Lumetra Healthcare Solutions

The world of health information technology (HIT) continues to gain attention, culminating in what many see as a great opportunity, offered though the HITECH Act, to make a permanent shift in how technology is used in clinical practice. Furthering this focus on HIT are programs offering incentives for the use of technology, such as the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act (MIPPA), which offers a two percent bonus increase to providers using e-Prescribing.

These measures and other incentives have helped to create a significant influx of HIT users, of e-Prescribing in particular, over the past year. For example, Walgreens recently reported a 211 percent increase in e-Prescribing between March 2008 and March 2009. While this long awaited shift in how healthcare practices use technology remains in the early stages of adoption, the HITECH Act creates additional momentum that demands a need for coordination of technology integration in healthcare.

There are two layers needed for successful e-Prescribing adoption:

1. For mass adoption to succeed, multi-stakeholder cooperation for data availability is essential. Health plans, PBMs, providers, pharmacies, and vendors all must support, provide, and actively participate in the routing of needed information such as medication history, eligibility information, and formulary data for e-Prescribing to be effectively realized.
2. Practice redesign must be integrated with the rollout of new technology to ensure effective workflow that focuses on clinical quality and operational efficiency.

The ability to address both technology and workflow redesign is a need often ignored or inappropriately addressed throughout a technology implementation. In the case of
e-Prescribing, it is often the workflow and communications with external entities that is critical in the successful long-term acceptance of the product within the office setting.

Illumisys, a division of Lumetra, offers expertise in HIT services that addresses the challenges faced by organizations today. Our staff can assist with the following:

• Assess a practice’s current operations and provide recommendations with enhancements to clinical processes, revenue, and use of technology
• Accelerate a practice’s approach to system selection and contracting
• Effectively manage a practice’s HIT projects and coordinate the various resources required for success
• Provide hands-on assistance for the integration of technology with practice workflow redesign
• Successfully train and support the organization throughout key project periods, such as “go live.”

Note: John Weir, the president of Illumisys, is responsible for the organization’s executive leadership and business development. Contact him by e-mail or by telephone at (415) 677-2083.