Physician Community Podcast

Dr. Christopher Longhurst, a board-certified hospitalist at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital (LPCH) and Clinical Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the Stanford University School of Medicine, discusses the association between CPOE and hospital mortality rates.  In 2003, a white paper from the Institute for Healthcare Improvement identified remarkable variability in standardized mortality rates across US hospitals. Seven years later, Dr. Longhurst and fellow physicians published a peer-reviewed paper showing that their computerized physician order entry (CPOE) rollout was significantly associated with decreased mortality rates.

Health information technology has been widely touted as a tool to help improve quality and patient safety, and while a retrospective correlation does not prove causation, this is one more piece of evidence suggesting that CPOE is the best way to provide high-quality care for our inpatients.

To learn more about this topic:Decrease in Hospital-wide Mortality Rate after Implementation of a Commercially Sold Computerized Physician Order Entry System - Christopher A. Longhurst, MD, MS; Layla Parast, MS; Christy I. Sandborg, MD; Eric Widen, MHA; Jill Sullivan, RN, MSN; Jin S. Hahn, MD; Christopher G. Dawes, MBA; Paul J. Sharek, MD, MPH.

Mixed Results in the Safety Performance of Computerized Physician Order Entry- Jane Metzger; Emily Welebob; David W. Bates; Stuart Lipsitz; David C. Classen.

Dr. William Bria, shares the history of AMDIS, benefits of membership and information on the 19th Annual Physician-Computer Connection Symposium, July 14-16th at the Ojai Valley Inn, Ojai, CA.  Dr. Bria currently serves as the Chief Medical Information Officer (CMIO) for Shriners Hospitals for Children, a 22-hospital health system headquartered in Tampa, Fl. He was named as one ofModern Healthcare’s 50 Most Powerful Physician Executives in 2008 and 2009. Dr. Bria currently serves as chairman of the AMDIS Board and was past chair of the HIMSS/AMDIS Physician Community. He was selected as the HIMSS Physician IT Leader of the Year for 2009. The interview was conducted by Jack Varga, MD, MHSA, CPHIMS, FHIMSS, Physician Informaticist, Veterans Health Administration, Washington, DC.

Learn more about AMDIS or register for the 19th Annual Physician-Computer Connection Symposium.

Dr. Barry Newman, an expert in the medical education of allied health professionals, shares his thoughts on how physicians can ease the transition to electronic health records. The Consortia for Education, ARRA HITECH Section 3016, states that the purpose of this grant proposal is to establish or expand health IT education programs.  Learn why this is so important and why physicians should reach out to educational institutions and make their preferences known. The interview was conducted by Jack Varga, MD, MHSA, CPHIMS, FHIMSS, Physician Informaticist, Veterans Health Administration, Washington, DC.

Dr. Marlowe Schaeffer-Polk, attorney, physician and founder of Medlawguard, and Mr. John Steinbach, CPHIMS and co-founder of Medlawguard, a healthcare risk mitigation firm, bring their practical experience and extensive training to the subject of the Federal Red Flags Rule in healthcare. What is the Red Flags Rule?  Who must comply?  How does it relate to HIPAA? You'll know all of this and more after you listen. Dr. Schaeffer-Polk and Mr. Steinbach also provide specific examples of healthcare related "red flags." The interview was conducted by Jack Varga, MD, MHSA, CPHIMS, FHIMSS, Physician Informaticist, Veterans Health Administration, Washington, DC.

UPDATE:

The Red Flags Rule was scheduled to take effect 06/01/2010 but the FTC has extended the enforcement deadline through 12/31/2010. 

However, the information in this podcast is very valuable to protect both you and your patients from the threat of identity theft.

Sens. John Thune (R-S.D.) and Mark Begich (D-Alaska) have introduced legislation to exempt certain small businesses--including physician, dental and veterinary offices--from the Federal Trade Commission's Red Flags Rule, scheduled to be effective on June 1.

May 21, 2010, CHICAGO – The American Medical Association (AMA), American Osteopathic Association (AOA) and the Medical Society of the District of Columbia (MSDC) today filed a suit in federal court seeking to prevent the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) from extending identity theft regulations to physicians. The complaint, prepared by the Litigation Center of the AMA and State Medical Societies, targets the contentious “red flags rule,” which requires creditors to implement safeguards against identity theft. The medical societies charge that the FTC’s rule exceeds the powers delegated to it by Congress and that its application to physicians is “arbitrary, capricious and contrary to the law.”

More information on the Red Flags Rule.

Ms. Pauline Hogan, Performance Improvement Engineer with Franciscan Skemp-Mayo Health System in La Crosse, Wisconsin and Chair of the ME-PI Tools and Topics Work Group provides an overview of the ME-PI Toolkit. Learn the meaning of management engineering and process improvement and the role they play in ambulatory practices and hospital settings. Ms. Hogan shares how the ME-PI Community began and discusses some of the more than 200 tools that would be of interest to physicians. The interview was conducted by Jack Varga, MD, MHSA, CPHIMS, FHIMSS, Physician Informaticist, Veterans Health Administration, Washington, DC.

The ME-PI Toolkit is an evolving dynamic body of knowledge provided by HIMSS members. We invite the use of these tools and topics within your organization to educate your staff, improve your processes and promote effective, efficient use of Health Information Technology that improves patient care.

Lynn Witherspoon, MD, System Vice President and Chief Medical Information Officer for the Ochsner Health System, discusses the critical challenges faced by physicians in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, how far they have progressed in breaking down silos within the stakeholder community, and what he sees in the future for Louisiana's Healthcare Information Exchange.

In Part Two, Dr. Witherspoon shares his perspectives on how this disaster impacted Louisiana's forward progress in the on-going development of their Healthcare Information Exchange. Learn about the value and power of the EHR, the importance of building relationships and trust, and the factors that enable a successful community exchange. Dr. Witherspoon also discusses the establishment of the Louisiana Health Care Quality Forum and the important role this organization has played and will continue to play in the further expansion of a statewide HIE. The interview was conducted by Linda Christmann, MD, VPMA/Regional CMO of CHRISTUS Central Louisiana, Arlington, LA.Learn more about the Louisiana Health Care Quality Forum

Lynn Witherspoon, MD, System Vice President and Chief Medical Information Officer for the Ochsner Health System, discusses the critical challenges faced by physicians in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, how far they have progressed in breaking down silos within the stakeholder community, and what he sees in the future for Louisiana's Healthcare Information Exchange.

Part One provides an overview of what worked, what didn't and what work-arounds were developed to provide medical care for patients in the days, weeks and months following Katrina.Learn more about the Louisiana Health Care Quality Forum

Mr. Ned Simpson, HIMSS Life Fellow, past HIMSS Chairman and a Principal at CSC Consulting, shares his expertise in the field of Auto-ID and Bar Coding and discusses top-of-mind healthcare IT issues related to HITECH and Meaningful Use, benefits of this technology, breakthroughs in this area and what the future holds. Mr. Simpson established and for many years chaired the HIMSS Auto-ID and Bar Code Task Force. Along with Ken Kleinberg, Mr. Simpsonedited the contributions of a number of Task Force members to for the book,Implementation Guide to Bar Coding and Auto-ID in Healthcare: Improving Quality and Patient Safety, which was published by HIMSS in 2009. The interview was conducted by Pat Wise, HIMSS, Vice President, Healthcare Information Systems.Learn more about the book, Implementation Guide to Bar Coding and Auto-ID in Healthcare: Improving Quality and Patient Safety

Michael Blum, MD, cardiologist, Professor of Medicine and CMIO at University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) Medical Center, and Seth Bokser, MD, pediatric hospitalist, Assistant Clinical Professor, and Medical Director for IT at UCSF Children’s Hospital, share the implementation process and benefits of mobile technology in a hospital setting. This discussion covers the importance of mobile solutions, care processes, clinician workflows, the Mobility Ecosystem and the challenges associated with mobile technology. The interview was conducted by Jack Varga, MD, MHSA, CPHIMS, FHIMSS, Physician Informaticist, Veterans Health Administration, Washington, DC.

Robert M. Schumacher, PhD, Managing Director at User Centric, Inc., a leading global user research firm, and Lyle Berkowitz, MD, Medical Director of Clinical Information Systems for Northwestern Memorial Physicians Group, discuss how EHR usability impacts EHR adoption. Topics include the "paper paradigm," why and how physicians and vendors need to re-think the design process, factors to consider, and how to fine-tune current EHRs.  Hear their thoughts on the white paper created by the HIMSS EHR Usability Task Force (reporting to the HIMSS Enterprise Information Systems Steering Committee): "Defining and Testing EMR Usability: Principles and Proposed Methods of EMR Usability Evaluation and Rating." The interview is moderated by Steve Arnold, CMO of Virginia Premier Health Plan and Chair of the HIMSS/AMDIS Physician Community.

Download the EHR Usability White Paper