Dear Healthcare IT Insider,
For nearly a week in March, the center of the healthcare IT universe was located in New Orleans, the city hosting the annual meeting of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS). AuntMinnie.com editors were there, along with nearly 35,000 others in attendance.
President Bill Clinton delivered a keynote address in which he defined healthcare IT as a global game changer. Political party activists and consultants Karl Rove and James Carville also took to the stage -- together -- to debate "Obamacare." Senior editor Erik L. Ridley described the event and what transpired here.
Another keynote speaker who attracted crowds in the thousands was Mr. Meaningful Use himself, Dr. Farzad Mostashari, chief of the U.S. Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC). Like Clinton, Mostashari has a vision that healthcare IT can revolutionize healthcare delivery and services, and also force the reform of an overpriced, wasteful, and inefficient U.S. healthcare system. Learn more here.
While Mostashari's keynote represented thoughtfully prepared remarks, a fast-paced, hour-long ONC town hall meeting provided an informal setting to meet the ONC leadership team and ask questions. And boy, were questions asked! The Insider Exclusive of this issue of the Healthcare IT Insider provides a flavor of that meeting.
Other HIMSS 2013 sessions reported in the Healthcare IT Digital Community that we recommend include the following:
- Preparing for a meaningful use audit
- Security challenges of mobile devices for healthcare providers
- The need for an electronic patient portal to be nurtured to succeed
Finally, if you want to learn about troubleshooting tools recommended by experts to keep healthcare IT systems running smoothly, read this guest contribution by PACS consultant Herman Oosterwijk.
