Industry Insight

Collaborative to Focus on Data Integration

Determined to ensure health care providers get the data analytics and business intelligence they need to improve population health, a group of IT and clinical experts have launched the Data Alliance Collaborative (DAC). Through this initiative, DAC members are codeveloping and sharing knowledge, data, and resources to address unmet health care needs.

DAC members, which include Carolinas HealthCare System, Catholic Health Partners, Fairview Health Services, Texas Health Resources, IBM, and Premier healthcare alliance, are sharing their experiences and intelligence to codevelop solutions that integrate data across the continuum.

“Instead of investing in and developing multiple, fragmented solutions that address the same problem, we’re pooling resources to develop single solutions we all can use,” says Terry Carroll, senior vice president of transformation and chief information officer for Fairview Health Services and DAC chair. “We’re using Big Data, as opposed to local or siloed data, and will get richer insights as a result. Sharing assets and testing new and innovative ways to use analytics will help us achieve systemwide change that positively impacts quality, cost, and the care experience.”

According to Keith J. Figlioli, Premier’s senior vice president of health care informatics and a member of Health and Human Services HIT Standards Committee, “Not enough front-line care-setting experience goes into the development and implementation of technology today. DAC members decided they want to lead the day-to-day development of the analytics required to enable population health management and operational transformation. This collaborative is really a reflection of what we’re trying to build in health care: a system that is coordinated, where communication is dramatically improved, and where we’re building, connecting, and constantly interacting with information from multiple channels, all in one place.”

Among the first DAC codevelopment projects is a model designed to quickly notify providers of groups of patients who have not filled prescriptions within 24 hours of discharge and to immediately intervene. DAC members also are codeveloping an all-cause predictive readmissions model that analyzes both EMR and administrative data to identify patients who are most likely to be readmitted before they are discharged. The DAC model also will identify risk factors leading to readmissions, tying patients to appropriate evidence-based checklists based on their condition.

— Source: Premier healthcare alliance

 

AHIMA Appoints New Vice President

AHIMA has appointed Meryl Bloomrosen, MBA, RHIA, FAHIMA, as vice president of thought leadership, practice excellence, and public policy.

With more than 30 years of experience in health information, Bloomrosen joins AHIMA from the American Medical Informatics Association (AMIA), where she served as vice president of public policy and government relations. Prior to her work at AMIA, Bloomrosen served as the program manager of the Connecting Communities for Better Health Program at the eHealth Initiative. She also was a senior policy analyst at the Prospective Payment Assessment Commission (now MEDPAC).

— Source: AHIMA

 

Campion Joins HIPAA Compliance Consulting Team

The consulting company of Hurley Makes It Happen! recently announced that Melissa J. Campion, RHIA, CHPS, CHDA, CMT, HIT Pro-IM, Pro-TR, has joined its team as chief technical consultant. Campion has extensive experience with technology systems that support medical transcription and EHR services. She will be using her technical skills to create data flow mapping documents and applying her expertise in security systems to complete HIPAA security risk assessments.

— Source: Hurley Makes It Happen!