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Executive
Board
Your officers for 2005 are:
President - Dr. Stephen Pittenger
President-elect - Dr.
Michael Martin
Secretary/Treasurer - Ms. Valerie Ball
Feedback
Please let us know if you have any suggestions
or comments about AVI.
President's
Letter
Welcome to the January 2005
edition of the AVI HTML Newsletter.
The Official Call for Papers
for the 2006 Talbot Symposium is available. The
deadline for submission is February 2, 2005. I know there
are a few of you out there that have yet to finish those
applications - please let me know if you are in the process of
writing and I might allow you to sneak in past the official
deadline!
We are planning to make
this Talbot one to remember. There will be 8 tracks of information
available to us for programming (Sun-Wed, AM & PM) and we have
assigned broad topics to those sessions. Of course, if you
have a submission that is definitely worthy, yet doesn't fit
neatly into the broad topics, we will still consider it! The
travel costs for the AVMA related to this Hawaii conference will
be staggering. As such, the ability to speak for multiple
sessions and even cross into other disciplines (i.e. technician
program) will be heavily considered.
The submission process will
move to the web this year to make it a little easier to collect
the submissions. The form is posted
at:http://www.avinformatics.org/symposia/
talbot2006/submission.htm
You should receive a confirmation email that I have received your
entry within 48 hours of submission. Dr. Martin and I will
begin to review the submissions and coordinate with our AVMA
section chief regarding the 2006 Talbot Symposium near the end of
February.
If you have a colleague that
may be interested in informatics, please pass along the
information!
Respectfully,
Stephen T. Pittenger, D.V.M.
About AVI
Joining
the AVI
You
may renew or apply for membership in the AVI by completing an
application and paying the annual dues. An application is also
included in each issue of the AVI Newsletter. Membership is
for a full year, expiring July 31 each year. You may select
from several membership categories, work groups, and newsletter
formats as described in the application. All member
categories share the privileges of the newsletter and the
communication services of the society. Full and corporate
members have voting privileges. If you share AVI's
interests, please join us.
Mission
The AVI, formerly the American Veterinary Computer Society,
was formed to expand the use of the computer as a tool in
veterinary medicine. This includes serving as an educational
resource, promoting the use of information technology and
electronic communications, and developing and promoting standards
in veterinary information management.
Benefits
Membership
benefits include the monthly AVI
newsletter, participation in work
groups , the AVI-L listserv
discussion list, and an annual membership directory.
Levels
Membership
incorporates a range of levels to encourage participation from all
segments of the profession, veterinarians and non-veterinarians,
as well as its supporting organizations. This includes veterinary
practitioners and their staff, faculty and staff of veterinary
colleges, diagnostic laboratories, medical records personnel,
medical librarians, students, software and hardware developers,
and corporations supplying veterinary products and services.
Over one third of the members are individuals working in the field
of clinical veterinary medicine, one third are in academia, and
the remainder are in industry, government, and other veterinary
medicine. Membership is international, including Australia,
Brazil, Canada, Israel, South Korea, and Saudi Arabia, as well as
the United States.
Meeting
The
annual membership meeting is held in conjunction with the AVMA
Annual Convention and includes the one-day Richard
B. Talbot Symposium on Veterinary Informatics and two days of
general information on computer usage. The members of the
Association are encouraged to write articles and/or make
presentations regarding their experiences, as these are valuable
to establish veterinary informatics as a legitimate discipline and
to encourage individuals in the veterinary community to become
more involved in the information age.
Membership
Application (HTML)
Membership
Application (RTF)
In
the News
Survey:
Missouri Doctors Ready for e-Health Records
January
27, 2005
Missouri
doctors have been slow to adopt electronic health record
technology -- until now, a new survey by Primaris shows. Complete
Business Journal of Kansas City article available at:
http://kansascity.bizjournals.com/
kansascity/stories/2005/01/24/daily21.html
System
Targets Medical Errors
January
21, 2005
With
many local health care providers using electronic medical records,
employers and health insurance companies will meet next week in an
effort to streamline the process. The result, experts agree, will
be better and more efficient care for patients. ''Health plans and
employers want doctors to use these systems because they know
medical errors will be reduced and there will be a cost savings,''
said Dr. John Blair, president and chief executive officer
director of the Taconic Health Information Network and Community.
The organization will host the meeting, which will include
representatives from IBM, MVP and other companies and health plans
in the region. Complete Poughkeepsie Journal article available at:
http://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/friday
/localnews/stories/lo012105s7.shtml
One in
Five Group Practices Now Use EHRs
January
25, 2005
One
in five group physician practices in America now has some sort of
electronic health record with a database containing patient
medical and demographic information—not just a scanned image
of a paper chart—according to new research from the Medical
Group Management Association, Englewood, Colo. That means 69
percent of medical groups still rely exclusively on paper records
filed in cabinets, according to the survey, released to coincide
with the MGMA-sponsored National Medical Group Practice Week.
Complete HealthIT World article available at:
http://www.health-itworld.com/enews/01-25-2005_508.html
High-tech
Alliance on Base for a Digital Health Network
January
26, 2005
Eight
of the nation's largest technology companies, including IBM,
Microsoft, and Oracle, have agreed to embrace open, nonproprietary
technology standards as the software building blocks for a
national health information network. Complete NY Times article
available at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/26
/technology/26health.html?oref=login
Diverse
Groups Offer Plans for National Health Information Network
January
24, 2005
Although
the full number won’t be determined for weeks, the
government initially received more than 500 responses from a broad
cross section of the industry to its request for information on
ways to create a network that would digitize patient records and
modernize the healthcare system. The government’s health IT
czar, David J. Brailer, MD, plans to highlight some of the
feedback during his keynote speech at the upcoming Healthcare
Information and Management System Society’s meeting in
Dallas next month. Complete Healthcare IT News article available
at:
http://www.healthcareitnews.com/News
ArticleView.aspx?ContentID=2316
Baptist
South to go "paperless"
January
24, 2005
In
just a few weeks the 248,000-square-foot Baptist Medical Center
will open, featuring state-of-the-art care in 92 suites on 32-acre
campus off Interstate 95 and St. Augustine Road. But something
will be missing -- paper. Complete Business Journal of
Jacksonville article available at: http://www.bizjournals.com…
Between
You, the Doctor, and the PC
January
24, 2005
Business
Week looks into privacy issues of putting medical records online.
Complete article available at:
http://businessweek.com/magazine/
content/05_05/b3918155_mz070.htm
Health
Care IT Outlook 2005: Returning to Financial Reality
January
24, 2005
During
the election year of 2004, health care consumers and providers
were showered with a series of promises about the coming high-tech
future. Both campaigns issued policy papers calling for vast, new
national health care technology initiatives that would improve
care while reducing costs. Many private foundations and policy
think tanks also published studies and "blueprints"
featuring plans for spending billions on health care information
technology projects. Complete commentary available through
iHealthBeat at:
http://www.ihealthbeat.org/index.cfm?action
=dspItem&itemID=108680&changedID=108634
Medical
Errors Linked to 20 MN Deaths
January
20, 2005
Twenty
patients died in Minnesota hospitals during a 15-month period
because of medical errors or oversights including falls, faulty
medical equipment and administering the wrong medication, the
state Health Department said in a new report. The report, released
Wednesday, documented 99 serious errors between July 1, 2003 and
Oct. 6, 2004. Minnesota is the first state to report its mistakes
under standards developed by the National Quality Forum, a
Washington-based nonprofit. New Jersey and Connecticut also
adopted the standards, which are being considered elsewhere.
Complete Associated Press/New York Times article available at:
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/national/AP-Medical-Mistakes.html?oref=login
Electronic
Medical Records Could save $78 Billion a Year
January
21, 2005
If
money talks then the nation may yet move further along on
implementing electronic medical records. Roughly $78 billion is
what a group of leading electronic-medical-record proponents
believe could be saved annually if the U.S. were to adopt a system
that lets medical professionals seamlessly access patient records
and other medical data. The conclusion was in a report given to
the Bush administration earlier this week. This Wall Street
Journal article is only available with subscription at:
http://online.wsj.com…
Frist
Considers Potential of IT in Health Care System
January
20, 2005
Senate
Majority Bill Frist in an article in the current issue of the New
England Journal of Medicine explores the future of information
technology and its potential to improve the health care system.
Complete article is only available with subscription. But a review
of the article is available at iHealthBeat site at:
http://www.ihealthbeat.org/index.cfm?
Action=dspItem&itemID=108583
AMIA
Board Member Mark Frisse to Lead Vanderbilt Center's Regional
Health Information Technology Initiatives
January
18, 2005
Accenture
and the Vanderbilt Center for Better Health announced the
appointment of Dr. Mark Frisse as the Accenture Endowed Chair.
Complete press release available at:
http://sitemason.vanderbilt.edu/newspub/crmQtG?id=16722
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Continuing Education
Complete Listing
for 2005
Feb. 13-17, 2005 - Western Veterinary
Conference - Location: Las Vegas, NV, USA. - Contact: Western
Veterinary Conference - Address: 2425 East Oquendo Road, Las
Vegas, NV 89120, USA - Tel: 1 (702) 739-6698 - Fax: 1 (702)
739-6420 - Web site: www.wvc.org - E-mail: wvc@ix.netcom.com -
Feb. 16-20, 2005 - Discovering Dentistry: 5-day Course -
Location: Animal Dental Training Center 7611 Philadelphia Rd.
Baltimore MD - Contact: Dr. Ira R. Luskin - Address: Animal Dental
Training Center P.O. Box 42363 Baltimore MD 21284-2363 - Tel:
410-828-1001 - Fax: 410-296-5512 - Web site:
www.AnimalDentalCenter.com - E-mail:
Training@animaldentalcenter.com - Comments: Intensive Hands-on
Dentistry and Oral Surgery course. 40 C.E. hours for beginner and
intermediate levels. This course provides the practitioner with
the best tools to approach the following disciplines: Oral
Pathology, Radiology, Restoration, Endodontics, Oral Surgery and
Jaw fracture repair. Participants will receive a full set of
bound,reference-quality notes, CE certificate and continental
breakfast and full lunch each day. The Animal Dental Training
Center is a State-of-the Art training facilty where participants
work at their own speed with their own equipment and materials.
The ADTC has hosted the dental wet labs for AVMA, ACVS and in
March AAHA. Register on-line and see what your colleagues are
saying about their educational experiences at the Center
Feb.
18-20, 2005 - TVMA Music City Veterinary Conference - Location:
Franklin Cool Springs Marriott, Nashville, TN, USA. - Contact:
Mandy Lister - Address: 618 Church Street, Suite 220, Nashville,
TN, 37219 - Tel: 615-254-3687 - Fax: 615-254-7047 - Web site:
www.tvmanet.org - E-mail: tvma@walkermgt.com -
Feb. 19,
2005 - Equine Ophthalmology Symposium - Location: NC State College
of Veterinary Medicine, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA - Contact:
Samantha Hartford - Address: NC State CVM, 4700 Hillsborough
Street, Raleigh, NC, 27606-1499 - Tel: 919-513-6421 - Fax:
919-513-6689 - Web site: www.cvm.ncsu.edu/conted/equineophtho/ -
E-mail: samantha_hartford@ncsu.edu - Comments: This symposium will
review the most up-to-date research regarding ocular therapeutics
in equine eyes. We will review appropriate treatment and
administration methods for specific ocular diseases, discuss
existing and newly marketed medications and their indications, and
review new research on ocular treatment. Lectures, case
presentations, and round table discussions will be used to discuss
all types of equine ocular disease, from infected corneal ulcers
to equine uveitis.
Feb. 19, 2005 - PennHIP training
seminar - Location: Mandalay Bay Hotel, Las Vegas, NV, USA -
Contact: UofP PennHIP - Address: University of Pennsylvania,
PennHIP, MJR - VHUP, 3900 Delancey Street, Philadelphia, PA
19104-6010, USA. - Tel: 215-573-3176 - Fax: 215-573-9457 - Web
site: www.pennhip.org - E-mail: pennhipinfo@pennhip.org -
Comments: A PennHIP training seminar will be offered in
conjunction with the Western Veterinary Conference on February 19,
2005. The seminar consists of 7 hours of lecture (morning and
afternoon) covering the current understanding of canine hip
dysplasia with specific emphasis on the science to support the
PennHIP radiographic procedure. Ample opportunity will be provided
for hands-on practice of the technique through the use of bone and
simulated mechanical models. The registration fee of $850 includes
the cost of the distractor (necessary to perform the procedure), a
training video, cost of certification exercises, and the PennHIP
Training Manual. A continental breakfast, coffee breaks and lunch
will also be included. Attendees will receive 6 hours of
continuing education credit. For more information about the
PennHIP program, or for updates on future training seminar dates,
please visit the PennHIP website at www.pennhip.org. Technicians
are welcome to accompany a veterinarian, for a small fee. Register
today!!
Feb. 19-20, 2004 - Small Animal Cardiology -
Location: The University of Georgia, College of Veterinary
Medicine, Athens, GA, USA - Contact: Sandi Kilgo - Address: Room
H-218-B, College of Veterinary Medicine, The University of
Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-7371 - Tel: 706/542-1451 - Fax:
706/583-0350 - Web site: www.gactr.uga.edu/conferences - E-mail:
skilgo@vet.uga.edu - Comments: Emphasis will be placed on new and
current approaches to the recognition and management of cardiac
problems commonly encountered such as arrhythmias,
cardiomyopathies, syncopy, and drug therapy.
The
High-tech Cure
January
17, 2005
Over
the past decade, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center has
become the largest health care provider in western Pennsylvania,
gobbling up 19 hospitals, 400 outpatient clinics and doctors'
offices, and more than a dozen retirement homes and long-term care
facilities. That was the easy part. Now UPMC is in the midst of a
much tougher task: bringing all those different pieces into the
information age and wiring them together into a seamless network.
Complete Wall Street Journal article only available with
subscription at: http://online.wsj.com…
Report
Finds Computer Entry Errors on the Rise
January
13, 2005
Automating
processes in medicine has been widely touted by both the health
care industry and lawmakers as a way to improve efficiency and
reduce errors. However, a recent report by not-for-profit drug
industry standards group U.S. Pharmacopeia found that medication
errors associated with computer entry are growing steadily.
Mistakes associated with computer entry were the fourth leading
cause of error in 2003, compared with the seventh leading cause in
2000, according to the report. Computer entry errors are defined
by MedMARx, USP's national database for medication errors, as
"incorrect or incomplete entry of information into a computer
system that is associated with the medication use process,"
according to the report. Complete iHealthBeat article available
at: http://ihealthbeat.org/index.cfm?Action=
dspItem&itemid=108480
Steps
to Prevent Medical Errors Urged
January
11, 2005
Hospitals
should use computers to order drugs for patients, work harder at
coordinating treatment and educate patients to help care for
themselves, physicians groups said Tuesday in an effort to reduce
medical errors. Complete NY Times article available at:
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/health/AP-Medical-Errors.html
IBM to
Give Free Access to 500 Patents
January
11, 2005
IBM
announced that it is making 500 of its software patents freely
available to anyone working on open-source projects. Complete NY
Times article available at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/11/technology/11soft.html?th
The
Internet's Future? It Depends on Whom You Ask
January
10, 2005
The
New York Times reports on a Pew Internet & American Life
Project survey that stated that about 40% of technology experts
and other leaders in the industry agreed with the assertion that
the use of online medical resources will increase and could help
improve health care. But 30% or those polled disagreed. Complete
article available at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/10/
technology/10pew.html?oref=login
Bay
State to Launch $50M Health Care Tech Pilot
January
10, 2005
In
just a few months, Micky Tripathi will help supervise a pilot
project that could make Massachusetts a high-tech model for how
health care is administered. Complete Boston Business Journal
article available at: http://www.bizjournals.com…
Take
One, and Stop Scribbling on Pads of Paper
January
10, 2005
The
Boston Globe highlights the adoption of e-prescribing in
Massachusetts. Complete article available at:
http://www.boston.com…
Technology
Lends Homeless a Hand
January
10, 2005
Boston
Health Care for the Homeless is using hand-held technology to
assist with their patients. Complete Boston Globe article
available at: http://www.boston.com…
Leaving
the Paper Trail
January
7, 2005
SSM
Health Care is planning to build a new paperless hospital -
complete St. Louis Business Journal available at:
http://stlouis.bizjournals.com/stlouis/
stories/2005/01/10/focus1.html
iPods
Store Medical Images
January
5, 2005
Medical
images are increasingly important in diagnosing everything from
cancer to heart disease to sports injuries. And they are used
extensively for research, including brain function and
experimental treatments, but they also require large data sets,
making storing and transferring images problematic. Complete eWeek
article available at:
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1748273,00.asp
FORBES:
Rob Wherry On Health Care IT
January
7, 2005
Forbes
Magazine health IT forecast for 2005. Complete article available
at:
http://www.forbes.com/business/2004
/12/14/sp05_13_rwherry_.html
2005
Short-term Forecast for Health Care IT
January
6, 2005
This
year, the key drivers that will shape health care information
technology include consumer-driven health care initiatives, safety
and quality imperatives and technology financing. Complete
iHealthbeat article available at:
http://www.ihealthbeat.org/index.cfm?action=dspItem
&itemID=108340&changedID=108279
No
Lack of 2005 IT Initiatives for Payers
January
3, 2005
The
year 2005 will go down as the year of the electronic medical
record for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Tennessee. The health plan
expects to give more than a million members access to electronic
records this year. Chris Levan, CIO for Chattanooga-based BCBST,
said that the health plan's main initiatives for 2005 are focused
on provider service redesign, disease management, electronic
medical records, government business expansion, HIPAA security, a
national “Blues” data warehouse and Internet
reporting. The two biggest initiatives include EMRs and disease
management. “We hope to roll out electronic medical records
to many healthcare providers and members,” Levan said. “We
would hope that over a million members will have improved access
to the right healthcare by year end.” Complete Healthcare IT
News article available at:
http://www.healthcareitnews.com/News
ArticleView.aspx?ContentID=2223
Kettering
Medical Launches Online Patient Forms
January
3, 2005
Grace
Curtis was surprised when patients recently began filling out
online registration forms before the service was officially
launched. But some Web-savvy patients had searched out the test
form on Kettering Medical Center Network's Web site and started
using it, said Curtis, director for patient registration and
central scheduling. Complete Dayton Business Journal article
available at: http://www.bizjournals.com…
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