CIOs and their colleagues working to meet data collection and reporting requirements for their emergency department are faced with a tough choice: either maintain best-of-breed clinical information systems or interface the system with an ED module from the core clinical vendor. The cover story on page 10 frames this debate, which reflects broader IS challenges.
Pharmacists are the latest arrivals at the clinical informatics table, taking their place alongside physicians and nurses. The story on page 18 explains why the pressures to achieve meaningful use will increase the demand for these professionals in the next few years.
What have trailblazing health providers learned on their quest for clinical and operational IT excellence? Winners of this year's Healthcare Information and Management Society Nicholas E. Davies Award of Excellence are profiled on page 26.
On page 34, top executives at award-winning Hill Physician's Medical Group, one of the largest independent practice associations in California, discuss what they see as factors in their organization's success and their visions for the future.
In an exclusive interview on page 38, Randy Waring, managing director at GE Capital Financial Healthcare Services, comments on a growing range of financial vehicles that has become available for hospital leaders looking to finance IT implementations.
Also in this issue on page 42, Scott MacLean, CIO of Newton-Wellesley Hospital, compares meeting meaningful use requirements with his experience training for the Boston Marathon.
Tom Hubbard, senior program director of the New England Healthcare Institute, discusses healthcare reform and IT aspects of comparative effectiveness research on page 45.
Our monthly Career Paths column on page 80 rounds out the issue with a discussion of why video conferencing is ready for prive time in the hiring practices arena.
Healthcare Informatics 2010 December;27(12):6
