HIMemo

HIMSS going to Vegas for 2012 conference

The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society will hold its annual conference in Las Vegas in 2012.

The organization, which will be in Atlanta for the show March 1-4, 2010, already had announced conferences in Orlando in 2011 and New Orleans in 2013.

Both Chicago and Las Vegas had been contenders for the 2012 slot. HIMSS often holds conference dates in several cities for the same year with a final decision made at the end of a formal negotiating process, according to HIMSS President and CEO Stephen Lieber. Chicago was the site of the 2009 annual conference, which has never been held in Las Vegas.

“With both Chicago and Las Vegas, we talked extensively with city and convention bureau officials as we examined our options for making the best decision for our attendees and exhibitors. Both cities were aware of the review for each location for the 2012 conference with the final decision for Las Vegas confirmed this week,” Lieber said in an e-mail to Modern Healthcare.

Las Vegas was chosen based on feedback from members and exhibitors, and conversations with the cities, Lieber said. The conference will be held at the Sands Expo Convention Center.

[ via Jean DerGurahian, Modern Healthcare's Daily Dose ]

Hospitals Should Include IT Recovery in Disaster Planning

If a hospital staged a disaster drill for a hurricane, chances are the exercise would focus on the actions of caregivers. But would the drill also include a medical center's IT technicians? It should.

Read more here.

HHS launches health IT standards workgroup, blog

The Department of Health and Human Services’ Health Information Technology Standards Committee on Oct. 29 convened a work group charged with bringing “real-world” implementation experience to the committee’s recommendations, particularly strategies to accelerate the adoption of proposed standards. The group heard from panelists representing health care providers, quality stakeholders, health IT vendors and other industries.

The advisory committee also launched a blog to receive additional public comments over the next two weeks. The American Hospital Association encourages hospital leaders to participate in the blog, and especially suggests that hospitals with little or no technology share their comments.

Earlier, HHS’ Health IT Policy Committee agreed to form new work groups to develop recommendations related to the National Health Information Network and health information exchange, health information privacy and security, and strategic planning.

Phases of an EHR Implementation: Steps to Building Success

The reality of electronic health record (EHR) implementation draws closer and medical staffs are ramping up. They wonder: what impact will this have on day-to-day practice? Some health care professionals tapped as project leaders are already planning the steps necessary to set up an EHR system. They’ve realized that an EHR implementation roll-out will take time and the investment of a team to coordinate the entire system.

The EHR system must be a benefit rather than a burden to the medical office. It’s not an easy task — as a best practices article published in the American Medical Informatics Association’s Annual Symposium Proceedings in 2006 indicates, only about 50% of EHR implementations are successful. Averting failure requires the proper alignment of people, processes and technology.

To achieve an effective EHR implementation, adoption can be organized into three phases, each of which has three steps.

Coder productivity benchmarks

With audit contractors scrutinizing coding accuracy and an upcoming transition to the ICD-10 coding system, coder productivity is more important than ever.

During an August 18 HCPro audio conference, Benchmarking Coder Productivity to Improve Efficiency and Justify FTEs, Rose T. Dunn, MBA, RHIA, CPA, FACHE, COO of First Class Solutions in Maryland Heights, MO, discussed the results of HCPro’s 2009 coder productivity benchmarking survey and provided tips on how to assess standards.

According to the results, respondents from inpatient facilities expected the following from their coders:

Inpatient records
 12%: Fewer than three records
 30%: Three records per hour
 14%: 3.5 to 3.75 records per hour
 10%: Four records per hour
 6% Greater than four records per hour
 29%: Not applicable

The American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) and the Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA) released benchmarking data in 2007 and 2004, respectively. The respondents in those surveys had expectations similar to those of HCPro’s survey respondents. However, Dunn noted two areas that were vastly different from the survey data: the ED and ancillary.

The AHIMA data showed an expectation of 15 records per hour, whereas the HFMA data listed 24 per hour in the ED. For ancillary, AHIMA indicated 30 records per hour, whereas HFMA showed 55.

[ via Revenue Cycle Institute ]

HHS guide promotes data standards for newborn screening

The Department of Health and Human Services’ National Library of Medicine has launched an online guide to facilitate the use of electronic data standards for newborn screening test results. The guide includes standard codes and terminology for newborn tests and related health conditions to promote more efficient electronic exchange of newborn screening information. It was created in collaboration with the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, Health Resources and Services Administration, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and others.

[ via AHA News Now ]

AHRQ to survey docs, providers on e-prescribing

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality plans to survey physicians and pharmacists about their electronic-prescribing habits to determine how those features are being used.

While e-prescribing has the potential to improve patient safety, physician adoption has been limited, AHRQ said in a notice in the Federal Register. The two-year survey will collect information from physicians and pharmacies in 110 organizations across 12 communities that are using e-prescribing, and ask providers their perspectives on those systems as well as how they use patient formulary data and other third-party information.

The communities are part of a tracking study that has been ongoing since the mid-1990s by the Center for Studying Health System Change. The center will conduct the study on AHRQ's behalf under a contract.

[ via Jean DerGurahian, Modern Healthcare's Daily Dose ]

Condition code 44 – The continuing saga

On August 28, CMS issued Medicare Claims Processing Manual (MCPM) transmittal 1803, which is the October 2009 update to the Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS). CMS included minor revisions to those sections of Chapter 1 of the MCPM that relate to condition code 44.

Read more here.

MHA hosting Basic Training ICD-9-CM Coding Boot Camp in October

 

The Mississippi Hospital Association will host a Basic Training ICD-9-CM Coding Boot Camp Oct. 28-30 at the MHA Conference Center in Madison.

This course will provide three days of INTENSE instruction in the use of ICD-9 CM coding principles. Using the Official Coding Guidelines to build a foundation is the focus of this workshop. This is NOT a course in the theory of coding with textbook examples. You will spend serious “seat time” coding and learning coding principals as they relate to quality reporting and reimbursement.

The course is designed for short-term acute care hospitals, long term care hospitals, Critical Access Hospitals, home health, hospice, skilled nursing (SNF), physician and surgeon practices staff. Participants will be prepared for entry level coding with the ability to accurately assign ICD-9-CM codes for outpatient lab and other diagnostics and will be eligible to pursue the Certified Coding Associate examination with AHIMA.

The instructor will be Jean Ann Hartzell Minzey, RHIA, CPC, CHA, President and Sr. Educator with Healthcare Education Strategies, Inc.

Learn more about the workshop here.

For more information or to register, contact Karen Anding at (800) 289-8884, (601) 368-3263 or kanding@mhanet.org. You may also register online here.

NAHIT plans to cease operations next month

The National Alliance for Health Information Technology is ceasing operations on Sept. 30, after seven years of providing guidance on health IT development. The Chicago-based alliance, which co-founded the Certification Commission for Health Information Technology, said in a news release that it has completed its mission of educating the healthcare field about the need for IT. The health IT movement has shifted from one of advocating to one of implementing and using IT, according to the alliance. “Other organizations are better positioned to help providers with implementation,” said NAHIT Chief Operating Officer Jane Horowitz in a written statement.

The alliance had been struggling financially, and Horowitz was NAHIT's only employee following a restructuring last year.

In addition to co-founding CCHIT, which certifies electronic health-record systems, NAHIT developed a definition for interoperability as well as a list of definitions for other health IT terms including health information exchange and personal health records, created a directory of health IT standards and helped coordinate the adoption of standards in the healthcare supply chain.

[ via Jean DerGurahian, Modern Healthcare's Daily Dose ]