By Robert Michel, from the Volume XII No. 9 - June 20, 2005 issue
ALTHOUGH ICD-9 IS CONSIDERED inadequate to effectively meet the needs of today’s healthcare system, a number of hurdles prevent implementation of the proposed ICD-10 codes.
Of equal significance is another problem intertwined with the inadequate ICD-9 coding system: a nationwide shortage of coders. A 2001 survey by the American Hospital Association revealed an 18% vacancy rate
By Robert Michel, from the Volume XI No. 17 - December 13, 2004 issue
CEO SUMMARY: Presented here are THE DARK REPORT’S “Ten Biggest Lab Stories of 2004.” These are the events we consider most important to the lab industry during the year. However, in contrast to past years, 2004 lacked the types of blockbuster events which radically change and reshape the competitive landscape. Instead, 2004 was a relatively
By Robert Michel, from the Volume XI No. 8 - June 7, 2004 issue
CEO SUMMARY: On April 26, 2004, President George W. Bush announced a new goal for the nation: an electronic medical record (EMR) for every patient within ten years. Last July, THE DARK REPORT predicted that the federal government would take the lead role in pushing healthcare to adopt a universal electronic medical record. Introduction of
By Robert Michel, from the Volume X No. 9 - July 7, 2003 issue
HERE’S AN ACQUISITION with interesting ramifications for both clinical laboratories and anatomic pathology group practices.
GE Medical Systems Information Technologies, (GEMSIT) a business division of General Electric Company, will acquire Triple G Systems Group, Inc. of Toronto, Canada. The purchase price is US$54.8 million and the deal will close in the third quarter 2003.
GEMSIT’s President, Dow
By Robert Michel, from the Volume X No. 9 - July 7, 2003 issue
CEO SUMMARY: Last week, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) announced two major steps toward the universal electronic health record. One project involves the licensing of CAP’s SNOMED CT system to make it available to all healthcare providers in the United States. The second project is a commission to the Institute of
By Robert Michel, from the Volume IX No. 12 - August 26, 2002 issue
CEO SUMMARY: In British Columbia, two commercial laboratory competitors have found common ground. BC Biomedical Laboratories and MDS Metro Laboratories are using LOINC to link their laboratory test databases. Physicians use a single system to access their patient’s test results, regardless of which lab performed the test. Coming enhancements to the system include wireless access
By Robert Michel, from the Volume IX No. 9 - June 24, 2002 issue
CEO SUMMARY: It’s a laboratory regionalization project without precedent because of its worldwide scale. Within the Armed Forces, laboratorians are working to seamlessly integrate laboratory test data generated by laboratories within the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Veterans Administration. LOINC is the tool used to link participating laboratories. The eventual goal is to create a
By Robert Michel, from the Volume VIII No. 8 - June 11, 2001 issue
CEO SUMMARY: Pathologists at the University of Minnesota Medical School are working to create an electronic data base that covers the more than 100 years of autopsy cases that have been archived and stored. Their goal is to use this information to improve teaching and to further research into the evolving nature of many diseases.
ACADEMIC
