Product

VistA


VA selects ESN to upgrade VistA for HIPAA standards

Contracts & Installations | Thursday, June 10 2010
Engineering Services Network (ESN) won a $7.9 million contract from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to upgrade the agency's Veterans Health Information Systems and Technology Architecture (VistA) to meet HIPAA electronic transaction standards for enabling a third-party payment system.
 

VA selects 26 health IT initiatives

Industry News | Tuesday, June 01 2010
Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki has selected 26 winning ideas in the Veterans Health Administration/Office of Information and Technology (VHA/OIT) Innovation Competition.
 

HealthAffairs: VA spends more, achieves higher levels of health IT adoption

Top Stories | Monday, April 05 2010
In comparing health IT within the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to the standards in the private sector, researchers from the Center for IT Leadership in Charlestown, Mass., determined that the VA spent proportionately more on IT than the private healthcare sector spent, but it achieved higher levels of IT adoption and quality of care.
 

Errors cause shutdown of electronic access to DoD records

Top Stories | Monday, March 08 2010
As of March 1, all access to electronic Department of Defense (DoD) records through the Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) computerized patient record system (CPRS) remote data view (RDV) and VistAWeb was disabled due to the potential for incorrect or incomplete display of DoD patient medical records when using VA’s CPRS RDV or VistAWeb functions, according to a patient safety alert published by the VA Central Office issued March 3.
 

VA sets up digital dashboard, 71% of projects on target

Industry News | Friday, February 12 2010
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has posted a digital dashboard Web site for public viewing to provide transparency into the department’s cost, schedule and overall performance of IT projects.
 

VA facilities implement GE anesthesia solution

Contracts & Installations | Wednesday, January 20 2010
GE Healthcare’s Centricity perioperative anesthesia solution has been implemented into the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) clinical information system, VistA.
 

Kaiser Permanente, VA launch veterans health exchange

Industry News | Friday, January 08 2010
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and healthcare provider Kaiser Permanente recently launched a pilot medical data exchange program in San Diego enabling clinicians from VA and Kaiser Permanente to obtain views of a patient's health using EHR information through the National Health Information Network.
 

VA, Kaiser Permanente invite veterans to pilot program

Industry News | Monday, November 30 2009
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and healthcare nonprofit organization Kaiser Permanente recently announced a pilot program designed to exchange electronic health record information using the Nationwide Health Information Network (NHIN) created by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
 

OIG: VA's integration problems reflect system-wide IT issues

Industry News | Wednesday, September 09 2009
The failure of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) replacement scheduling application development program is part of a pattern of larger agency system problems related to the implementation and management of IT projects, according to a report by the Office of the Inspector General (OIG).
 

VA's VistA reaches 1B+ images

Industry News | Monday, July 27 2009
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has reported that VistA Imaging, the medical and healthcare imaging system used in VA medical centers, attained more than one billion stored images in January.
 

Sony launches compact medical printer

New Products | Monday, May 18 2009
Sony has released a medical-grade digital printer, model UP-DR80MD, targeted for surgical, endoscopy and ultrasound applications.
 

Report: More states should tap into VA software for EMR adoption

Industry News | Monday, May 04 2009
West Virginia has created a paperless records system for its state-run hospitals and nursing homes by using an EMR system built by the Veterans Administration (VA) with taxpayer dollars, saving millions in software licensing fees charged by commercial software vendors, according to the Boston Globe.
 
Web Exclusives

Feature: U.S. needs national strategy to curb imaging overutilization

Medical imaging overutilization--a growing concern in the U.S.--exposes patients to unnecessary radiation, while also adding to rising healthcare costs, according to a study published online Aug. 24 in Radiology. In an interview, William R. Hendee, PhD, lead author, reviewed various methods by which medical imaging could be curtailed.

Radiology: Prelim study shows CE breast CT outperforms CT, mammo

Dedicated contrast-enhanced (CE) breast CT delivered significantly improved conspicuity of malignant breast lesions, including ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), compared with unenhanced breast CT and mammography, according to a study published in the September issue of Radiology.

Radiology: Rad role may evolve as image-guided biopsies trend up

CT, ultrasound and MRI have helped shift biopsy techniques away from more invasive approaches toward image-guided percutaneous techniques, according to a study published in the September issue of Radiology. The trend toward less-invasive approaches translates into enhanced safety and efficiency and could lead to more interaction between patients and radiologists.

CMS Webinar: Incentive payments to offset EHR adoption, not reimburse

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) EHR incentive payments are not considered reimbursement for money expended on EHR technology, but are intended to offset the cost associated with adoption and ongoing meaningful use, according to CMS during an Aug. 12 webinar.

CMS webinar: Eligible professionals can expect EHR incentives in 2011

Funding incentives for EHR use is the main goal of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' (CMS) meaningful use initiative, and there are incentive programs for both hospitals and eligible professionals, according to Elizabeth Holland, health insurance specialist at the Department of Health and Human Services, who spoke during a CMS-sponsored webinar Aug. 8.

Webinar: Stage 1 of meaningful use is for quality reporting acclimation

Stage 1 requirements for meaningful use incentives aim to strike a balance between the overall goal of EHR use and widespread adoption, while avoiding added work, said Jonathan Teich, MD, PhD, chief medical informatics officer at Elsevier Health Services, during a HIMSS webinar titled “Meaningful Use: Safety and Quality of Care.”

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