Arizona Health-e Connection is now on Twitter!
@arizonahealthe
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Next AzHeC Update:
May 10, 2011
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AzHeC Updates
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Newly Elected 2011 AzHeC Board of Directors
AzHeC is pleased to announce the election results for its 2011 Board of Directors.
Permanent Members
The Governor of Arizona
Beth Kohler Lazare, Deputy Director of Policy
Arizona Government Information Technology Agency (GITA)
Aaron Sandeen, State CIO & Director
Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS)
Janet Mullen, Deputy Director
Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS)
Tom Betlach, Director
Arizona Medical Association
David Landrith, Vice President, Policy & Political Affairs
Arizona Osteopathic Medical Association
Amanda Weaver, Executive Director
Arizona Hospital and Healthcare Association
Laurie Liles, President & CEO
Health Plan Representatives
Blue Cross Blue Shield of AZ
Sue Navran, Executive VP, Internal Operations
Schaller Anderson/Aetna
Tom Kelly, President
UnitedHealthCare
Benton Davis, CEO Western States
CIGNA
Jim Burrell, MD, CMO
Hospitals
Banner Health
Mike Warden, Senior VP & CIO
Maricopa Integrated Hospital System (MIHS)
David Kempson, VP & CIO
Employers
Arizona Chamber of Commerce & Industry
Glenn Hamer, President & CEO
Higher Education
Arizona State University
William Johnson, PhD, Director, Center for Health Information and Research
Laboratory
Sonora Quest Laboratories
Dave Dexter, President & CEO
Pharmacy
Arizona Pharmacy Alliance
Mindy Smith, RPh, CEO
Medical Trading Area (MTA)
Phoenix MTA (Provider Representative)
Bruce Bethancourt, MD
Tucson MTA (Health Information Network of Arizona)
Kathy Byrne, Co-Chair
At-Large Representative
Your Partners in Quality Consumer Representative
Debra Nixon, PhD
Health Services Advisory Group (Medicare Quality Improvement Representative)
Mary Ellen Dalton, CEO
University of Arizona, College of Medicine (Telemedicine Representative)
Ronald Weinstein, MD, Founding Director, Arizona Telemedicine Program
AzHeC greatly appreciate all of its Members' support and leadership and looks forward to working with all AzHeC Members and Supporters on important HIT efforts in the months to come!
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Arizona Regional Extension Center (REC)
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REC Spring Roadshow - Coming to a Town Near You!
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is giving incentive payments to eligible professionals who demonstrate Meaningful Use of a certified electronic health record (EHR). It pays to get started early!
- Up to $44,000 for eligible professionals in the Medicare EHR Incentive Program
- Up to $63,750 for eligible professionals in the Medicaid EHR Incentive Program
Free Educational Events for Health Care Providers and Staff Across Arizona (see schedule below) on:
- Medicare & Medicaid EHR Incentive Programs
- Meaningful Use Basics & Meaningful Use Attestation
- Arizona Regional Extension Center EHR Technical Assistance Services
How to Register - It's Quick & Easy!
Lunch or Dinner served at all events!
- These events are FREE to health care providers and their staff
- Register at https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/RECRoadshow
- A registration confirmation email with complete event details will be sent to all registered attendees
REC Member Profile: Sonoran Sky Pediatrics
This month's REC member profile features Cheryl Pence, practice manager at Sonoran Sky Pediatrics in Mesa. She explains how transformative EHRs will be for her daily tasks and how the REC has helped her office. 
"As a practice manager, one of my main concerns is the financial investment. Due to the large amount of money spent on software, hardware and security of the information, I want to ensure that we make decisions that will allow us to get the best results in the most affordable way. Although the REC does not endorse specific vendors, they have been helpful in giving us information so we make a better decision in selecting a vendor and software that best meets our needs. It saved us research time, and I believe they helped us to avoid some mistakes.
"I would absolutely recommend the REC to others! Everyone has been pleasant to work with, resourceful, knowledgeable of the Meaningful Use requirements and able to guide us through the process. It never hurts to have a little reassurance to help you through a big project like implementing electronic records."
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HIT News
| Top 10 Strategies for Engaging Patients Using Health IT
The "Top Ten Things You Need To Know About Engaging Patients" was recently released by the Institute for Health Technology Transformation. Using input from Health IT experts across the country, the list includes:
- Providing patients with online health tools that offer reminders and information about their diagnosis and treatments
- Providing caregivers with access tools such as personal health records and online assessments
- Offering PHR tools maintained by a physician practice or hospital
- Preventing financial concerns from hindering creative efforts to engage patients in health IT
MGMA Study Finds Providers Satisfied and Paying Less with Electronic Health Records
MGMA conducted a study from October 2010 to November 2010 to explore barriers and benefits to EHRs adoption using data collected from 4,588 health care organizations nationwide. Among the findings were that 72 percent of EHR owners were satisfied with their EHRs overall. Also, 61 percent of respondents who reported their EHR had been fully optimized indicated their systems had increased provider productivity and boosted practice revenue.
Read a report of the study from ModernHealthcare or download the report from MGMA.
EHRs & Risk Calculators Reduce Risk of Heart Attack and Stroke, Study Finds
Risk Calculators integrated into EHRs can help doctors develop individualized treatment guidelines, according to a study published in this month's Annals of Internal Medicine. Researchers compared their approach with data from a long-term study of 15,800 U.S. residents and concluded that tailored treatment could prevent 43 percent more heart attacks and strokes than national recommendations currently used, while maintaining the same costs. Read the Reuters report.
CMS Final Rule Eases Authorization Requirements for Telehealth
Last week, CMS published a final rule that eases the process for the credentialing and privileging of telehealth practitioners. This changes the requirements that previously did not allow practitioners to provide care using telehealth technology unless they had received privileges from their home hospital and the hospital where the telehealth services would be delivered. As long as certain conditions are met, the new rule will let hospitals receiving telehealth services rely upon credentialing and privileging information from the entity providing telehealth services. Read the Healthcare IT News report.
Research Findings: EHR Data Valuable in Genetic Studies
EHR data can be a valuable source of relevant clinical data for genomic studies according to a recent report. It stated that widespread EHR adoption "creates the potential for a quantum shift forward in the availability of longitudinal, real-world clinical data for genetics research."
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Events
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38th Annual Rural Health Conference
The Power of Rural for a Healthy Southwest
August 2 - 3, 2011
The Wigwam Resort
Litchfield Park
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