Washington Health Care Providers Are Ahead of the Curve on IT
Dice, a tech jobs site, reports strong demand for health IT professionals as health care institutions seek to implement medical records systems ahead of looming federal deadlines that offer special advantages to organizations with computerized medical record systems.
Many Washington state institutions, however, are ahead of the curve. Last year, Seattle Business recognized Inland Northwest Health Services for its success in developing one of the most advanced medical record systems in the nation.
This year, as part of our 2011 Leaders in Health Care awards, we have selected other state organizations that are doing a stellar job in implementing health IT systems. This year's finalists are as follows.
(In alphabetical order)
Outstanding Achievement in Health Care Informational Technology
James Fine, Chief information officer, UW Medicine
Under the leadership of James Fine, UW launched ORCA, for Online Record of Clinical Activity, an electronic record that allows people in seven different institutions, including Harborview and the UW School of Medicine, to read the same records for a patient or group of patients, enhancing patient safety and customer service. The UW has also teamed with Microsoft, using its product Amalga Unified Intelligence System to help make data readable across many different researcher platforms.
Peter Gelpi, CEO, Clarity Health Systems
One challenge for health care providers in small, independent practices is sharing patient information among multiple practices. Poor coordination results in delayed and lower-quality care for patients. Clarity Health Systems has devised a solution: a simple, affordable, web-based platform that allows independent health care providers in Pierce County to coordinate care management and referrals.
For 15 years, Edifecs has been working to streamline health care information technology by automating administrative tasks, including those surrounding the privacy legislation known as HIPAA, with the goal of reducing operation costs and meeting compliance expectations. Edifecs is regarded as a thought-leader in the industry, and was recognized by Deloitte as one of North America’s fastest-growing companies in 2010.
Ted Tanase, Founder, chairman and CEO, Total Living Choices
Ted Tanase created his health information company, Total Living Choices (TLC) in 1999 as a way to help families that need to place loved ones in skilled-care facilities outside the home. Hospitals also rely on this streamlined combination of software and data because they can save money by placing patients into skilled facilities without weeks of delay. The Veterans Administration is exploring TLC’s service in a pilot program, and could bring its nationwide network of 158 medical centers and 620 clinics into the system eventually.
Tom Wood, Chief medical information officer, Swedish Medical Center
Tom Wood is credited with convincing 2,400 change-resistant physicians to convert to an advanced electronic health records system. An outstanding listener and leader, Wood helped doctors and nurses navigate their fear of change and technology. He created lean, physician-friendly templates (which were declared a national best practice) and used animation to explain one set of orders for pre- and post-surgical care that drew praise from colleagues at a national conference.
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