News

Nearly a quarter of health system decision-makers are looking to invest in artificial and robotic process automation in the next two years, but more than half were unable to name an AI or RPA vendor.

Many population health management proponents decry the lack of data that programs need to define them, but deploying the right technologies is also vital to their success.

Overlake Medical Center & Clinics has, among other things, embedded Washington State prescription monitoring program database access into the EHR, changed the Epic nursing workflow sheet for pain management, and revised the text in the after-visit summary regarding opioid medication.

Allscripts has agreed to pay $145 million to resolve potential civil and criminal liability in connection to a Department of Justice investigation into the business practices of Practice Fusion, a company it acquired in 2018, the EHR technology company said in its second quarter earnings report yesterday. Practice Fusion, an ambulatory electronic health record vendor, was being investigated for its ONC certification and compliance with HIPAA and federal anti-kickback laws, prior to being acquired by Allscripts. In March, Practice Fusion received a grand jury subpoena in connection with a related criminal investigation, according to Allscripts  in its Q1 report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. WHY IT MATTERS Despite reporting strong second quarter bookings increases of 31% over the previous year, Allscripts had a second quarter net loss of $150 million, compared to income of $65 million in the second quarter of 2018, according to the earnings report.  THE LARGER TREND Allscripts bought Practice Fusion based in San Francisco for $100 million in cash in 2018, after acquiring McKesson’s health IT business a year earlier.  Practice Fusion’s cloud-based electronic health record for small and independent physician practices gave Allscripts a larger footprint in outpatient setting. ON THE RECORD "Our strong bookings performance continued in the second quarter with success in both our Provider and Veradigm businesses," said Paul M. Black, CEO of Allscripts. "Our 2019 bookings outlook has been raised, as we anticipate strong performance in the second half of this year. This is the result of our deliberate investments, along with the value we deliver to clients through our comprehensive and industry-leading solutions." Twitter: @SusanJMorse Email the writer: susan.morse@himssmedia.com  

Also: HCL Technologies and Oracle Health Sciences announce new collaboration; the Patient Access website is now running on Microsoft's Azure cloud platform.

The cloud migration aims to give the provider, which boasts four facilities in Victoria, better remote access and disaster recovery.

The voice-activated technology enables patients to interact with the health system through their smart speakers, allowing them to ask for wellness information, seek referrals or look for urgent care.

Building the right technology ecosystem with advanced printing technologies can help healthcare organizations both save ‘clicks’ for providers and improve care delivery.

With protected health information such a juicy target for cybercriminals, both data theft techniques are on the rise in healthcare.