Stories I'm Working on NOW

Now that meaningful use guidelines have been announced, hospitals are going to face a real challenge: proving it. Though hospitals may meet the requirements for meaningful use, demonstrating that they do may not be so easy—especially when they are already swimming in data and proof comes from a variety of different systems. Some CIOs are finding new IT tools can relieve the burden to prove meaningful use. We’ll take a look at some products that can help streamline the process of proving meaningful use and tame the information glut. We’ll also find out whether hospitals need to hire consultants to make sure they don’t miss the boat on proving the meaningful use they’ve worked so hard to attain.

Financial

With money tight, more and more hospitals are finding they can’t spare the travel time and expense for staff meetings. Some CIOs are meeting this challenge by using video conferencing as a way to cut down on these expenses. The video technology can also be leveraged to include education through webinars and CME content. And when it comes time for a desktop refresh, some cutting edge hospitals are taking conferencing technology a step further—by enabling end users to conference right from desktop monitors that are video camera-capable.