HIMSS16 takeaways and insights: Keeping the big topics in mind for long-term plans

With the dust finally settled after a productive HIMSS16, you may find yourself wondering where to start. We’d like to offer some insights on this year’s main goals—tackling some of the industry’s greatest information management challenges—to get the wheels turning on the best next steps. Interoperability. Not surprisingly, interoperability (or lack thereof) continues to plague the entire healthcare industry and was a recurring theme throughout the conferenc

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Improving Performance Outcomes with VistA

In an ongoing effort to ensure that VistA ─ the Hospital Information System (HIS) and electronic health record (EHR) for veteran health data ─ remains a best of breed enterprise system, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is continuously exploring modernization initiatives to keep pace with the changing landscape. This landscape is focused on patient centered care models, healthcare industry regulations and provider workflows.

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Enhancing women veterans’ care with effective care coordination

In the last two decades, the number of female veterans—and, subsequently, their need for healthcare—has risen significantly. Between 2000 and 2012 alone, female care delivery needs within the veteran’s administration (VA) increased by 226%, a figure that only stands to rise as more active-duty women transition to veteran status. However, unlike their male counterparts who are aged 63 on average, nearly 80 percent of female veterans are under the age of 40 and therefore still of child-bearing age.

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Improving DoD and VA Data sharing to enhance patient safety

Consider this scenario: A soldier wounded in Operation Iraqi Freedom lost part of his arm in an explosion. He now wears a prosthetic forearm and hand, which must be maintained and refitted periodically. He requires physical and occupational therapies to learn how to use his prosthesis and he takes prescription medications to manage phantom limb pains, in addition to anxiety and depression.

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Optimizing VistA: Making the #1 open source EHR work for you

Selecting the best electronic health record (EHR) for any healthcare organization is a matter of matching capabilities to overall needs. VistA’s open-source approach offers inherent advantages in that matching, delivered in a time-tested solution that Medscape ranks as the number one EHR for overall customer satisfaction. The ability of VistA to be adapted, built upon and improved over time underscores its remarkable capacity to remain relevant, timely and appealing.

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