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Healthcare Management Systems, Inc. Hospital Information System Receives CCHIT Certification

Posted on: Monday, 5 November 2007, 15:00 CST

The Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology (CCHITsm) today announced that Healthcare Management Systems, Inc.® (HMS) is CCHIT Certifiedsm, and meets the Commission's newly launched inpatient electronic health record (EHR) criteria for 2007. Inpatient EHRs are designed for use in acute care hospitals. The Commission -- an independent, nonprofit organization -- is the Recognized Certification Body in the United States for certifying health information technology products.

In addition to meeting foundation standards such as security, certified inpatient products are examined for clinician order entry (often called CPOE) and medication administration capabilities (often called eMAR), including related clinical decision support. As a CCHIT Certified product, HMS has been tested and passed inspection of 100 percent of a set of criteria for CPOE and eMAR. The Commission focused certification testing on these areas first because they have the lowest rate of adoption in hospitals but are thought to offer the highest value for improvement of care.

"The thorough inspection process ensures that certified products have demonstrated their ability to have a positive impact on the quality and safety of patient care," said Mark Leavitt, M.D., Ph.D., chair of the Commission. "I'd like to congratulate the first round of certified product companies, who now represent the leading edge in advanced EHR products for the inpatient setting."

The CCHIT Certified mark -- a "seal of approval" for EHR products -- provides the first consensus-based, government-recognized benchmark for inpatient EHR products. By looking to products with the CCHIT Certified seal, acute care providers can reduce their risk in selecting EHR products for CPOE and eMAR.

"HMS is pleased that our EHR has met the 2007 CCHIT requirements. Our physician portal (Clinical View) and Electronic Medication Administration Record (eMAR), now CCHIT-certified, are quality tools that enable hospitals around the country to deliver safer and higher quality patient care," said Steve Starkey Chief Operating Officer of HMS. "HMS continues to demonstrate its leadership position in delivering affordable clinical solutions to the community hospital market."

CCHIT's certification compliance criteria and its design for a certification inspection process have been thoroughly researched, taking into account the state of the art of EHRs and available standards, and comparing certification processes in other industries and other countries. The inspection process is based on real-life medical scenarios designed to test products rigorously against the clinical needs of providers and the quality and safety needs of healthcare consumers and payers. One script, for example, recreates a scenario of a middle-aged man admitted through the emergency department after sustaining fractures in an automobile accident. The script tests the ability of the EHR to provide clinical decision support during the ordering and administration of medications, and to track whether laboratory and radiology orders have been entered and received.

About HMS

Healthcare Management Systems, Inc.® (HMS) is a Nashville-based healthcare company that develops, sells and supports integrated clinical and financial hospital information systems and services. Founded in 1984, HMS counts among its customers over 575 Community hospitals, Behavioral, Rehabilitation and Long-term Acute Care facilities and Multi-Entity healthcare organizations nationwide. With the HMS system, caregivers are able to increase their efficiency in delivering quality care with an emphasis on improving patient safety. For more information, please visit www.hmstn.com or call 800.383.3317.

About CCHIT

The Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology (CCHITsm) is an independent, nonprofit organization that has been named by the federal government as the Recognized Certification Body for health information technology. Its mission is to accelerate the adoption of health information technology by creating a credible, sustainable 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 CCHIT and CCHIT Certifiedsm products is available at www.cchit.org. "CCHITsm" and "CCHIT Certifiedsm" are service marks of the Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology.

Source: Business Wire

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