IT Practice Consulting – Health IT Report –

June 2017

“AIMA on 2018 Prospective Payment Systems,

Supports EHR Flexibility and Modernization”

Introduction

The American Medical Informatics Association (AIMA) has voiced its support for the reduction of electronic reporting requirements in eligible long-term or acute care hospitals, in response to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Service (CMS) proposed revisions of 2017-2018 MACRA filings. In a comment letter addressed to CMS Administrator Seema Verma, the trade association claimed that, “generally, AMIA is supportive of the proposed flexibilities afforded to providers for quality reporting and quality payment programs.” A self-described “professional home” for over 5,400 health IT developers, leading clinical providers, and public health experts, the AIMA has focused its recent legislative efforts on the development of application programming interfaces (APIs) and relaxation of inhibitive reporting standards as foundations for an interoperable healthcare system. The AIMA’s April 2017 Congressional brief, for example, highlighted concerns over a health information technology “chasm” forming between the country’s need for “liberated” patient data and the deteriorating EHR infrastructures currently in use. Likewise, the AIMA seven-page letter paired its analysis of deregulated reporting standards with a call to action for the CMS to “better leverage data reported through MIPS and APMs to learn, continue to require certified EHRs for incentive program participation, and look to improve interoperability via promotion of value-based reimbursement.”

 

Read more about the CMS 2018 Hospital Payment Proposal here: CMS Proposes MACRA 2018 Reporting Adjustments, Issues Request for Information

Read about AIMA April Health IT Congressional Report here: Health IT ‘chasm’ prevents shift to value-based care, AMIA contends

 

 

AIMA Supports Flexible, Modernized Reporting Standards

The CMS proposal for revitalization of long-term and acute-care hospital reporting regulations addressed multiple subsets of the current Medicare and Medicaid EHR Incentive Programs, including electronic clinical quality measurements (eCQM), certification eligibility, and projected reporting periods. Mostly notably, the CMS stated its intent to release penalties for users of partially or insufficiently implemented 2015 certified electronic health record technology (CEHRT), given its rushed adoption period and the imbalanced detriment to smaller healthcare organizations. AIMA president and CEO Douglas Fridsma, who encouraged the CMS’ renewed focus on quality reporting over simple adoption incentives, stated that, “It is vital that the industry continue its march toward modernization.”

 

Moreover, the AIMA’s comment letter directly outlined its recommendations for the following program modifications:

 

• For Inpatient Quality Reporting (IQR), the AIMA approves of reducing reporting burdens, but also urges the CMS to allow use of any two quarters during 2018 in order “provide more flexibility and time for hospitals to upgrade and fully implement 2015 CEHRT.”
• The AIMA “supports CMS’s continued effort to align the Medicare and Medicaid EHR Incentive Programs” by relaxing 2017-2018 eligibility standards for healthcare professionals and, therefore, unburdening smaller, newer participants.
• On the required adherence to baseline 2015 CEHRT reporting standards, the AIMA agrees with CMS analysis that “improvements to the 2014 edition, in terms of functionality and capability, need to propagate across the industry.”
• Regarding the proposed decrease from full-year to continuous 90-day reporting periods in 2018 EHR incentive programs, the AIMA agrees that this reduction will increase adoption rates among eligible hospitals (EHs), providers (EPs) and critical access hospitals (CAHs).
• Finally, the AIMA is “pleased” with the CMS integration of the 21st Century Cures Act, which will allow forgiveness for organizations undergoing EHR decertification.

 

 

AIMA Concern for ICD-10 Coding Updates

According to the AIMA comment letter, “the ICD-10 Coordination and Maintenance Committee is responsible for addressing updates to the ICD-10-CM and ICD-10-PCS coding systems, including approving coding changes, and developing errata, addenda, and other modifications to the coding systems to reflect newly developed procedures.” Although suggestions for ICD-10 Coding updates closed months ago, the AIMA expressed concern for the CMS’ support of the proposed changes, particularly because “a core principle of clinical vocabulary maintenance is that the meaning of a code should not change over time.” The AIMA offered its assistance to the CMS, ONC, and Maintenance Committee for prioritizing the code changes in the next fiscal year, but adamantly discouraged any modifications that would reclassify established disease categories.

 

Learn more about the ICD-10 Coordination and Maintenance Committee recent changes here: Process for Requesting New/Revised ICD-10-PCS Procedure Codes

 

 

Final Thoughts

Public commentary for the CMS Future Year 2018 Long-Term Care Hospital Prospective Payment Systems Proposed Rule (CMS-1677-P), which also elicited responses from the prestigious American Hospital Association (AHA) and American Association of Blood Banks (AABB), closed on June 13, 2017. As the medical community awaits CMS’s consequent ruling on MACRA 2017-2018 EHR reporting standards and payment programs, however, healthcare professionals nationwide can prepare for an anticipated reprioritization of patient-data collection and value-based services. The New York eHealth Collective (NYeC) offers statewide assistance on federally regulated incentive programs, with more than a decade of experience in navigating complex data-sharing legislation and opportunities. Moreover, IT Practice Consulting (ITPC), a vendor neutral service company, confers directly with local healthcare organizations of all sizes to streamline EHR technology and fulfill its mission of quality, reliable data collection.

 

Contact ITPC today to maintain and maximize your healthcare information technology.

IT Practice Consulting – Health IT Report –

May 2017

“ONC Report, Proposed Interoperability Standards Measurement”

Introduction

The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) is requesting a nationwide review of its latest initiative to establish interoperable standards, the “Proposed Interoperability Standards Measurement Framework.” According to the report, the framework is meant to assess “the nation’s progress in implementing interoperability standards in health information technology (health IT) and the use of the standards as a way to measure progress towards nationwide interoperability.” Broken down into a review of current interoperability standards, proposed measurement standards for the development of EHRs, and proposed measurement standards for end users, the ONC identifies which industry variability factors are inhibiting the standardization of health information technologies. Potential long-term benefits from developing an interoperability standards foundation include empowering the emerging Interoperability Standards Advisory (ISA), updating the ONC estimation of standards utilized, and providing stakeholders with information vital to comprehensive decision-making. Consequently, the ONC is inviting health care providers, health IT software developers, and exchange networks organizations alike to publicly contribute suggestions for its proposed framework, as well as suggest realistic implementation programs for interoperability standards.

 

Read the Proposed Interoperability Standards Measurement Framework here: ONC Releases Interoperability Measurement Framework

 

An Overview of Current Standards, Implementation

An analysis of the ONC’s crowdsourcing activities indicates that health IT software developers and exchange network services are likely the most accurate, reliable sources of information for the implementation of interoperability standards within their products and services. Health IT developers can track operational data for entire product lines, including which systems include what interoperability standards and how many users participate in those products. Unfortunately, the ONC notes that the rapidly expanding technological capabilities of EHR systems, including frequent adjustments to the software, complicate the accuracy of the surveyed data; end users often skip updates they deem inconsequential to their current operations.

As for the ONC’s evaluation of current standards use by participating health organizations, the report identifies architectural variations, limited data access, and the optionality of standards as the most significant barriers to effective interoperability development. Architecture plays a key role in the collection of product and services implementation data because some federated systems are simply incapable of data tracking, skewing the results. Furthermore, health IT developers and exchange networks often opt for the fiscally conservative EHR design, prioritizing the collection of quantitative data and disregarding valuable qualitative assessments, such as vocabulary standards and end user feedback.

Overall, the ONC cites the absence of enforceable interoperability legislature as its greatest concern for the future of data-sharing. Drawing data from a national survey of health information technology professionals, a new study conducted by the University of Michigan Schools of Information and Public Health concludes that a quarter of respondents intentionally engaged in information blocking. Without proper legal authority to charge uncooperative organizations with civil or punitive damages, the ONC and ISA can only distribute incentives and provide a comprehensive framework for their participating users.

 

Read more on the information blocking study here: Information Blocking: Is It Occurring and What Policy Strategies Can Address It?

 

Interoperability Standards Implementation in a Health IT Product

The ONC’s organizes its proposed measurements for interoperability standards into three categories that follow a standard’s lifecycle, or “the process by which standards are developed, implemented, and then subsequently used.” Public reporting of development plans, available products, and subscribed end users was the primary focus of this objective, with the ONC further urging healthcare organizations to register all services with the ONC Certified Health IT Product List. Transparency in EHR design and application will allow health IT developers to regulate compatible systems, streamlining their transactions (i.e. communications) and strengthening the coordination of the healthcare community.

 

Use of Standards by End Users to Meet Specific Interoperability Needs

Proposed measurements for the practical application of interoperability standards focuses on identifying situations in which the standards are not properly or fully functional in order to craft guidelines that encourage universal participation. Therefore, the ONC suggests that annual reporting on the standards utilized by end users, transaction volumes, and levels of software conformance will indicate which organizations sufficiently meet interoperability standards. Offering stakeholders the relative percentages of end users per product, as well as tracking transaction volumes “to identify the trajectory of growth or decline of a standard’s use,” will satisfy the ONC’s commitment to cultivating an accessible, transparent health care platform by 2024.

 

Final Thoughts

The “Proposed Interoperability Standards Measurement Framework Report” confirms the ONC’s growing prioritization of interoperability for at least the next decade of the health information technology advancement, fulfilling its promise for a return to a “patient-centered” focus. Healthcare leaders and information technology associates should contribute to the public commentary by July 31^st, 2017, with an emphasis on providing practical insight on the reliability of interoperable standards measurements. ­­Furthermore, the ONC’s movement toward standardizing data exchange platforms could affect what systems will be considered acceptable in the coming years and necessitates vigilant scrutiny of ongoing interoperable legislation. The New York eHealth Collective (NYeC) has decades of expertise in navigating the emerging interoperability standards, federal incentive programs, and regulatory changes for medical organizations statewide. For healthcare practitioners looking to optimize their EHR systems, particularly interoperability standards, IT Practice Consulting (ITPC) offers a diverse range of services that ensure accurate utilization and reporting of eligible systems.

 

To learn more about the implementation and regulation of interoperability standards, contact IT Practice today.

 

Contribute to the Proposed Interoperability Standards Measurement Framework here: Proposed Interoperability Standards Measurement Framework Public Comments

IT Practice Consulting – Health IT Report –

April 2017

“CMS Proposes MACRA 2018 Reporting Adjustments,

Issues Request for Information”

Introduction

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced preliminary adjustments for the 2017 and 2018 Electronic Health Records (EHR) Incentive Programs, with a renewed focus on reducing ineffective reporting requirements for eligible hospitals and long-term care facilities. In a statement introducing the proposal report, CMS Administrator Seema Verma confirmed that, “Medicare is better able to support the work of dedicated hospitals and clinicians who provide the care that people need with these more flexible and simplified approaches.” Furthermore, the CMS fact sheet further emphasized that “the proposed rule aims to relieve regulatory burdens for providers” by offering participating hospitals the flexibility to balance positive patient outcomes with quality reporting practices. In addition to the proposed adjustments, the CMS officially invited medical professionals to engage in a Request for Information (RFI) regarding efficient reporting practices; responses will shape future regulatory guidelines for inpatient and extended-care hospitals. Comments and suggestions for both the proposed rule and RFI will be accepted until June 13, 2017 through the Federal Registrar.

 

Read the entire 2018 MACRA proposal here: Fiscal Year (FY) 2018 Medicare Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) and Long Term Acute Care Hospital (LTCH) Prospective Payment System Proposed Rule, and Request for Information

 

Request for Information (RFI)

Widely-held criticism over complicated MACRA implementation has prompted the CMS to issue a RFI, which “welcomes feedback on positive solutions to better achieve transparency, flexibility, program simplification and innovation.” According to the proposal fact sheet, the CMS aims to determine how “Medicare can contribute to making the delivery system less bureaucratic and complex,” aggregating professional insight to improve the effectiveness of regulatory reductions. Indeed, the CMS encourages any recommendations on redesigning payment portals and technologies; streamlining or eliminating daily operational activities; enhancing substantial patient-doctor relationships; and building support systems that facilitate optimal inpatient and extended care services. Providers that wish to participate in this RFI are expected to report “clear and concise proposals that include data and specific examples” in order to strengthen the integrity of upcoming input adjustments. Finally, feedback from participating medical professionals should establish any “novel legal questions” regarding quality reporting policies, if filed with a comprehensive analysis of the CMS’ circumstantial authority.

 

Contribute to the CMS Request for Information here: The Federal Register

 

Proposed Changes to the 2017 and 2018 MACRA Reporting Periods

The CMS’ modifications to existing payment policies and reporting standards primarily aim to relieve administrative burdens for participating healthcare facilities, particularly in regards to inpatient and long-term care admissions processes. Most notably, the CMS has suggested a “one year regulatory moratorium on the payment policy threshold for patient admissions in long-term care hospitals” while the agency continues to evaluate and overhaul outdated protocols in extended-care organizations. Hospitals and eligible providers benefiting from EHR Incentive Programs or other Medicare compensation plans should read the proposal fact sheet to determine definitive changes to their 2017 and 2018 MACRA filings; the most notable proposals are listed below:

• In 2017, eligible hospitals and critical access hospitals (CAH) that have demonstrating Meaningful Use during, or prior to, 2017 would only report “two self‑selected quarters of CQM data,” instead of the entire calendar year.

• In 2017, hospitals benefiting from the EHR Incentive Program and the Hospital Inpatient Quality Reporting (IQR) program would document a minimum of six self-selected of the available CQMs (previously eight).

• In 2018, CMS would reduce EHR attestation periods from a full calendar year to any continuous 90-day period.

• In 2018, CMS would not penalize eligible hospitals, eligible practitioners, and critical access hospitals (CAH) that demonstrate an inability to provide Meaningful Use as a result of their certified EHR technology being decertified under ONC’s Health IT Certification Program.

 

Read the proposal report fact sheet here: CMS proposes 2018 payment and policy updates for Medicare hospital admissions, and releases a Request for Information

 

Final Thoughts

With nearly two-thirds of the 2017 MACRA reporting period still ahead, the CMS is proactively integrating public commentary into the development of efficient, patient-centered payment guidelines and policies. The CMS requests regulatory insight from the participating medical community, in an attempt to relieve eligible practitioners and hospitals of adverse or subjective reporting standards. If the recent proposals are approved for immediate implementation, “the CMS projects that hospitals would see a total increase in inpatient operating prospective payments of 2.9 percent in fiscal year 2018.”

For local community hospitals and extended-care facilities, federal incentive programs work to develop internal investments in health information technology and patient-centered practices. The New York eHealth Collaborative (NYeC) assists eligible hospitals and practitioners statewide in navigating the ever-transforming landscape of Medicare compensation programs. Moreover, IT Practice Consulting (ITPC) collaborates directly with medical administration to optimize and update the electronic health systems integral to receiving maximum compliance benefits. Consult with a healthcare information technology professional today and learn how changes to 2017 and 2018 MACRA reporting standards can positively affect your practice.

 

Contact ITPC for more information on the CMS proposal and subsequent approvals.

IT Practice Consulting – Health IT Report –

March 2017

“EHR Adoption and the Data Exchange Incentive Program”

Introduction

According to the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC), “despite the widespread availability of secure electronic data transfer, most Americans’ medical information is stored on paper;” an antiquated, unreliable system of building interoperable patient files. Federally recognized Health Information Exchanges (HIE), however, embrace digital reporting – primarily through electronic health records (EHRs) – as a medium for comprehensive patient care, which includes fewer redundant tests and improper medications. For example, the State Health Information Network of New York (SHIN-NY), an organization pioneering the statewide integration of interoperable EHR practices, links eight regional qualified entities (QE) in order to aggregate complete patient profiles from any given range of participating physicians. The goal of this network is to encourage substantial expansions of EHR data collection and deliberate data-sharing procedures among extended, coordinated-care institutions, thus allowing a patient’s medical team to “quickly and securely, access up-to-date and accurate clinical information.” Fortunately for New York state providers, organizations willing to devote financial and administrative resources to improving electronic health technology can be easily reimbursed through the statewide Data Exchange Incentive Program (DEIP). Commissioned to motivate and support the growth of interoperable resources between local, coordinating healthcare facilities, DEIP contributors receive up to ten thousand dollars of municipal aid as compensation for EHR implementation expenses. By meeting the criteria of a Regulated Facility, Behavioral Health Organization, or Eligible Provider, local practitioners can mitigate health IT expenditures and focus on investing in proactive patient care.

 

Read more about the ONC’s standards for Health Information Exchange here: What is HIE?

 

DEIP Eligibility

The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the ONC have concluded over the years that positive developments in the accessibility and security of healthcare data primarily advances the quality of treatment, and reduces superfluous expenses, in long-term, coordinated-care institutions. The New York Data Exchange Incentive Program (DEIP) reflects these findings in its recently expanded list of eligible healthcare providers, broken down into Regulated Facility, Behavioral Health, or Eligible Provider categories. Regulated facilities, end-of-life organizations focused on collaborative patient care, include Article 28 nursing homes or diagnostic treatment centers, Article 36 certified home-care agencies, and Article 40 hospice programs. Psychiatric and psychological providers are also viable contributors to DEIP, but must be licensed by the New York State Office of Mental Health (OMH) or Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services (OASAS) to qualify as Behavioral Health organizations. Finally, primary care physicians or hospital services only need to attest to one year of Medicare or Medicaid Meaningful Use to be considered for DEIP enrollment.

Congruent with organizational structure requirements for DEIP consideration, participating providers must attest to their effective administrative applications of EHR technology. At minimum, DEIP contributors must operate an ONC certified EHR that conforms to HIPAA privacy standards and successfully exchanges aggregate patient data with a regional qualified entity (QE). Medicaid providers are also expected to provide records of their Fee-for-Service, Managed Care, or Health and Recovery Plans (HARP) compensation services. Finally, because the program intends to incentivize EHR adoption for local, unsponsored healthcare organizations, DEIP will not accept providers that already contribute data to SHIN-NY or receive additional reimbursement payments through a comparable program.

 

Data Contributions Requirements

Upon entering the Data Exchange Incentive Program (DEIP), a participating healthcare organization commits its collection of patient data to a minimum contribution requirement, depending on its eligibility categorization. Extended-care Regulated Facilities, for example, communicate Common Clinical Data Sets (CCDS) information to their QEs; among basic patient history information, the data collected can include the patient’s preferred language, smoking status, medications, allergies, lab results, immunizations, discharge instructions, and more. Behavioral Health organizations will provide “five specified Core elements,” – encounters, demographics, procedures/service, individualized service plans, diagnoses – as well as three additional treatment elements: medications, labs, and allergies. In addition to the aforementioned five specified data elements, the Medicare and Medicaid EPs “seven Core elements” include required medication and lab information to maintain appropriate contribution. More importantly, SHIN-NY encourages participating entities to provide as many clinical data sets as is reasonable to expect.

 

Incentive Milestones

Incentives accrued through DEIP participation are direct reimbursements from the U.S. Department of Health (DOH), distributed by the New York eHealth Collaborative (NYeC). Payments are streamlined through a two-step compensation system, referred to as incentive milestones, and only require an organization’s demonstration of eligibility. Each new DEIP organization receives two thousand dollars for signing the data contribution enrollment agreement; another eight thousand dollars are allocated to the contributor after it establishes a verifiable connection with its regional qualified entity (QE). Eligible providers must also attest to functional care documents, C-CDA, data exchange with their QEs.

 

Read more about the Data Exchange Incentive Program here: HIE Adoption – Data Exchange Incentive Program (DEIP)

 

Final Thoughts

Electronic health records (EHRs) have improved patient-care nationwide by providing medical practitioners with the timely, complete healthcare information necessary for comprehensive treatment. While implementing and optimizing a new EHR may seem daunting for smaller organizations, the New York State Data Exchange Incentive Program (DEIP) provides financial assistance for eligible providers dedicated to the advancement of interoperability. Most importantly, the DEIP is a limited municipal aid program and will distribute incentives on a first-come, first-served basis. The New York eHealth Collaborative (NYeC) will accept rolling DEIP enrollment applications until September 1^st, 2017. Furthermore, with over a decade of experience in choosing, integrating, and optimizing EHRs, IT Practice Consulting (ITPC) will help any practice navigate the health information requirements for the DEIP’s extensive compensation services.

 

Contact ITPC today to discuss your eligibility for the DEIP.     

IT Practice Consulting – Health IT Report –

February 2017

 

“Direct Interoperability, Recommendations for Clinical Messaging Systems”

 

Introduction

Coordinated patient care has taken on new meaning in a rapidly developing technological era, particularly in collusion with an increase in mean physician-patient relationships. Delivering on its promise for data-sharing regulation in 2017, DirectTrust – a non-profit heading the movement for accessible patient health data – released a list of over 50 integration recommendations for the direct messaging application in electronic health records (EHRs): Direct Interoperability. Although Direct Interoperability is “now a widely deployed federal standard for secure transport of healthcare information, in use through over 350 electronic health records,” DirectTrust researchers assert that the messaging program is often underutilized and misinterpreted by practitioners. Indeed, only a day after the dossier’s release, John Elwell, the CEO of Boise, confirmed that customers “are confused over direct messaging and document inquiries and overall they want a better path” in an interview with HealthcareIT News. DirectTrust’s report, “Feature and Function Recommendations to the HIT Industry to Optimize Clinician Usability of Direct Interoperability to Enhance Patient Care,” segments its findings into three clinical operations relevant to the communication of patient health data: transfer of care message, direct clinical messaging, and administrative messaging. Suggestions are also color-coded by the urgency or significance of a direct messaging function, with red tags indicating immediate modifications and yellow tags representing developmental goals for future messaging innovations. As the 2017 attestation period comes to a close, and potential health IT audits wait on the horizon, implementing DirectTrust’s review of clinical messaging operations will enhance the security and optimization of your practice’s EHR technology.

 

Read the entire recommendation report here: Feature and Function Recommendations to the HIT Industry to Optimize Clinician Usability of Direct Interoperability to Enhance Patient Care

 

Transfer of Care Messaging

Recent surveys conclude that hospitals with successful EHR integration report lower levels of duplicate testing or adverse events associated with improper medication. Transfer of care operations rely heavily on two-way compliance when aggregating comprehensive reports of a patient’s medical history; without full participation from both patient-care team members, incomplete reporting could endanger patients and impede diagnostic consistency.

For “Outbound Message Functions,” DirectTrust promotes messaging automation as a key component of maintaining timely, reliable communications between practitioners. For example, urgent recommendation TO1, “Real Time Message Delivery, Eliminate Batched Message Send,” proposes that automated discharge messages – i.e. messages instantaneously sent to the receiving party upon a patient’s release – can allow the subsequent facility to “organize appropriate patient outreach and follow up quickly” with any questions or concerns. Moreover, the organization advocates for “Industry-Wide Standardized Discrete Data Terminology for Problems, Medications, Allergies, and Immunizations” in TO5; DirectTrust maintains that uniform terminology will stimulate “exceptional end user functionality creating tremendous care and documentation efficiencies and preventing transmission error data entry.”

DirectTrust suggestions for “Inbound Message Functions” include the same emphasis on automation, with an additional focus on “virtualizing” patients, or building EHR operations that identify established medical profiles through key word associations. Reconciliations of patient medications, active problems, allergies, and immunizations are other red-coded concerns for inbound messages; the report concludes that “the ability for a Direct message to reach the appropriate clinician is significantly delayed if a manual patient matching process is required,” which can lead to adverse events.

 

Clinical Messaging

DirectTrust supports that clinical messaging, usually related to patient-physician communications delivered through a virtual portal, require the highest level of maintenance and functionality. Industry leaders agree that patient engagement is a critical checkpoint in the development of successful interoperability; patients need to be educated on their accessible healthcare IT rights before approving the transfer of protected medical data.

Therefore, DirectTrust clinicians formatted the most significant “Outbound Message Functions” to reflect the basic schematics of direct messaging: attaching files, replying to the physician, and sending “real-time” messages. Although these utilities may appear rudimentary for a messaging system, the report appropriately stresses the importance of optimizing these functions to create efficient, user-friendly EHR services. “Highly desired,” orange tags for outbound messages highlight the benefits of supplementary amenities, such as creating distribution lists or directory “favorites” for return patients. In recommendation CO12, the report even suggests streamlining basic messaging tasks by allowing users to “send a message on behalf of another individual with proper authorization and attribution.”

Direct reiterates the integral application of automation and uniformity in its segment on “Inbound Clinical Message Functions.” Standardized vocabularies for discrete data – including medications, allergies, and immunizations – can help healthcare facilities identify negative trends in patient histories, particularly with “regulation pertaining to behavioral health and/or substance abuse treatment services.”

 

Administrative Messaging

For administrative messaging, DirectTrust deviates from high-priority tasks towards practical, long-term goals for an integrated EHR systems. According to the report, while “secure clinical messaging for case managers, care coordinators, social workers, [and] therapists” acts as communicative foundation for team care organizations, facility departments should also manage messaging profiles. Giving locations and departments the ability to independently operate Direct Interoperability, in tandem with a multi-level configuration of message IDs (organizational, local, etc.), facilitates “receiving the specific information needed to most efficiently and effectively care for every patient.”

 

Final Thoughts

DirectTrust and other health IT organizations continue to emphasize the significance of  transparency and communication in the evolution of an interoperable healthcare industry. Whether your office is trying to connect to another care facility, a patient, or a supporting department, properly implementing an EHR’s Direct Interoperability messaging system supports secure data-sharing and medical transparency. Enhance your practice’s EHR productivity by consulting with health IT professionals about the implementation of advanced direct messaging services. The New York eHealth Collective (NYeC), a healthcare institution instructing medical facilities statewide in EHR optimization, navigates the regulation and compliance of health IT technologies with federal standards. Moreover, IT Practice Consulting (ITPC) supports practices of all sizes as they navigate healthcare changes, processes and technology, including the successful application of Direct Interoperability.

Contact ITPC today to revolutionize your direct messaging capabilities.