Halamka Joins Imprivata Board of Directors

Imprivata, a provider of HIT security solutions, recently announced the appointment of John Halamka, MD, MS, to its board of directors. Halamka brings more than 30 years of experience to Imprivata, where he will leverage his nationally recognized leadership in the areas of EMRs and secure sharing of patient health information to help guide the company as it continues on its path of rapid growth. Currently, Halamka serves as chief information officer (CIO) of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and was recently named a 2013 CIO of the Year by Boston Business Journal and Mass High Tech. Halamka is also chairman of the New England Healthcare Exchange Network (NEHEN), cochair of the national HIT Standards Committee, and cochair of the Massachusetts HIT Advisory Committee. He is also a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and a practicing emergency physician.

“Dr. Halamka is a prominent leader in the healthcare IT industry and we are honored that he has joined our board of directors. His experience as CIO at one of the top medical centers in the nation combined with his leadership position on several influential standards committees will be invaluable in helping Imprivata through our next phase of growth,” says Omar Hussain, president and CEO of Imprivata. “John is at the forefront of the rapid changes taking place in healthcare IT, especially in helping organizations understand how to leverage the benefits of technology while remaining compliant with security and regulatory requirements. His expertise will help Imprivata better understand our customers’ evolving challenges and guide us in our development of next-generation solutions to address them.”

As CIO of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Halamka is responsible for all clinical, financial, administrative, and academic IT serving 14,000 employees, including 3,000 doctors, and 2 million patients. As chairman of NEHEN, he oversees clinical and administrative data exchange in Eastern Massachusetts, and as cochair of the HIT Standards Committee, he facilitates the process of electronic standards harmonization among stakeholders nationwide. As cochair of the Massachusetts HIT Advisory Committee, Halamka engages the stakeholders of the Commonwealth to guide the development of a statewide health information exchange.

Halamka completed his undergraduate studies at Stanford University, earned his MS in bioengineering at the University of California, Berkeley, and served his residency at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in the Department of Emergency Medicine. During medical school and graduate training, Halamka developed Ibis Research Labs into a 25 person software consultancy, specializing in medical and financial information interchange. Ibis was sold to senior management in 1992.

“Too many healthcare IT solutions are developed without appropriate input from the doctors and nurses who will be using the technology on a daily basis, but Imprivata has demonstrated a commitment to developing products and services in collaboration with both the IT and clinical constituents within the company’s customer base,” says Halamka. “Imprivata’s success reflects this practice and it is exciting to join the board of a company that is delivering innovative solutions that help to enhance the quality of care.”

Source: Imprivata