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ICA Collaborates with Multiple Workgroups for Plug and Play Connectivity Standards
Recognizing the importance of having standards for connectivity between health information exchanges (HIEs) and electronic health records (EHRs), ICA has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the not-for-profit organization, New York eHealth Collaborative (NYeC), and joined the EHR|HIE Interoperability Workgroup.
Linked to courtesy of Health IT News Direct, January 25, 2012

Care Coordination Through Secure Messaging: A Kansas community seeks to improve diabetic care through secure messaging
To improve community diabetes care, a group of primary care physicians (PCPs) and optometrists in Hutchinson, Kan. is using secure clinical messaging to coordinate eye care. This use case is seen by many as a natural springboard for further health information exchange activities throughout the state.
Linked to courtesy of Healthcare Informatics, December 12, 2011.

ACOs: A sustainable business model for HIEs?
Few regional and state health information exchanges have found a sustainable business model. John Tempesco, chief marketing officer at ICA, a Nashville-based HIE vendor, recently told attendees at a Massachusetts conference that accountable care organizations (ACO) might provide the solution. Read more…..
Linked to courtesy of FierceHealthIT.com, October 14, 2011

Central Illinois Upgrades Health Information Exchange
The Central Illinois Health Information Exchange (CIHIE) has contracted with the Informatics Corporation of America (ICA) to provide IT for a new health information exchange (HIE) to serve approximately 1.3 million people in the region. Read more…..
Linked to courtesy of Information Week, October 10, 2011

Changing Business Models & Adapting to New Business Realities
Editor’s note: This blog was written by John Tempseco, chief marketing officer of ICA.
Health information exchange (HIE) has changed dramatically in the past 4 years as both a verb and a noun. As the paradigm continues to change and shift, different stake holders struggle to determine how they fit into new models of data sharing. Read more…..
Linked to courtesy of AdvanceWeb.com, Sept. 30, 2011

HIEs: Moving Towards a Patient Centric Model
By John Tempesco
Blending the features patient centric and patient portability models is what the market is looking for — and needs.
Linked to courtesy of Executive Insight, Sept. 21, 2011

Patient privacy, technology and engagement: Essential for successful healthcare reform
By John Tempesco
Though momentum was slow in building, over a period of decades, healthcare has finally been dragged, kicking and screaming, to use technology in a more comprehensive way. Accurate, real-time patient information at a physician’s fingertips improves patient care and reduces costs by eliminating unnecessary or redundant tests, or inappropriate therapeutic regimens.
Linked to courtesy of Action for Better Healthcare, Sept. 20, 2011

The Aurion Project Looks Ahead
“As you get into 2013 and 2015, the direction is slanted more toward the exchange of
information,” says Jeff Cunningham, chief technology officer for the Informatics  Corporation of America, adding that the time to start adopting a model and deploying a  technological infrastructure is now. “Once someone has building blocks in place, the  concept of interoperability should be front and center on many providers’ plates.”
Linked to courtesy of For the Record, Vol. 23,

A Hybrid Approach
Health Information Exchange Pioneers are Mixing and Matching What Works to Address Individual Data and Services Challenges
Industry experts and HIE leaders have moved past early “model”-based debates to focus on creating core and value-added services, standardizing the meaning of the clinical data, and simplifying point to point connections necessary for information to flow between the HIE and providers EHRs. Read more……
Linked to courtesy of Healthcare Informatics, August 2011

Information Technology Infrastructure Provides a Foundation for Accountable Care Organizations
by Gary Zegiestowsky
As the buzz around Accountable Care Organizations (ACO) continues to grow, providers are seeking more information about what an ACO is, how it is structured, what the incentives are, and how all the players in the healthcare process will be aligned…….read more.
Linked to courtesy of Accountable Care News, August 2011

Statewide HIE taking shape
After more than two years of detailed discussions and planning involving an extensive array of stakeholders, the statewide health information exchange is finally beginning to come together. Although much still needs to be done, the basic shape of the HIE structure in Kansas is now coming into focus. Read more……
Linked to courtesy of KMSOnline.org, July 2011.

The Holy Grail: Balancing Clinical Care with Financial Risk and Analytics In Establishing an Effective Health Information Exchange
As information technology and health information exchange (HIE) increasingly becomes the answer for improving healthcare in the U.S., it is also becoming clear that improving clinical care cannot be done in a vacuum, but must include an accompanying analysis of financial risk in order to accomplish balanced results. In spite of undeniable progress made in the past two decades, healthcare costs keep rising. Read more….
Linked to courtesy of PAeHI Newsletter, July 2011.

Patient privacy and information accessibility: A Necessary balance
The initial driver of patient privacy in the U.S. was HIPAA, enacted in 1996. In the original HHS privacy rule, a core component of HIPAA’s purpose was the ability to protect patient privacy while at the same time allowing the sharing of personal health information to facilitate patient care. As technology becomes more widely used in healthcare, a serious divide has now emerged between advocates of patient privacy versus the essential flow of data which will improve patient care.
Linked to courtesy of Healthcare ITNews, NHIN Watch, June 28, 2011

The Importance of Patient Engagement in a Successful HIE
By John Tempesco
Patient safety. Improved outcomes. Reduced costs.
These are the mantras of the modern healthcare environment. But what are the drivers of success in this environment? Read more…..
Linked to courtesy of For the Record, June 2011, Web Exclusive

Wichita closing in on the beginning of electronic medical records sharing
As work on a statewide health information exchange program continues, the ability of physicians and hospitals to share records could be close to a reality in Wichita. Read more…..
Linked to courtesy of Wichita Business Journal, June 3, 2011

Cutting Hospital Administrative Waste Just Got Easier — and It’s About Time
By John Tempesco
Everyone recognizes that hospital administrative costs are over-the-top. In fact, according to Harvard Medical School, 31 percent of U.S. healthcare dollars, or more than $1,000 per person per year, goes toward administrative costs. In any other industry, this level of waste would lead to widespread bankruptcy. Read more……..
Linked to courtesy of The Business Edge, May 27, 2011

Payer Participation in Health Information Exchanges
As financial sustainability is becoming the conundrum for most health information exchanges (HIEs), payer participation is being regarded as one of this industry’s necessary solutions. Rodney Holmes, executive director of MidSouth eHealth Alliance (MSeHA) and Burt Waller, chairman of the MSeHA board, are not alone is their opinion that commercial insurers will be a major factor in the health of current and future information exchanges.
Linked to courtesy of Healthcare Informatics, March 28, 2011.

Extraction Experts
Healthcare organizations that probe below the surface can find a bounty of riches contained within their secondary EHR data.  The secondary use of patient data as a strategy to enhance the delivery of care is not a new concept. Many healthcare organizations have been using unidentifiable healthcare data to boost quality and patient care initiatives for years.
Linked to courtesy of For the Record, March 28, 2011.

Doctors seek health data exchange for Sedgwick Co.
The push by a local physicians group to establish a county-wide electronic health information exchange became official on Monday.
Linked to courtesy of The Wichita Eagle, March 1, 2011

Kansas Health Information Network formalizes agreement with ICA
After month after securing a contract with Nashville-based Informatics Corporation of America, representatives from the organizations that make up the Kansas Health Information Network gathered on Monday in Wichita to discuss what’s next in the process. Attendees ended the public portion of Monday’s meeting by signing a poster to signify a unified approach to implementing an information-sharing network in Kansas.
Linked to courtesy of Wichita Business Journal, February 28, 2011

Providers’ Perceptions: a Conversation with WellStar CIO Ron Strachan
Delivering world-class healthcare is no easy feat, and yet WellStar – Georgia’s largest not-for-profit health system – has made this its mission. Integrating more than 11,500 employees, including 400 physicians and advanced practitioners…
Linked to courtesy of Billian’s Health Data, January 6, 2011

MidSouth HIE Exiting Demonstration Phase
The Memphis-based MidSouth eHealth Alliance in 2004 received a federal grant to develop a demonstration data exchange platform with informatics professionals at Vanderbilt Medical Center…
Linked to courtesy of HealthData Management, August 24, 2010

Doctors prep for Digital Push
After nearly two years of waiting, hospitals and doctors now hold the key to unlocking up to $27 billion in federal incentives aimed at converting patients’ medical charts from paper files to electronic records…
Linked to courtesy of Nashville Business Journal, July 30, 2010

‘Who’s going to pay for it?’
The panel discussion titled “HIE: Is it real? Does it work?” at the recent AMDIS Physician-Computer Symposium offered an opportunity for HIE vendors Axolotl, ICA, Microsoft and McKesson to explain the value of health information exchanges to a roomful of CMIOs…
Linked to courtesy of CMIO, July 27, 2010

KLAS: Many players, few contenders in HIE market
Whether connecting competitive hospitals or just linking to community physicians, healthcare providers considered 38 unique vendors in their search for health information exchange (HIE) technology, according to a report from KLAS. However, only five companies were considered in more than 10 percent of buying decisions, the Orem, Utah-based research firm reported…
Linked to courtesy of CMIO, July 7, 2010

Enterprise HIE market poised to soar
FRAMINGHAM, MA – A recent study of health information exchange solution vendors shows enterprise HIEs serving integrated delivery networks, health, or hospital systems will be the fastest-growing market segment of HIE organizations in the coming two years…
Linked to courtesy of Healthcare IT News, May 25, 2010

2010 Healthcare Recruitment Overview
With the broader economy recovering only in fits and starts, healthcare hiring in 2010 will lag the robust growth rates seen in previous years. Hospitals and other provider organizations will see less turnover and fewer increases in headcount, but recruitment in many in-demand specialties, even if openings are fewer, will remain challenging…
Linked to courtesy of Monster.com, May 18, 2010

Great Expectations: Informatics Corporation of America
Venture Nashville Connections, March 18, 2010
Barring another national economic calamity, responding to RFPs and recruiting talent may be the greatest challenges facing Nashville’s Informatics Corporation of America…

Two Companies Hiring Workers In Mid-State
Nashville’s Informatics Corporation of America plans to hire at least 30 more workers this year…
Linked to courtesy of News Channel 5, Nashville TN, March 17, 2010

Informatics plans to double staff
Nashville’s Informatics Corporation of America plans to nearly double its staff this year to 86 as it works to meet demand for its technology, which makes hospital records more accessible…
Linked to courtesy of Nashville Business Journal, March 17, 2010

Scorecard: Updating our headlines from a year ago
Greenway Centre
THEN: Charlotte, N.C.-based Crescent Resources had stopped construction on the nearly completed One Greenway Centre, a $33 million office building on Carothers Crossing, after contractors placed more than $2.5 million in liens on the project. In June, Crescent announced it was filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection…
Linked to courtesy of Nashville Business Journal, March 5, 2010

Coping with the Culture Clash Between RNs and IT
IT professionals are great at coming up with nifty tools for bringing clinical data to clinicians – as long as nurses are willing to memorize lots of byzantine paths to that information….
by John Rossheim for Curaspan Health, March 2, 2010

Optimize Health Care IT Investment with Effective Implementation of Clinical Information Systems: Informatics Corporation of America Unveils White Paper
Marking the launch of its newly redesigned Web site, Informatics Corporation of America, provider of electronic solutions to hospitals, integrated delivery networks (IDNs), and health information exchanges (HIEs), announces the availability of an informative white paper, “Health Care IT Investment Heightens Need For Effective Implementation: Introducing five key elements for successful roll-out of clinical information systems (CIS),”. Co-authored by John Tempesco, vice president of client services and marketing at ICA, and Larry T. Mercer, eCare training director, Sentara Information Technology, the paper outlines the critical steps for successful implementation of clinical information systems (CIS) in order to ensure the value of past, current, and future IT investments.
February 2, 2010

13 Health Leaders Respond to Obama’s State of the Union Address
Gary Zegiestowsky, Chief Executive Officer Informatics Corporation of America: “I believe the President’s goal to provide healthcare coverage to all Americans while reducing the record high costs of healthcare will continue to be a key driver for the broader use and adoption of healthcare information technology.”This builds on the premise that healthcare technology can provide efficiencies in care delivery while improving the overall health of each patient. I believe the continued evolution of a community-based model of care will be a critical success factor in achieving the President’s goals for healthcare.  This model will need to revolve around a patient-centric approach across the range of treatment settings that aligns care providers as a team to truly improve the health of the American population in a cost-effective manner.”
Linked to courtesy of Cheryl Clark, for HealthLeaders Media, January 28, 2010

Making IT Investment Decisions During Economic Uncertainty
During a time of economic uncertainty, health care institutions face tough decisions. Should we put health care technology infrastructure upgrades on hold? Delay new technology purchases? Cut back on the scope of new initiatives to live within shrinking capital budgets?
Linked to courtesy of ADVANCE for Health Information Executives, November 11, 2009

Medical Miscues Underscore Need for E-Health Records
FOX National News, October 12, 2009
… Mistakes in transmitting records are just one of the reasons many doctors and hospitals are endorsing the transition to electronic medical records. These records would be protected by sophisticated privacy programs with encryption and other security measures. Hospitals, doctors, and insurance companies—as well as patients—would have access to them online, all the time.

The Green Three R’s of HlT
… For enterprises in the health care information technology (HIT) sector – with old operating systems existing alongside the new – the three R’s merit renewed attention since there is a persistent lag in becoming eco-friendly. HIT is not quite as green as other sectors that have embraced the digital age and streamlined operations, with legacy systems still surviving and becoming integrated into many health care environments.
Linked to courtesy of RT Image, September 21, 2009

Tailoring a Comprehensive Electronic Health Record to Meet the Demands of the ED
Over the past 20 years, the U.S. government has struggled to apply standards across the country’s highly complex, fragmented health care system to combat its inefficiency, waste, and preponderance of medical error. Part of the solution has been the nationwide implementation of an interoperable health information technology (HIT) infrastructure …
Linked to courtesy of EMS Responder.com, July 15, 2009