & Women Awards. The annual H.I.T. MEN & WOMEN Awards honor the game changers and trailblazers in health IT—the people who through their vision, talent and perseverance are advancing the adoption of technology to improve the effectiveness of healthcare. Click here to vote.

Attend HIMSS14 Pre-Conference Symposia on Rural Health
Healthcare providers in rural communities experience a variety of challenges in funding, implementing and sustaining the use of health information technology (health IT). This pre-conference symposium—Health IT and Rural Healthcare: Embracing Opportunities and Overcoming Challenges—will bring together policymakers, researchers and healthcare organizations to provide an overview of available programs, tools and best practices that rural providers can leverage to adopt and gain value from health IT. Click the link above for the agenda and to register for this event.

Tools & Resources

NEW! Physician Community Webinar Series Target Hot Topics
The Physician Community webinar series targets key hot topics and top areas of interest pertinent to physicians with regard to health information technology and informatics.  Launching on Dec. 20, and occurring thereafter on the third Thursday of each month, a hot topic will be addressed by an expert in their field.  Become more informed of the changing health IT environment and discover new ways of how understanding these concepts and Informatics will benefit you. Click the link above for more details.

NEW! Strategic Interoperability: The Clinical and Business Imperative for Healthcare Organizations
A recent HIMSS Analytics survey reveals that hospitals and health systems are focusing on achieving interoperability with their information systems in order to deliver high-quality, safe patient care. As these initiatives are being implemented, healthcare organizations are beginning to understand the importance of strategic interoperability. Not only will strategic interoperability meet current needs, including meaningful use Stage 2 and participation in accountable care organizations, but it will position hospitals and health systems to be able to meet unanticipated and future needs for securely sharing patient information – all with the goal of driving high-quality, cost-efficient, patient-centered care and improved clinical outcomes. Visit the Strategic Interoperability Knowledge Center to learn more.

HIMSS Regulatory Chart Tracks Health IT Regulations
The HIMSS regulatory chart offers an at-a-glance snapshot of all health IT-related regulation HIMSS has been following in 2013. The chart includes links to proposed and final regulations and to HIMSS comments and position statements, along with anticipated timelines.

HIMSS Provider-Patient Engagement Resource
Check out the new HIMSS Provider-Patient Engagement resource—Using Personal Health IT (PHIT) to Transform Healthcare. Most consumers’ use of PHIT is done outside of health systems, offices and information systems. Learn how activated, engaged consumers are already working to improve their health outcomes, and providers’ clinical success. Click the link above to learn more.

Accountable Care Organizations: Core IT Capabilities Defined
A new document from the HIMSS Accountable Care Task Force features a starter kit of IT capabilities needed and employed in an ACO. As ACOs grow and mature over time, so will the understanding of IT enablers and thus this list. Click the link above to access. To join the ACO task force and continue development of the capability framework, contact Shelley Price, HIMSS.

Good Informatics Practices (GIP) Guidance: Six Modules Available as eBooks
Good Informatics Practices (GIP) Guidance is an implementable IT system and process guidance for life sciences executives, technology practitioners and auditors designed to optimize and build a trusted IT ecosystem. Six of these modules are available as eBooks. Harness the transformational value of IT within your organization with GIP modules available at the HIMSS eBookstore.

Purchase HIMSS eBooks Subscriptions for Your Entire Organization at One Low Price
Access a library of knowledge for your entire organization in the palm of your hand—Introducing the HIMSS eBook Subscription Program. Purchase a subscription to our entire eBook library or customized packages for your company, community or organization. The Subscription Program allows for concurrent knowledge delivery—allowing you and your staff to learn, grow and apply as a team. To learn more about the program and our competitive rates, click the e-mail link above.

Sponsored Content

Coordinated Care Ideas Abound
If there’s one thing nobody can predict in healthcare, it’s what coordinated care is going to look like in the future. To put it mildly, healthcare providers are busy. So when trends like the push for greater coordination of care appear on the horizon, it can be difficult for providers to take the time to figure out what those trends might mean for them.  The good news these days, though, is that there is no shortage of efforts underway to provide them with new ideas. Read this story on HIMSS Future Care to learn more.

Workarounds in Healthcare: A Risky Trend
When healthcare workers bring their own laptop computers, tablets and smartphone devices to work, and use them to perform workarounds, the likelihood that patient data privacy and security may be compromised is increased significantly. Even though the use of workarounds poses serious implications for managing data security, a majority of healthcare workers use this practice anyway, according to an international survey of healthcare workers conducted by HIMSS Media. Read this report, featuring those survey results, on the Healthcare IT News Mobile Health Resource Center to learn how healthcare professionals are using workarounds in their organization and how IT departments can develop a privacy and security strategy that minimizes the risk.

The New Healthcare Enterprise: Leveraging Healthcare IT to Achieve Connected Care, Healthcare Reform
The goal of healthcare reform is to deliver high-quality care and improve clinical outcomes in a cost-effective way. To achieve this goal, the U.S. healthcare system must focus on providing care that covers the entire continuum – from acute-care and ambulatory facilities to the home and the community. Providing connected care in an ecosystem that essentially reaches across myriad enterprises requires leveraging health information technology systems, such as electronic health records, and interoperability of those systems in order for all relevant caregivers to share patient information in real time and make the most appropriate clinical decisions. In this white paper, featuring results from a HIMSS Media survey, you'll learn how to leverage healthcare IT tro achieve connected care and healthcare reform.

Reversing Hidden Patient Safety, Data Security and Compliance Risks Unique to Medical Devices
Healthcare providers who fail HIPAA audits, put patients and their data at risk often share a common oversight: They’ve failed to identify, assess and secure medical devices that capture, maintain and transmit ePHI — from pulse oximeters to CT scanners and infusion pumps. From data loss to patient misdiagnosis and the hefty penalties that follow, in this white paper, you'll learn how to pinpoint and counter the risks that have impaired data security and compliance for many of your peers.

Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania: Solving the Unstructured Data Dilemma with Enterprise Content Management
Health systems have struggled for years trying to manage all the unstructured data that does not reside in a patient’s EHR, such as financial records and billing data. About 10 years ago, the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP) just wanted to gain control over the mountain of paper forms. Medical practices in the Penn health system use Epic for documentation, but HUP wanted a complimentary solution that offers clinicians and staff a deeper dive into patient records. Read this case study to find out how HUP employees are using an enterprise content management solution that brings order to the chaos and has met Penn health system’s needs on various levels.

Keeping Data in Motion: How HIPAA Affects Electronic Transfer of Protected Health Information—Part 1
It is difficult to overestimate the impact that HIPAA has had on healthcare organizations. Patients have no doubt benefited from its security and privacy provisions, but the HIPAA regulations have also posed significant challenges – and risks – for hospitals, insurers, medical practices, individual clinicians and a variety of related businesses. In order for an organization to meet those challenges and reduce the risk of penalties, it has to fully understand how the HIPAA law impacts the transfer of protected health information (PHI) during day-to-day operations. This white paper - part 1 of a 3-part series - will discuss how HIPAA affects electronic transfer of protected health information.

Keeping Data in Motion: The High Cost of HIPAA Non-compliance—Part 2
In Part 1 of this series, we outlined how HIPAA regulations impact the transfer of protected health data and how those rules apply to fax transmission. In Part 2, we will look at the high cost of noncompliance of HIPAA regulations. According to Rebecca Herold, an expert on information security and privacy, at Rebecca Herold & Associates, LLC, “The Department of Health and Human Services is increasingly aggressive and effective” in enforcing HIPAA regulations. Her assessment of the landscape emphasizes one key point: Managing paper-based medical records is not for the faint of heart. Part 2 of this white paper series will take a closer look at how your organization can reduce the risk of making mistakes - which can save your job, or even keep you out of prison.

Keeping Data in Motion: Demanding HIPAA Regulations Require Top-Notch Software Solutions—Part 3
Keeping patient data moving through the healthcare system while maintaining its privacy and security is no easy task. Just ask the many hospitals and medical practices that have paid substantial penalties for missing the mark. As discussed in Part 2 of this series, several covered entities have paid hefty fines and suffered embarrassing media attention for losing laptops, mishandling fax transmissions and a host of other missteps. However, while some providers have been stung, many more have managed to get it right – with the help of the right administrative and IT teams and the right software solutions. In this final part of a 3-part white paper series, we'll review some top-notch software solutions and show real-world uses.

Calling All Members

NEW! Take the 2014 HIMSS NI Workforce Survey
Since 2004, HIMSS has surveyed the nursing informatics community to gain an understanding of the role and responsibilities of the informatics nurse professional.  This year, the HIMSS NI Workforce Survey explores job titles, salary requirements, education & training, career satisfaction and barriers to success. We hope to capture current professional status and practice trends while identifying changes that have occurred over the past nine years. Initial results will be released during the HIMSS14 NI Symposium, followed by subsequent press releases, education and articles with complete findings and analysis. The results will be made available to the public on the HIMSS Nursing Informatics website. Your response provides valuable information and helps to ensure this study accurately reflects the state of nursing informatics today. The survey will close Jan. 9, 2013. Kindly forward this information to your colleagues.

NEW! HIMSS Annual Call for Committee Volunteers
The HIMSS Annual Call for Committee Volunteers for the 2015-2016 fiscal year will open on January 2, 2014.  Serving on a HIMSS Committee is an excellent opportunity for professional development, networking and active engagement around key health IT topics, settings, and constituencies. The application will be available from Jan. 2, 2014, through March 6, 2014.  Committee participation is open to all HIMSS members who are not currently serving in other leadership positions within the Society and who have maintained active membership for at least the past 12 consecutive months.  If you have questions regarding serving on a Committee please contact Carrie Subelsky at the e-mail link above.

NEW! Clinical Engineer- IT Town Hall Presentation Survey
The Clinical Engineer-IT Community would love to hear your feedback regarding presentation topics for upcoming Town Hall webinars.  Please participate in this brief survey and forward to colleagues of interest. Click the link above to access the survey!

Connected Patient Community—Call for Members
The HIMSS Connected Patient Community brings providers, payers, HIT decision makers and other industry thought leaders together on a monthly basis to share case studies and industry highlights, with a focus on equipping clinicians with education, tools and resources to effectively e-engage patients. Community webinar topics may include patient engagement requirements for Meaningful Use and ACOs; health management; behavioral and social health; home health technologies; and financial health. Current HIMSS members can participate in monthly webinar discussions; problem-solving and solution sharing; and education and networking. Sign up at the link above.

Be Recognized for EHR-Enabled Quality Improvement: HIMSS Stories of Success!
The HIMSS Stories of Success program has been expanded to accept submissions from Ambulatory and Community Health Organizations. As a stepping stone towards the HIMSS Davies Award of Excellence, Ambulatory Stories of Success highlight the link between improvements in healthcare quality and patient safety and health IT. For more information, contact Jonathan French, Director of Healthcare Information Systems. To be recognized as a 2014 Stories of Success winner, case studies must be submitted by May 1, 2014. For more information, click the headline.

HIMSS Value of Operationalizing the Data Task Force
The HIMSS Clinical & Business Intelligence (C&BI) Value of Operationalizing the Data Task Force is looking to add new members to help create and take part in writing industry case studies. These case studies will facilitate effective reporting by translating data into meaningful knowledge, resulting in improved quality, clinical and financial outcomes. The case studies are published on the HIMSS website and highlight best practices and lessons learned by providers and provider organizations using information to drive improved business and clinical decision-making. The meetings are held on the first Thursday of the month from 1-2 p.m. (ET). To sign up for the Task Force, contact Nancy Devlin at the e-mail link above.

HIMSS Clinical & Business Intelligence (C&BI) Community
Clinical & Business Intelligence (C&BI) has the power to help you positively impact patient care, delivery, health outcomes, and business operation. The HIMSS C&BI Community supports activities that promote peer-to-peer networking, problem solving, solution sharing and education. Through membership, you will obtain practical knowledge and guidance to help you effectively manage and use data. The Community holds monthly Virtual Events on the fourth Thursday from 1-2 p.m. (ET). Join the Community for our next meeting on Jan. 23. Sign up for the Community and learn how to turn data into action. For more information and to review and listen to past events, visit the C&BI Community website in the headline link.

HIMSS Launches Provider-Payer Community
After four years of bringing providers, payers, and health IT solutions together through the HIMSS Patient-Centered Payer Roundtable to explore payer-provider-IT collaborations and solutions that improve health and value, and foster collaboration and trust, HIMSS is expanding its efforts by launching the Provider-Payer Community. Share your knowledge, ideas, and thoughts through monthly interactive webinars, two-minute drills to the community, and social media engagement. The Community holds monthly Virtual Events the third Thursday of most months from 4-5 p.m. (ET). Join the Community for our next meeting on Jan. 16, 2014.  Sign up for the Community and be a part of the movement from volume to value through collaboration. For more information, contact Nancy Devlin or visit the Provider-Payer Community website.

HIMSS C&BI Data and Analytics Task Force
The HIMSS Clinical & Business Intelligence Data and Analytics Task Force is accepting members to help create the tools and resources providers and provider organizations need to manage, integrate and aggregate the necessary information to support robust data and analysis that will facilitate effective reporting by translating data into meaningful knowledge, resulting in improved quality, clinical and financial outcomes. Monthly meetings are held on the third Tuesday of the month from 1-2 p.m. (ET). Contact Nancy Devlin for more information.

HIMSS C&BI Population Health Task Force Seeks Members
HIMSS Clinical & Business Intelligence (C&BI) Population Health Task Force is accepting members to help create the tools and resources, including tactical C&BI strategies around data and analytics, and strategies for organizational planning and patient engagement, to help healthcare organizations use C&BI to execute population health management initiatives. The meetings are held on the second Tuesday of the month, 2-3 p.m. (ET). Contact Nancy Devlin for more information.

HIMSS Accountable Care Task Force Seeks Members
The Accountable Care Task Force is accepting members to help create tools and resources providers, hospitals, integrated delivery networks, health plans and other stakeholders need to achieve the industry transition from volume to value based healthcare through Accountable Care Organizations. The meetings are held on the second Wednesday of the month from 3-4 p.m.(ET). To sign up for the Task Force, and to help us get to know each other’s background, skill set and interest, fill out this brief survey. Contact Nancy Devlin for more information.

HIMSS Volunteer Opportunity for Veterans
The HIMSS Veterans Career Service Initiative is looking for veterans who made successful transitions into the world of health IT. Our vMentor (veteran mentor) program aims to host questions from veterans currently re-integrating into the civilian workforce on topics related to career and professional development within health IT. If you are a veteran who would like to share your experiences, lessons learned, answer questions, and provide advice as a vMentor, contact Amy Justice at the e-mail link above.

© 2013 Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society
The inclusion of an organization name, product or service in this publication should not be construed
as a HIMSS endorsement of such organization, product or service, nor is the failure to include an
organization name, product or service to be construed as disapproval.