NEWS
Southern Tier HealthLink featured by HIMSS
2/20/2012
Southern Tier HealthLink (STHL) is proud to be featured in the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) White Paper, Reducing Readmissions- Top Ways Information Technology Can Help, co-authored by Dr. Wayne Teris, MD, of United Health Services (UHS) Medical Group.
The HIMSS White Paper details strategies to help reduce avoidable readmissions to hospitals as a way to increase quality of care and to avoid reduced Medicare reimbursement. Utilizing and participating in Health Information Exchange (HIE) are discussed as ways to improve coordination of care between the multiple caregivers for a patient, which can lead to reduced preventable hospital readmissions. The paper focuses on the importance of medication reconciliation and the availability of accurate and current medication information.
STHLs involvement with emergency care during the September 2011 Flood is included in the HIMSS White Paper as an example of using HIE to make patient information available to caregivers at the point of care, therefore helping to reduce hospital admissions or readmissions. The accessibility of patient records by physicians through STHLs HIE web portal allowed them to provide care at evacuation centers, rather than transporting patients to hospitals. To read more details about STHLs participation with emergency care during the flood, visit http://www.sthlny.com/news/viewarticle.asp?a=1662.
The HIMSS White Paper, Reducing Readmissions- Top Ways Information Technology Can Help can be viewed in its entirety on the HIMSS website by clicking here.
If you are interested in how your organization can participate in Health Information Exchange with STHL, contact Kirsten Griffin at 607.651.9150.
ABOUT DR. TERIS:
Wayne C. Teris, MD, is a Family Physician for UHS Medical Group at the UHS Walk-In Center Vestal, specializing in Urgent Care, Sports Medicine, and Clinical Informatics. He received his Doctor of Medicine degree from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine in 1979, and a Graduate Certificate in Biomedical Informatics from Oregon Health and Sciences University School of Medicine in 2011. Dr. Teris is a Clinical Assistant Professor of Family Medicine at SUNY Upstate Medical University, is a Diplomate of the American Board of Family Medicine (DABFM), and also is a Fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians (FAAFP).
ABOUT STHL:
Southern Tier HealthLink (www.sthlny.com) was established with leadership and support from UHS, Lourdes Hospital and other stakeholders in 2005. STHL is a non-profit organization designed as a partnership which brings together healthcare providers and consumers in Central New York to connect the dots with technology that will improve health care quality, access and safety while reducing costs. For more information contact Christina Galanis at 607.651.9150 or [email protected].
