In healthcare, almost everything we do is influenced and determined by digital technology. At Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, we care for over 330,000 children per year, making it essential  for us to leverage the power of innovative technologies to enhance patient care and productivity. 

It’s still all about people.

Despite the tumultuous events of this year, in particular the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare providers have remained focused on the central part of their jobs: treating and caring for people.

In 2020, we know that physicians are facing challenges like never before. As technology transforms at a rapid pace to support clinicians, we have had the opportunity to connect with a number of thought leaders in the field.

In healthcare, patient safety and quality of care are the highest priorities. As President of Healthien Inc. healthcare consulting services, I help providers meet these priorities by addressing pharmacy and order management-related issues that could result in adverse patient events.

In my experience, the most effective way to maximize patient safety is by having an automated clinical decision support system (CDSS) that protects patients from errors and omissions, while also streamlining providers’ workflows. Creating this type of CDSS requires innovation and a customizable EHR like MEDITECH Expanse.

A version of this post originally appeared on the IMO website. 

The ability to easily document possible exposure to, infection with, or any other clinical symptoms of COVID-19 is crucial to mitigating the impact of the pandemic. However, the lack of standardized coding to capture this information at the start of the outbreak, coupled with the rapid evolution of scientific understanding of the novel virus, has made this an inherently difficult task.  

COVID-19 has hit the healthcare industry so hard that many hospitals have been forced to furlough staff, or worse, close their doors. Relief payments from the CARES Act are a lifeline for organizations under enormous economic strain; though the healthcare portions of the legislation are only a few pages long, addendums are being released intermittently, making it easy for administrators — already in crisis mode — to lose track of the very subsidies the legislation provides.  

To help you stay on top of available relief payments and loans, we’ve summarized the opportunities and included links to helpful resources. Think of this blog post as your cheat sheet for financial support that may be available to your organization. 

A version of this post originally appeared on the Forward Advantage website. 

COVID-19 has created unprecedented challenges for everyone, especially the healthcare industry. Whereas other industries can shut down or go fully remote, hospitals must stay open even in the direst circumstances. However, this doesn’t mean hospitals must be rendered completely vulnerable. It is imperative that patients, care providers and other staff are supported.

This year, Patient Experience Week is taking on a whole new meaning. Consumers, who once may have rated their healthcare providers based on cafeteria food or convenient appointment times, are now shifting their focus to the most important question at hand — how are you helping to keep me safe during this pandemic? 

This post originally appeared on the CereCore blog. 

We are at an unprecedented time in our history, and much of the impact of COVID-19 has not been experienced in our lifetime. Most health systems have well-established crisis and disaster plans that encompasses IT, but these plans haven’t been tested to this degree until now.

Cloud technology, mobility for nurses, and patient safety—these are just a few of the topics that readers wanted to hear about on the MEDITECH Blog this year. While we wrap up our 50th anniversary year, let’s look back at our five most popular blogs in 2019, and look forward to our vision of healthcare in 2020.