Certification Commission Announces Expansion Plans at HIMSS08

Launches EHR Decisions Web Resource

CHICAGO – February 25, 2008 – The Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology announced today plans for expansion of the certification program in 2009 during a Town Hall meeting at the HIMSS08 Annual Conference in Orlando, Fla. Commission chair Mark Leavitt, M.D., Ph.D., provided an update on the current certification program, outlined future plans for EHR certification and announced the launch of a new Web site aimed at helping physicians make better-informed EHR decisions.

The Commission is preparing its updated ambulatory and inpatient certification criteria, as well as new programs to certify systems for child health, cardiovascular medicine and emergency department requirements, all to be launched in July 2008.  Certification of networks (health information exchanges), another new area, is now planned for launch in October.

For 2009, proposed expansion areas include long-term care, behavioral health, personal health records, and additional medical specialties to be determined later this spring by the Commission.

”Our forecast is for continued growth and expansion,” said Dr. Leavitt, “With the strong endorsement and acceptance of health IT certification by care providers in multiple settings, we’ll continue building momentum into next year, adding new domains and refining existing ones.  With the growing complexity of this work, however, we’ll also need to improve our own processes: better cross-group collaboration, more efficient feedback-gathering mechanisms, and an increased emphasis on technical testing will be themes for us next year.”  

CCHIT launches EHR education site for physicians

Leavitt also announced the launch of a new Web site, EHRDecisions.com, designed to help educate physicians on EHR selection and the value of choosing CCHIT Certified® products.  The site will help physicians better determine their readiness for moving to electronic health records, get started on the selection process, and be wiser in the actual purchase and contract negotiations.  There will also be advice on how to derive the full potential benefits from an EHR, from both a business and clinical standpoint.  The site will provide physician readers with a direct pipeline to Certification Commission leadership and other experts, who will post regularly.

“Certification has helped with EHR selection decisions, but we’ve learned that physicians still need a lot more information to succeed in EHR adoption and gain full value from the technology” Leavitt said. “By focusing this new Web site tightly on the knowledge physicians need to make better decisions about EHRs, we hope to help close that gap.”  

The Web site will feature news from the Certification Commission, as well as from the electronic health records industry as a whole. Readers will have the ability to post comments and questions regarding EHR certification and adoption issues. The site will be expanded over time from short articles by experts, informal blogs, and news feeds to community forums, podcasts and videos.

Network survey available until March 15

The Certification Commission is seeking responses to a survey on the development of its Network certification program – the third phase of its federally-funded certification process development. The survey is designed to gauge the needs of health information exchange (HIE) groups that would apply for Network certification and assess the market readiness for the new certification program. The survey is available at cchit.org/surveys/network until March 15.        

About the Certification Commission

The Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology is an independent, nonprofit organization that has been officially named by the federal government as a “recognized certification body” for electronic health record products.  Its mission is to accelerate the adoption of health information technology by creating a credible, sustainable product certification program.  The certification requirements are based on widely accepted industry standards and involve the work of hundreds of expert volunteers and input from a variety of stakeholders throughout the health care industry.  More information on the Commission and CCHIT Certified® products is available at www.cchit.org.

“CCHIT®” and “CCHIT Certified®” are registered trademarks of the Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology.