Client News Coverage

Sepsis data are talking, but should the health care industry be listening?

Big Data has become a big commodity in the health care industry. The government, payers, researchers, providers, and even patients are interested in what data are trying to tell us about the quality of care provided. EHRs have allowed the complicated manipulation of these data, yet there continues to be limitations on the conclusions that can be drawn.

For the Record »

A senior population that is the fastest growing sector in the U.S. has created a booming home health industry, one that is expected to reach a value of $150.8 billion by 2018. That rapid growth has also given rise to another highly lucrative industry: reimbursement fraud.

Security Today »

The paradigm shift currently occurring in the healthcare industry is unprecedented. Longstanding fee-for-service care delivery models are rapidly evolving to a value-based system that rewards providers based on outcomes performance and cost-efficient care.

Health Management Technology »

A significant paradigm shift is underway in healthcare as new quality-driven care delivery models demand the support of advanced technological infrastructures and professionals try to keep pace with a rapidly evolving health IT landscape. As the industry turns towards Stage 2 Meaningful Use (MU) attestation with greater urgency and anticipates the coming expectations of Stage 3 and beyond, strategies for increasing EHR adoption rates within the physician community are paramount.

Executive Insight »

Patient-centered care that actively employs strategies to engage patients and family members in the delivery of their healthcare is a foundational component to current industry movements. Going forward, healthcare organizations that deploy consistent and effective patient education programs to align with these movements will experience the greatest success with national initiatives such as Medicare Hospital Value-Based Purchasing (HVBP) and the Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program (HRRP).

Advance Healthcare Network »

The introduction of the United States Pharmacopeia Chapter <797> regulation in 2008 sent and continues to send shock waves through hospital pharmacy departments and other sterile drug preparation settings.

Compounding practices that had been ingrained in the pharmaceutical industry for decades were simply turned upside down, and many pharmacies today remain challenged in their pursuit to successfully comply.

Becker's Hospital Review »

Improving care and lowering costs in the medical field are of the utmost importance. "Quality improvement initiatives are essential in every aspect of healthcare delivery because we will never be as good as we can be without additional monitoring and improvement of performance," says Thomas Deas, Jr., MD, MMM, FASGE, of Gastroenterology Associates of North Texas in Fort Worth.

Becker's ASC Review »

The movement towards a heightened focus on quality, outcomes and cost requires that healthcare organizations make the best use of data that is available to them. Advancement of health IT in the form EHRs has been an important first step in the health IT movement to accurately capture and house patient data. The next step is to extract important patient information in real-time such that it can be used to impact care delivery in a positive way.

Health IT Outcomes »

This is the second part of a two-part installment of "HIT Happens," a regular opinion column tackling health IT trends. The first part, where we asked HIMSS attendees to explain what they'd do if given the chance to create the next meaningful use update, can be found here. Part two reveals more responses to the same scenario.

SearchHealth IT »

From a recent flurry of high-profile acquisitions to publication of studies examining the clinical and financial potential, signs point to the maturation of the remote monitoring technology market from “cool gadgets” to “key player.” It is an often-underestimated market segment that has quietly gone about establishing the value of commercially rugged and widely available technologies and their potential to address significant macro-economic problems in aging services.

Health Management Technology »

Often lost in the overarching conversation surrounding the potential negatives of ICD-10 is the very real impact it could have on the selection of physicians and hospitals by health plans, MCOs and shared-risk organizations for participation in provider networks. To succeed, these organizations seek out providers with a strong track record of care that is both high quality and cost-efficient—which is where ICD-10 can hurt or help.

EMR & HIPAA »

Sometimes one must call back into the past to understand the present and future. When it comes to current challenges and successes with electronic health records (EHRs), the ongoing countrywide implementation mirrors that of another revolutionary wired device.

Journal of AHIMA »

October 1, 2014 is the most talked-about date in healthcare—the date by which organizations must utilize the ICD-10 code set to report medical diagnoses and inpatient procedures. As the clock ticks down, the pressure is on, particularly for providers who must learn to document to the level of specificity required under the massive code set. Indeed, providers will have the largest burden, as even the best coders in the world cannot code accurately if the provider does not document the required information.

For the Record»

When it comes to ICD-10, many think the 10 months remaining until the transition deadline provides ample time to get coders fully training on the complex new code set. Not only is that unrealistic, but those that haven't already locked in their on-site training programs may find themselves out of luck.

Advance»

From meaninful use to value-based purchasing, too much is riding on core measures reporting to leave it to chance. Hospitals must have processes and resources that are capable of delivering timely and concise reporting.  They must educate clinicians and other staff on core measures and keep definitions and protocols up to date. All of these resources should be leveraged to improve performance rates and avoid financial penalties.

Health IT Exchange»