Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
FDA Wants Electronic Health Records System Dedicated To Tracking Safety Of Regulated Products
Modern Healthcare: FDA On The Hunt For Its Own EHR System
The Food and Drug Administration is looking for a "large electronic medical record system" to conduct research about adverse drug reactions. The FDA's Bioinformatics and Biostatistics Division will use the EHR to look into the "safety and surveillance of FDA regulated products," according to the request for quote the agency posted earlier this week. Specifically, researchers will analyze VA data to look for adverse side effects from medications. It will use the EHR to develop "novel data mining and data visualization" to apply to the data. Right now, those data exist in different versions of VistA, the VA's home-grown EHR. But they might eventually exist elsewhere. (Arndt, 5/3)
Minnesota Public Radio: Mayo Clinic Launches Massive Medical Records Overhaul
Over several weeks, the Mayo Clinic has shuttled thousands of employees to sessions showing them how to use hospital's new electronic medical records system known around town as Epic after the company, Epic Systems, that makes it. (Richert, 5/4)
And in other health IT news —
Tampa Bay Times: Rock-A-Bye Baby ... Through The Webcam
[Elisha] Creighton is like the dozens of other mothers, fathers and extended family members who land in the NICU at Tampa General with unexpected issues after their babies are born, said Pam Sanders, vice president of women and children’s services and the associate chief nursing officer at the hospital. The cameras provide a way for family members to stay connected to their child’s recovery when they can’t physically be in the hospital. (Griffin, 5/4)
WBUR: People With ALS Living Longer, More Independent Lives At High-Tech Chelsea Home
Just outside Boston, there's a place where people who've been diagnosed with one of the most cruel and debilitating diseases are living longer and more meaningful lives than ever thought possible. The disease is Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), or Lou Gehrig's disease. And the place is the Leonard Florence Center for Living. (Mullins and Joliocoeur, 5/3)
