“… I was interviewing Julie Stoner, the vice president for U.S. government services at Cerner. A techie with computer science and management information systems degrees, Stoner now finds herself with a foot on each of two logs: the Department of Veterans Affairs and Defense Department. Leidos is the prime contractor for the DoD implementation of a new electronic health record system. But both DoD and VA — and the Coast Guard, while we’re at it — are using Cerner EHR technology for the express purpose of having interoperable systems…”
“This means the ultimate “record” might look very different at DoD, VA and the Coast Guard. And, for that matter, to the radiology and pharmacy departments within a hospital. But the data elements should match, which is the real key to interoperability and consistency.”
“It also means everyone has to agree on data elements, units of measure, a myriad of other terminology. We’ll express everyone’s weight in pounds, not kilograms or stones, for instance. The point is to separate the data from the workflow logic, such that whatever view a practitioner (or patient) takes, the presentation will be accurate…”
“Stoner also said that the requirements of DoD, VA and the Coast Guard make for a bigger challenge than anything the company has seen commercially. In some instances, that means custom programming. My commentary: That should be the last resort…” Read the full article here.
Source: Update on a mega-IT modernization effort – By Tom Temin, June 24, 2020. Federal News Network.
