A quarterly publication of the California Medical Association    •     Issue 3     •    Spring '06

Other Helpful Sources of
Health IT Information

Free Health IT Training for
Primary Care Physicians
Lumetra, the California Quality Improvement Organization, has contracted with CMS to provide free training to primary care providers caring for Medicare beneficiaries. The programs it offers are well designed, conducted on the web, and supported by a wealth of informational resources easily accessible to participating physicians.

Doctor's Office Quality –
Information Technology Program
If you are interested in getting an EHR for your practice, but don’t know where to start, consider joining the Doctor’s Office Quality – Information Technology (DOQ-IT) program. DOQ-IT offers assistance—at no cost—to help physicians select, implement, and fully utilize EHRs for improved clinical outcomes. Lumetra is currently accepting applications for its next DOQ-IT Program, which begins in June 2006.

You can learn more about how DOQ-IT can help by attending Lumetra’s free EHR vendor fair and conference April 22 in San Francisco. Click here for more information or call 415/677-2088.

Lumetra is an independent, nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the quality, safety, and integrity of health care. The DOQ-IT program is part of Lumetra’s California Quality Connections initiative, a quality improvement program for health care providers.

American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA)
AHIMA is a professional association whose members typically are medical records managers or coding specialists who work for hospitals and other institutional providers. AHIMA maintains a large library of articles on health information technology and EHRs.

California Healthcare Foundation (CHCF)
CHCF, an independent philanthropy dedicated to improving the delivery and financing of health care in California, provides an extensive collection of articles and information related to EHRs.

eHealth Initiative
One hundred health care organizations are collaborating with a focus on interconnected electronic health information infrastructure and the adoption of clinical data standards and interoperability.

Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMMS)
The Health Information and Management Systems Society (HIMMS) is a nonprofit association focused on health information technology and health information management. HIMMS is a good resource for articles, books, and tools related to Electronic Health Records.

Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC)
ONC is guiding the development and nationwide implementation of an interoperable health information technology infrastructure that would improve the quality and efficiency of health care and the ability of consumers to manage their care and safety. ONC provides information about federal programs and initiatives associated with health information technology and electronic health records.

Lumetra, California's QIO
Quality improvement organizations (QIOs) help physician offices achieve improvements in health care quality measures identified by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). In California, Lumetra has contracted with CMS for these services. Lumetra can help physicians and their staffs obtain the knowledge and skills to prepare their office for use of EHRs and can help practices make sound decisions about technology to use.

CalRHIO
The California Regional Health Information Organization is a nonprofit, collaborative, statewide initiative to improve the quality, safety, and efficiency of health care through the use of information technology and the secure exchange of health information. It was created as a catalyst and resource to enable physicians, hospitals, and patients to securely access vital health information electronically when and where it is needed. In its short existence, its first governing board was seated in January 2006, it has begun directing a number of work groups, held several public summits, and recently released an RFI for a project to enable exchange of information between emergency departments in California.