NextGen Healthcare Information Systems, of Horsham, Pa., has announced its successful collaboration with clients that received assistance through the Primary Care Information Project (PCIP), a bureau of the NYC Health Department. In January 2009, PCIP launched Health eHearts, a pilot pay-for-quality program administered by the Fund for Public Health in New York that incentivizes practices using an electronic health record to help patients improve heart health. Five NextGen Healthcare clients were selected to participate in the program, which provides incentives for achieving core quality health measures. Participating practices are eligible for greater incentives when achieving targets with patients that are more difficult to treat based on insurance status or an existing co-morbidity diagnosis. The potential quality incentive reward to each participating practice is capped at $100,000. NextGen Healthcare clients Preferred Health Partners (PHP) and Staten Island Physician Practice both received the maximum incentive, with each practice demonstrating a 7X improvement over the capped performance measures and reward amount.
GE Healthcare has been selected as a key partner in the Northern Virginia Regional Health Information Organization (NoVaRHIO), which soon goes live with its first major step towards an full scale interoperable eHealth Information Exchange (eHIE) connecting patients and physicians across the region. GE Healthcare will provide data directly into the electronic medical record (EMR) systems and specialty care applications currently deployed in the Inova Alexandria ED. GE Healthcare’s Global eHIE will enable community-wide data to be fully integrated into provider workflow and is expected to be online this year. Though the initial agreement serves the Alexandria ED alone, the plans provide for eventual expansion to other Inova EDs as well as to the EDs of other NoVaRHIO hospital system partners.
Sunquest Information Systems, a Tucson-based provider of healthcare diagnostic information technology and outreach solutions, has announced that it's released upgrades to its popular Collection Manager laboratory information system (LIS) software. This new 6.3 version includes enhanced features for defect corrections, establishment of generic fee-for-service requests, and minor enhancements to address workflow issues and improvements. Additional field storage (AFS) is now available for blood bank analyzers, which allows for additional instrument information to be stored for later retrieval. The new program now delays information download until results or order updates are completed. The results processor will now check all components used within a calculation to ensure that all test results are filed before executing the calculation.
Emerson Network Power, of Columbus, Ohio, a business of Emerson that specializes in enabling Business-Critical Continuity, has introduced in North America the Liebert GXT3 uninterruptible power supply (UPS) system in 5-10kVA models. The true on-line double conversion Liebert UPS system, which is an extension of the existing Liebert GXT3 product line, enables IT managers to pack higher power capacities into smaller spaces while maintaining best-in-class availability. The Liebert GXT3 can be installed in a rack or tower configuration, with a rotating LED display panel that adjusts accordingly. The Liebert UPS features replaceable, hot-swappable internal batteries that provide four or more minutes of runtime at full load, with higher backup time available at typical loading conditions. The 5kVA and 6kVA models require only 4U of space, while the 8kVA and 10kVA models require only 6U of space. Optional battery cabinets, adding just 2U to 4U of rack space, provide additional runtime via the plug-and-play connections on the rear panel of the UPS.
Summit Healthcare, of Braintree, Mass., which specializes in healthcare system integration and task automation has contracted with Ithaca, New York’s Cayuga Medical Center for its full Summit Apex integrated product suite. Cayuga has successfully implemented Summit Provider Exchange – a scalable, secure physician office integration solution that facilitates the bi-directional communication of patient data between MEDITECH and the ambulatory EMR practices. Cayuga has also implemented Summit Express Connect, a robust interface engine used for hospital integration with 3rd party vendor systems. With the ability to develop and manage its interfaces in one easy-to-use application, Cayuga has already gone live with over twenty interfaces in the engine alone. The Summit Apex product suite will also help with Cayuga’s future plans, which include a 2011 migration to MEDITECH 6.0.
