In This Issue:
 COLIN KONSCHAK NAMED HIMSS CHAPTER LEADER OF THE YEAR
VA HIMSS Reception at HIMSS 2008 Annual Conference in Orlando, FL
ARTICLE on 2008 VA HIMSS ADVOCACY DAY
MEMBER ADVANCEMENT AND CPHIMS CERTIFICATION
CALL FOR BOARD MEMBERS
NOVARHIO PROJECT RECEIVES GRANT FROM COMMONWEALTH OF VA
CENTRA HEALTH PROJECT RECEIVES GRANT FROM COMMONWEALTH OF VA
Virginia HIMSS Reception
Sponsored by THISA at the HIMSS 08 Annual Conference
February 25, 2008 6:30-9:30pm
Think sunsets, Beach Boys music and sand between your toes! Immerse yourself in the ultimate “Beach Bash!" experience; Discovery Cove is the perfect setting for a themed relaxing beach adventure!
The exclusive oasis-like atmosphere of Discovery Cove offers you a paradise of rocky lagoons surrounded by lush landscaping, intricate coral reefs, a resort-style pool complete with waterfalls, and gleaming white beaches dotted with thatched huts, cabanas, and hammocks.
Please visit the VA HIMSS website to RSVP for this event. We look forward to seeing you at this VA HIMSS networking event in Orlando sponsored by your local THISA member iAccess!
CLICK HERE TO RSVP
GREAT ATMOSPHERE, GREAT ANNOUNCEMENTS, AND GREAT ADVOCACY
2008 VA HIMSS State Advocacy Day
by Reuben Southall
The Opportunity: Can you have a positive impact on HIT legislation? Yes you can! Can you speak directly to legislatures that are actually writing the HIT legislation? Yes you can! Can you be among those who actually influence the passing of HIT related bills? Yes you can! How? Through participation in the Virginia HIMSS Day at the General Assembly (aka Advocacy Day)
The Event: On January 21st, 2008 at the historic MCV Alumni House and Conference Center in Richmond Virginia, the Virginia and National Capital Area (NCA) HIMSS Chapters held the Second Annual HIMSS Day at the General Assembly.
HIMSS Day at the General Assembly is an event providing the opportunity for participants to have direct access to their members of the House of Delegates, Senate and key influencers of HIT legislation and funding.
The Legislative Participation: Among the highlights of the event this year, was “A Day in the Life of a State Legislator” briefing given by the Honorable Brian Moran. His talk gave a behind the scenes look at the multifaceted dimension of a legislature’s day at the General Assembly.
The Healthcare Industry Participation: MCV Hospitals CEO, John Duval gave an educational and sobering look into the impact hospital diversion has on healthcare delivery and the sterling example of cooperation and synergistic effort regional healthcare organizations are displaying to manage spikes in demand for hospital services. Mr. Duval provided attendees with the specifics of the cause, effects and management of diversion and potential improvement strategies. Diversion was an important topic for the HIMSS event as House Bill 247 sponsored by Delegate John M. O’Bannon III this year is directly tied to the need to strategically increase the use of technology to manage diversion events.
The Grant Announcement: The Advocacy Day was also a day of an important announcement. Secretary of Technology Aneesh Chopra and Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Resources Gail Jaspen announced the awarding of Governor Timothy Kaine’s two health information technology grants to projects designed to expand the use of electronic health records: Centra Health in Lynchburg and the Northern Virginia Regional Health Information Organization (NOVARHIO) in Fairfax County were the proud and deserving recipients. We congratulate Centra and NOVARHIO on this great achievement!
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| | Reuben Southall, Mike Sanders, Rich Pollack, Peggy Congin, and Helen Volger
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Each program was awarded $150,000 through a grant program initiated by Governor Kaine last year with funding provided by the General Assembly. Both projects have acquired matching funds that combined with the state's award of $300,000 create a total investment of more than $550,000.
| | Delegate Paul Nichols, Danny Sawyer, and Forrest (Frosty) Price
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The Participant Benefits: During Advocacy Day, program participants in total met with more than half of the legislature representing an estimated 70 visits. From the comments of Secretary Chopra and other leaders, the actions of event participants are being recognized, appreciated and is having a positive impact. We were encouraged by multiple HIT decision-makers to continue and even increase our efforts in the future.
PHOTO GALLERY - More Pictures from 2008 STATE ADVOCACY DAY
SUMMARY OF NOVARHIO PROJECT
by Jane Woods
The Northern Virginia Regional Health Information Organization (NOVARHIO), using grant funding from the Commonwealth of Virginia, will partner with GE Healthcare and others to support several phases of an overall initiative to expand the use of electronic health records and establish a comprehensive health information exchange in northern Virginia. The NOVARHIO submitted the proposal with George Mason University, INOVA Health Systems and Erickson Communities, Greenspring Village.
The goals of the initiative are to 1) create a mechanism to provide electronic access to patient medication histories in hospital emergency rooms and 2) launch an organized effort to educate northern Virginia citizens about the critical need for personal health records and make same available to them. The initiative will begin to establish a health information framework, by encouraging voluntary use of a web-based “File of Life.” These efforts will inform the Planning District 8 regional work that was begun under the auspices of George Mason University and has been underway for almost 20 months.
With this pilot, NOVARHIO plans to develop a Medication Record Exchange throughout northern Virginia that would house electronic medication records in discrete repositories and make them available through a registry and record locator with patient consent for health care as needed at emergency rooms in this region. Later a complete electronic health record (EHR) can be scaled from this initial platform to inform health care across provider, medical research, and public health settings. A pilot web-based "File of Life" system with patient summary information will be used as part of the process of organizing and educating the stakeholders and testing the model in northern Virginia prior to the potential rollout of a full health information exchange (projected for late 2009).
The initial steps toward creating the Medications Record Exchange (MEDs-ER) are to simultaneously 1) organize and educate the stakeholders and the community about the medications record exchange concept thereby establishing strong support for the initial rollout, and 2) establish a web-based "File of Life" system that provides key medical information for emergency responders for those residents and consumers who voluntarily participate.
The proposed MEDs-ER project begins to lay the foundation for this kind of workable infrastructure model and has wide-spread support among stakeholders due to its relative facility in initiation, and its potential for significant health care benefits and relatively low front-end investment.
A separate, but parallel, aspect of the NOVARHIO project plan will be to help implement the concurrent aspect of this proposal--the use of the “File of Life.” NOVARHIO will build on the existing trust local residents have in their local governments to inform residents and provide access to individual “files of life.” County governments and other Planning District 8 jurisdictions, along with local hospitals, will host the downloadable form for the “File of Life” that residents and consumers will populate with their medical history and pertinent emergency information. Residents will print and store the File on their computers or simply download and fill out the template manually to be stored in a designated uniform place. Additionally, Greenspring Village will make such form and information available to their residents using internal media tools throughout the Village. All residents will be encouraged to keep the information up-to-date and on their refrigerator or bed frame in a magnetic envelope. At the same time as the "File of Life" system is being developed and piloted, the development and marketing of the MEDs-ER will begin.
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On February 26, 2008, at the HIMSS Annual Conference and Exhibition, the HIMSS Virginia Chapter President, Mr. Colin Konschak will be receiving the HIMSS 2007 Chapter Leader of the Year Award. The Chapter Leader of the Year Award recognizes an individual who demonstrates significant leadership, extraordinary contributions to HIMSS Chapters, the society and a commitment to the HIT industry.
Konschak has applied his leadership skills to strengthening the Virginia HIMSS chapter in a variety of ways including supporting the Chapter’s inaugural offering of the CPHIMS Class and Exam where the Chapter graduated approximately 15 CPHIMS candidates, approximately 30 CPHIMS in two years. Konschak has been instrumental in obtaining funding for the Chapter from industry leading organizations. He served in the role of Sponsorship Chair and raised the most funds in the Chapter’s history in this position. This funding allowed the Chapter to take an already successful annual education event to the next level, increasing attendance and improving the quality of educational seminars. Konschak also used his leadership skills to leverage the State’s CIO’s in service to the Chapter. For the second year in a row, the State’s leading CIO’s participated in a roundtable program talking about their respective institutions and plans related to information technology.
The awards banquet will be held at the Peabody Hotel in Orlando, Florida in conjunction with the HIMSS Annual Conference & Exhibition. The Awards Banquet recognizes members for their significant contributions to the Society, their organizations and the healthcare IT profession at this black tie event. All HIMSS members are invited to attend this event at an additional cost to the conference registration. You may purchase tickets with your HIMSS08 registration or add to your existing registration by updating online.
If you have any additional questions, please contact HIMSS at awards@himss.org
The entire chapter would like to thank Colin on his continued excellence in leading and growing the chapter membership.
Congratulations Colin!!
Congratulations to the following HIMSS Virginia Chapter members who have achieved CPHIMS certification:
CHARLES FRAZIER, MD, CPHIMS
Congratulations to the following HIMSS Virginia Chapter members who have advanced to Fellow:
COLIN KONSCHAK, MBA, RPh, CPHIMS, FHIMSS
The Virginia Chapter of HIMSS has received national recognition for our chapter’s expanded involvement in the industry, our high caliber annual conference, and by becoming an influence and source of industry knowledge to our state and national legislators.
All that activity requires a great deal of work – volunteer work. To maintain quality programs, and reach as many members as possible, the board must continually bring on individuals to carry on the chapter’s mission, individuals who share the same passion for the industry.
If you are an active individual, who would like an opportunity to: contribute to the advancement of healthcare IT, network with other providers and vendors, and drive the direction of our industry at the state and national level, you may be a good fit for our chapter.
We are actively seeking individuals to fill the expanded board positions listed below. Please contact mike.sanders@vahimss.org to learn more about these positions.
VA HIMSS BOARD - OPEN CHAIR POSITIONS
Centra Health received one of Virginia's health information technology grants from the Governor's office on Monday, January 21, 2008, to expand the use of electronic health records for cardiology patients in the Lynchburg region. Centra will use the grant to gather outpatient cardiac patient electronic medical records in a program that is expected to become a national model.
ACC has created a National Cardiovascular Data Registry (NCDR), the purpose of which is to enable monitoring and benchmarking of quality of cardiac care. Part of the NCDR effort is IC3, or Improving Continuous Cardiac Care, an "office-based registry designed to provide physicians with the most current, nationally recognized best practices for cardiac care." NCDR will marry data submitted through IC3 with hospital data submitted under another data capture effort - Acute Coronary Treatment and Intervention Outcomes Network, or ACTION. This will allow ACC to assess, then promulgate, evidence-based chronic disease management protocols which are proven out over time.
A down-the-road ACC goal is to then embed these protocols into EMRs and paper-based workflows at the point of care. Centra Health and The Cardiovascular Group along with GE Healthcare are partnering to develop needed EMR forms/workflows/flowsheets to make sure the appropriate data elements are captured in office workflow utilizing Centricity EMR. GE Healthcare will create an HL-7 based data transfer from Centricity EMR to Centra Health then to the NCDR.
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