Skip to main content
Subscribe
  • Sign Up Free
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Current News
    • Providers
    • Insurance
    • Government
    • Finance
    • Technology
    • Safety & Quality
    • Digital Health
    • Transformation
    • ESG
    • People
    • Regional News
    • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Patients
    • Operations
    • Care Delivery
    • Payment
    • Midwest
    • Northeast
    • South
    • West
  • Opinion
    • Bold Moves
    • Breaking Bias
    • Commentaries
    • Letters
    • Vital Signs Blog
    • From the Editor
  • Events & Awards
    • Awards
    • Conferences
    • Galas
    • Virtual Briefings
    • Webinars
    • Nominate/Eligibility
    • 100 Most Influential People
    • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
    • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
    • Excellence in Governance
    • Health Care Hall of Fame
    • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
    • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
    • Top Innovators
    • Diversity in Healthcare
      • - Luminaries
      • - Top 25 Diversity Leaders
      • - Leaders to Watch
    • Women in Healthcare
      • - Luminaries
      • - Top 25 Women Leaders
      • - Women to Watch
    • Digital Health Transformation Summit
    • ESG: The Implementation Imperative Summit
    • Leadership Symposium
    • Social Determinants of Health Symposium
    • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
    • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
    • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
    • Top 25 Diversity Leaders Gala
    • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
    • - Hospital of the Future
    • - Value Based Care
    • - Hospital at Home
    • - Workplace of the Future
    • - Digital Health
    • - Future of Staffing
    • - Hospital of the Future (Fall)
  • Multimedia
    • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
    • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
    • Video Series - The Check Up
    • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
  • Data Center
    • Data Center Home
    • Hospital Financials
    • Staffing & Compensation
    • Quality & Safety
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Data Archive
    • Resource Guide: By the Numbers
    • Surveys
    • Data Points
  • Newsletters
  • MORE+
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Media Kit
    • Jobs
    • People on the Move
    • Reprints & Licensing
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. People
March 02, 2013 12:00 AM

Setting their priorities

Joseph Conn
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print

    What's hot in healthcare information technology? A lot.

    Healthcare leaders are juggling a host of health IT projects, according to our latest Modern Healthcare/Modern Physician Survey of Executive Opinions on Key Information Technology Issues, which asked participants to pick three “hot button” IT priorities for their organizations from a field of 22 possible choices; select four IT priorities over the next 24 months from 20 alternatives; and provide status reports on where their organizations are on each of 13 possible IT projects.

    Leading the pack among hot-button IT projects is preparedness for the federally mandated, Oct. 1, 2014 national conversion to the ICD-10 family of diagnostic and procedural codes, selected by nearly 45% of health leaders in our survey.

    “I think it could be 100%,” says Bonnie Cassidy, depending on which day the survey was taken, and given the deep impact ICD-10 will have on financial and clinical record-keeping. Cassidy is senior director of health information management innovation at IT developer Nuance Communications and is a past board president of the American Health Information Management Association.

    Nearly every hospital she knows is working on some aspect of ICD-10 preparedness, Cassidy says. That work includes planning and training as well as IT systems implementation and testing, she says.

    In addition to ICD-10, seven other hot-button issues received a nod from at least 20% of health leaders taking the survey, indicating that healthcare organizations have their hands full, even with their immediate IT concerns. But that's not all the IT they have to worry about.

    Looking at longer-term IT projects, those within the 24-month time frame, ICD-10 again was the most popular pick, chosen by 66% of respondents. Upgrading and adopting clinical and financial systems for accountable care and patient-centered medical homes ranked second among 24-month projects, picked by 30% of leaders in this survey. Rounding out the top three 24-month projects was improving clinician decision-support systems, selected by 28%.

    Among health IT status reports, for those “planned, but not started,” joining a health information exchange topped the list, chosen by about 25% of survey respondents. Looking at projects for which “implementation starts within 12 months,” adding a patient portal ranked No. 1, chosen by 30% of survey respondents. The status of projects with “implementation in progress,” also was topped by ICD-10, selected by 51% of survey respondents.

    Off-the-radar projects, those “not contemplated,” include implementing a personal health record, which was most often picked by survey participants (26%), while cost tracking came in second at 24%.

    Related content

    The next steps for health IT

    How we did it

    Ready to hit the pause button

    No pullback on spending

    Ready for the next stage

    Download the full set of IT survey charts

    One unusual ranking was No. 3 spot among projects “not contemplated.” That topic is adding capabilities to send and receive clinical messages via the Continuity of Care Document and Continuity of Care Record exchange standards, or “CCD/CCR capabilities” for short. It was selected by 22% of respondents. That relatively high level of disinterest by some was offset by an even higher level of interest and activity by others. Adding CCD/CCR capabilities ranked No. 4 among projects whose implementation was already under way, chosen by 33% of survey takers, and placed No. 8 among completed projects, at 19%.

    CCD/CCR capabilities are a requirement under Stage 2 meaningful-use criteria, which will kick in Oct. 1, 2013, for hospitals and Jan. 1, 2014, for physicians and other professionals, so the muddle might be caused by “too many acronyms,” says Robert Tennant, senior policy adviser for the MGMA-ACMPE, which represents medical group managers.

    “If the question is asked, 'Do you want to share patient information with an authorized clinician down the street for patient care?' the answer would be, absolutely,” Tennant says. “If it was, 'Do you want to use CCD next week?' the answer is, no.”

    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Send us a letter

    Have an opinion about this story? Click here to submit a Letter to the Editor, and we may publish it in print.

    Recommended for You
    Dr. Maria Ansari
    Three priorities for Kaiser Permanente Medical Group's new CEO
    Matt Eyles
    AHIP CEO Matt Eyles to leave insurance lobbying group
    Most Popular
    1
    More healthcare organizations at risk of credit default, Moody's says
    2
    Centene fills out senior executive team with new president, COO
    3
    SCAN, CareOregon plan to merge into the HealthRight Group
    4
    Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan unveils big push that lets physicians take on risk, reap rewards
    5
    Bright Health weighs reverse stock split as delisting looms
    Sponsored Content
    People on the Move Newsletter: Sign up to receive a bi-monthly, sponsored content newsletter announcing new hires, promotions, and special accomplishments in the healthcare industry.
    Get Newsletters

    Sign up for enewsletters and alerts to receive breaking news and in-depth coverage of healthcare events and trends, as they happen, right to your inbox.

    Subscribe Today
    MH Magazine Cover

    MH magazine offers content that sheds light on healthcare leaders’ complex choices and touch points—from strategy, governance, leadership development and finance to operations, clinical care, and marketing.

    Subscribe
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS

    Our Mission

    Modern Healthcare empowers industry leaders to succeed by providing unbiased reporting of the news, insights, analysis and data.

    Contact Us

    (877) 812-1581

    Email us

     

    Resources
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise with Us
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Editorial Dept
    • Submission Guidelines
    • Code of Ethics
    • Awards
    • About Us
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Modern Healthcare
    Copyright © 1996-2023. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Current News
      • Providers
      • Insurance
      • Government
      • Finance
      • Technology
      • Safety & Quality
      • Digital Health
      • Transformation
        • Patients
        • Operations
        • Care Delivery
        • Payment
      • ESG
      • People
      • Regional News
        • Midwest
        • Northeast
        • South
        • West
      • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Opinion
      • Bold Moves
      • Breaking Bias
      • Commentaries
      • Letters
      • Vital Signs Blog
      • From the Editor
    • Events & Awards
      • Awards
        • Nominate/Eligibility
        • 100 Most Influential People
        • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
        • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
        • Excellence in Governance
        • Health Care Hall of Fame
        • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
        • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
        • Top Innovators
        • Diversity in Healthcare
          • - Luminaries
          • - Top 25 Diversity Leaders
          • - Leaders to Watch
        • Women in Healthcare
          • - Luminaries
          • - Top 25 Women Leaders
          • - Women to Watch
      • Conferences
        • Digital Health Transformation Summit
        • ESG: The Implementation Imperative Summit
        • Leadership Symposium
        • Social Determinants of Health Symposium
        • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
      • Galas
        • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
        • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
        • Top 25 Diversity Leaders Gala
        • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
      • Virtual Briefings
        • - Hospital of the Future
        • - Value Based Care
        • - Hospital at Home
        • - Workplace of the Future
        • - Digital Health
        • - Future of Staffing
        • - Hospital of the Future (Fall)
      • Webinars
    • Multimedia
      • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
      • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
      • Video Series - The Check Up
      • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
    • Data Center
      • Data Center Home
      • Hospital Financials
      • Staffing & Compensation
      • Quality & Safety
      • Mergers & Acquisitions
      • Data Archive
      • Resource Guide: By the Numbers
      • Surveys
      • Data Points
    • Newsletters
    • MORE+
      • Contact Us
      • Advertise
      • Media Kit
      • Jobs
      • People on the Move
      • Reprints & Licensing