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SCHWARTZ HEALTHCARE IT BLOG

February 2007

EMRs Caught CCHITing

In another flavor of standards, 18 more EMR vendors coughed up $20,000+ (and complied with some criteria ;) to be certified by CCHIT, Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology. This totals 55 EMRs so far, which CHEAT says is 25% of the market. Are there really 220 EMR vendors out there?   The new 18 certified EMRs:

· Advanced Data Systems Corp. (MedicsDocAssistant 3.0)

· Catalis (Accelerator Graphical Health Record 4.111)

· Encite (TouchChart 3.3)

· Henry Schein Medical Systems (MicroMD EMR 4.5)

· InteGreat Concepts, Inc. (IC-Chart Release 6.0)

· LSS Data Systems (MPM Suite MAGIC  Version 5.5) 

· LifeWatch (TIME 7.100) 

· Marshfield Clinic (CattailsMD Version 5) 

· MedAZ.net (MEDAZ 60720.001)

· Medicat (Medicat 8.8)

· MedicWare (MedicWare EMR 7)

· MedInformatix (MedInformatix V 6.0)

· Meditab Software (Intelligent Medical Software 2007)

· Pulse Systems (Patient Relationship Management 3.1.1)

· Spring Medical Systems (SpringCharts EHR 9.0)

· SSIMED (Emrge 6.0 Release 1.0)

· Universal Software Solutions (VersaSuite 7.5)

• Visionary Medical Systems (Visionary Dream EMR 7.1)  Tags: , , , , , ,

Posted by Shawn Whalen on February 15, 2007 at 5:21 PM
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HIMSS Media Tips

Part Eight in a Continuing Series on PR Strategy and Tactics for Healthcare IT Marketers

Healthcare IT's largest tradeshow, HIMSS, is fast approaching so it's time for some PR advice drawn from our Schwartz Communique newsletter. With advance planning and on-site chutzpah, you can use industry trade shows as a springboard for recognition. In fact, working the media at the biggest shows can yield a bonanza of press coverage. At one HIMSS show, Schwartz garnered 22 interviews for a client, based on pre-show scheduling and on-site facilitation. The payoff: the client was covered in more than a dozen articles.

Before the show, do some strategic thinking in regards to your news. Do you want to pre-brief the media and issue news prior to the show in order to drive booth traffic? Or would you like to leverage news datelined at the show in order to get face time with reporters there? Once you've determined the goal, you can time your news accordingly.

When you make appointments before the show, be realistic about the reporter's schedule. There's a good chance that a reporter who gets big news or a prized interview will miss your appointment. Try to get the reporter's cell phone so you can communicate on the show floor. Then fill in the gaps by recruiting interviews right there on the show floor. Here are some more tips and techniques for PR at trade shows:

  - If your company has exhibit space, prep the booth staff on exactly what to do if the media drop in. Designate a spokesperson and make sure everyone understands to immediately bring the media to him or her.

  - Boil your pitch down to exactly one sentence. That's about how much time you'll have when you buttonhole a reporter on the show floor. Make it pithy, exciting and newsworthy. Remember that you're competing with hundreds of other companies for that reporter's attention.

  - To stimulate TV coverage, prepare a demo that's visual and exciting. For print coverage, be ready with news that will interest attendees of that specific show.

  - Be fearless. Walk the aisles looking for those press badges. Approach reporters with a direct, concise and confident pitch. When you get rejections from hurried and hassled reporters (and you will!), shrug them off, so you're ready to approach the next reporter with confidence.

  - Become the reporter's friend. Instead of handing over a heavy press kit, consider a CD or offer to send the paper kit after the show. Help them find other (non-competitive) vendors to cover on the show floor to round out their story.

  - At major shows, the biggest coup is TV coverage. Here's a great tip for maximizing exposure. Put your attendee badge on and go outside the show floor about 20 minutes before the doors open. At the bigger shows, you'll see TV crews waiting to go in. Approach the one you'd most like for an interview, and offer to get them in early, if they'll take a few moments to meet with your company. Chances are they will jump at the chance to get a head start on their day. Escort them quickly past the guards with an authoritative "interview with the media." Then on to your big moment in front of the cameras.

  -Finally, at the end of the day, don't forget the parties, especially those sponsored by the media. They can be great places to make friendships with reporters and editors.

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Posted by Shawn Whalen on February 7, 2007 at 1:25 PM
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Have You No Standards?

Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt has accepted 30 consensus standards to support an interoperable national health information network.

President Bush signed an executive order last year requiring federal agencies to use available interoperability standards when implementing or upgrading health information technology systems.

Among the standards:

- The Electronic Health Record Interoperability Specification, that supports interoperability between EMRs and lab systems.

- The Consumer Empowerment Interoperability Specification, for patients to exchange data with providers.

- The Biosurveillance Interoperability Specification, for the exchange of biosurveillance data among providers and public health agencies.

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Posted by Shawn Whalen on February 2, 2007 at 3:05 PM
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