Leading the way

Since 2003, Modern Healthcare and the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society have jointly sponsored the CEO IT Achievement Awards to honor leaders of healthcare organizations at the forefront of adopting the electronic records and information management systems that are a central component of 21st century medicine.

No organization can successfully make that transition without strong leadership. This year, we chose two CEOs for their extraordinary efforts in helping their healthcare organizations meet this oftentimes difficult challenge.

In the profiles contained in this special section, you will meet Dr. Narendra Kini, president and CEO of Miami Children's Hospital, and John Bluford, president and CEO of Truman Medical Centers, which is based in Kansas City, Mo. Reporters Andis Robeznieks and Rachel Landen offer convincing portraits of how leadership makes a difference when it comes to rapid adoption of health information technologies.

The honorees were chosen by this year's judges from nominees received by Modern Healthcare between Jan. 14 and April 14. The judges included all three of last year's CEO IT Achievement Award winners. The criteria included a demonstrated leadership and commitment to using HIT to advance the healthcare organization's strategic goals; having achieved measurable results for his or her organization using HIT; and sharing his or her HIT expertise with peers and other members of the healthcare industry. While the judges gave numerical scores for each of the categories, the editors of Modern Healthcare made the final determination.

The judges' conclusions said it all. They lauded Kini's innovative approach to using smartphone applications to improve patient care and business processes, and noted the high level of financial support that Miami Children's Hospital gives to HIT.

The judges also recognized Bluford for his aggressive strategy for implementing HIT at Truman Medical Centers. They noted his system's high level of investment and the very solid metrics that demonstrated measurable results from the deployment of HIT.

In addition to being profiled in this special section, Kini and Bluford will be honored during National Health IT week in Washington in September. For more information on the Sept. 18 awards ceremony and reception, please contact Elinore Boeke at HIMSS, at 703-562-8817 or [email protected].

If you have any questions, comments or suggestions for next year's CEO IT Achievement Awards, please contact John Thomas, Modern Healthcare's chief of editorial operations, at 312-649-5274 or [email protected].

Follow Merrill Goozner on Twitter: @MHgoozner