Issues and Challe

Associated with Healt

Presentation to the NI

Visiting Committee on Advanced 

Presented by Carla Smith, MA, CNM

Executive Vice President

June 9, 2009
Overview 

• HIMSS Background• Educational Resources• Partnerships• Health IT Community P• Observations
HIMSS Strategic Dire

VisionAdvancing the best use of informatiosystems for the betterment of health MissionLead healthcare transformation throeffective use of health information te
HIMSS Serving 

Healthcare Since 19

• 22,000 Individual Members of whi

work in the field (non-vendors, non-c

• 350 Corporate Members• 90+ committees, task forces, & wo• 47 Chapters in North America• 3 corporations, over 200 staff• Top 5 largest healthcare conferen


HIMSS Resource

• Davies Award• HIMSS Analytics• Education• Professional Development• Guides and Toolkits• Publications

• A consensus-based process w/68

organizations & 644 individual par

• Delivered 13 Interoperability Spec

potentially reusable Constructs 

• 32 vendors demonstrated Constru

HIMSS09 Interoperability Showca

• NHIN specs & CCHIT interoperab

use Constructs

• ONC asked HITSP assistance to 

requirements for designating stanARRA, including meaningful use

Harmonizing and InteMeet Clinical and Bus
Integrating the Healthcare 

• International Organization with >250 organizational 

members 

• 11-year history of standards profiling and testing• Driven by end-users, profiles free in public domain • Improves patient care by harmonizing e-health 

exchange using standards 

• 50 IHE profiles adopted by HITSP
Certification Commi

Health Information T

• Nonprofit, 501(c)3 organization with the mission 

the adoption of robust, interoperable health IT

• Federally recognized certifying body since 2006• Open, transparent development process involvin

volunteers and multiple cycles of public commen

• Objective, repeatable inspection and certification • Fully operational certification programs for ambu

and emergency department EHRs, as well as sevdomains operational or in development

• Over 200 products certified, representing over 85

marketplace

• Endorsed by the twelve largest physician profess

associations
HIMSS and Healthcare 

• More than 100 volunteers conven

recommendations to the AdministCongress

• Recommendations included:

– Leadership– Funding– Certification– Standards Harmonization– Workforce– Telehealth– Privacy and Security– Consumer Empowerment
Health IT Issues a

Challenges in ARR
Economic Stimulus and H

• President signs ARRA into law, re

many as a “foundation for healtreform”

– New funding– Codification of the ONC– Establishment of 2 Federal Advisory – Grants and loans to foster the use of – New privacy and security provisions
Defining “Meaningful 

• Basic requirements:

– Demonstrated use of certified 

technology in a meaningful m

– Information exchange– Outcomes reporting

• HHS is required to improve hea

quality by requiring more stringemeasures of meaningful use ov
Defining “Certified” EHR Te

• Includes patient demographic a

health information, such as medand problem lists, and has the c

– Provide clinical decision support– Support physician order entry– Capture and query information relevant to h– Exchange electronic health information with

such information from, other sources

• Certified as meeting specified s
HIT Policy Commit

• Federal Advisory Committee c

Dr. Blumenthal

• Patient-centered care and P/S 

underlying themes 

• 3 Work Groups –

– Defining Meaningful Use– Adoption/ Certification– Infrastructure/ Workforce
HIT Standards Comm

• Federal Advisory Committee chair

Dr. Jonathan Perlin and Dr. John 

• Patient-centered care and P/S und

themes 

• 3 Work Groups –

– Privacy/ Security– Clinical Outcomes– Clinical Quality
Observations
Presumptions 

• Health IT provisions in ARRA see

“First Step” toward Health Reform

• Goal is improved Quality and Cos

Effectiveness – not simply getting 

to clinicians

• ONC: Mandates from Congress a

– Protect privacy and promote securit

health information

– Widespread provider adoption of EH

• Use existing testing tools, such a

and tools for basis testing
2009 Health IT Community 

• Defining Meaningful Use and 

Meaningful User

• Understanding who the certify

will be, the criteria and testing 

• Identifying harmonized standa• Achieving a framework for inc

payments
2010+ Health IT Communit

• Educating/equipping many ho

physicians for meaningful use

• Earning/Receiving Incentive P• Meaningful Use’s maturation p

and expectations

• Infrastructure Improvements –

Foundation for a Nationwide HInformation Network
HIMSS Meaningful U

Recommendation

• Use CCHIT as the certifying bod• Use HITSP & IHE for interopera• Achieve incremental maturation 

meaningful use in three phases 

• Reconcile the gap between cert

technologies, “best of breed”, ansource” technologies.

• Clarify incentive payment eligibi
Carla Smith, MA, C

FHIMSS

csmith@himss.o

734.477.0860