Where Did the Idea of Meaningful Use of Electronic Medical Records Come From?
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 was signed by President Obama on February 17, 2009. The Law includes the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act or the HITECH Act. The HITECH Act establishes programs under Medicare and Medicaid to provide incentive payments for the Meaningful Use of Certified Electronic Health Records technology.
The goal of the HITECH legislation is to improve healthcare outcomes, to facilitate access to care and to simplify care. It is believed that the installation of electronic health records in medical practices is only the beginning. The goals of HITECH will be met when the EHR is used in a meaningful way.
What is Meaningful Use (MU)?
There are three identified components of Stage I Meaningful Use. They are:
- Use of a certified EHR in a meaningful manner such as e-prescribing.
- Use of Certified EHR Technology for the exchange of health information (exchange data with other providers of care or business partners such labs or pharmacies)
- Use of Certified EHR Technology to submit clinical quality and other measures.
The first stage of Meaningful Use is capturing and sharing the data. Meaningful Use Stage II is advanced clinical processes and Stage III is starting to look Meaningful Use of an EHR in the context of improved healthcare outcomes.
There are 25 specific criteria for MU Stage I listed in this article in Healthcare IT News:
[1] Objective: Use CPOE (Computerized Physician Order Entry)
Measure: CPOE is used for at least 80 percent of all orders
[2] Objective: Implement drug-drug, drug-allergy, drug- formulary checks
Measure: The EP (Eligible Provider) has enabled this functionality
[3] Objective: Maintain an up-to-date problem list of current and active diagnoses based on ICD-9-CM or SNOMED CT®
Measure: At least 80 percent of all unique patients seen by the EP have at least one entry or an indication of none recorded as structured data.
[4] Objective: Generate and transmit permissible prescriptions electronically (eRx).
Measure: At least 75 percent of all permissible prescriptions written by the EP are transmitted electronically using certified EHR technology.
[5] Objective: Maintain active medication list.
Measure: At least 80 percent of all unique patients seen by the EP have at least one entry (or an indication of “none” if the patient is not currently prescribed any medication) recorded as structured data.
[6] Objective: Maintain active medication allergy list.
Measure: At least 80 percent of all unique patients seen by the EP have at least one entry (or an indication of “none” if the patient has no medication allergies) recorded as structured data.
[7] Objective: Record demographics.
Measure: At least 80 percent of all unique patients seen by the EP or admitted to the eligible hospital have demographics recorded as structured data
[8] Objective: Record and chart changes in vital signs.
Measure: For at least 80 percent of all unique patients age 2 and over seen by the EP, record blood pressure and BMI; additionally, plot growth chart for children age 2 to 20.
[9] Objective: Record smoking status for patients 13 years old or older
Measure: At least 80 percent of all unique patients 13 years old or older seen by the EP “smoking status” recorded
[10] Objective: Incorporate clinical lab-test results into EHR as structured data.
Measure: At least 50 percent of all clinical lab tests results ordered by the EP or by an authorized provider of the eligible hospital during the EHR reporting period whose results are in either in a positive/negative or numerical format are incorporated in certified EHR technology as structured data.
[11] Objective: Generate lists of patients by specific conditions to use for quality improvement, reduction of disparities, research, and outreach.
Measure: Generate at least one report listing patients of the EP with a specific condition.
[12] Objective: Report ambulatory quality measures to CMS or the States.
Measure: For 2011, an EP would provide the aggregate numerator and denominator through attestation as discussed in section II.A.3 of this proposed rule. For 2012, an EP would electronically submit the measures are discussed in section II.A.3. of this proposed rule.
[13] Objective: Send reminders to patients per patient preference for preventive/ follow-up care
Measure: Reminder sent to at least 50 percent of all unique patients seen by the EP that are 50 and over
[14] Objective: Implement five clinical decision support rules relevant to specialty or high clinical priority, including for diagnostic test ordering, along with the ability to track compliance with those rules
Measure: Implement five clinical decision support rules relevant to the clinical quality metrics the EP is responsible for as described further in section II.A.3.
[15] Objective: Check insurance eligibility electronically from public and private payers
Measure: Insurance eligibility checked electronically for at least 80 percent of all unique patients seen by the EP
[16] Objective: Submit claims electronically to public and private payers.
Measure: At least 80 percent of all claims filed electronically by the EP.
[17] Objective: Provide patients with an electronic copy of their health information (including diagnostic test results, problem list, medication lists, and allergies) upon request
Measure: At least 80 percent of all patients who request an electronic copy of their health information are provided it within 48 hours.
[18] Objective: Provide patients with timely electronic access to their health information (including lab results, problem list, medication lists, allergies)
Measure: At least 10 percent of all unique patients seen by the EP are provided timely electronic access to their health information
[19] Objective: Provide clinical summaries to patients for each office visit.
Measure: Clinical summaries provided to patients for at least 80 percent of all office visits.
[20] Objective: Capability to exchange key clinical information (for example, problem list, medication list, allergies, and diagnostic test results), among providers of care and patient authorized entities electronically.
Measure: Performed at least one test of certified EHR technology’s capacity to electronically exchange key clinical information.
[21] Objective: Perform medication reconciliation at relevant encounters and each transition of care.
Measure: Perform medication reconciliation for at least 80 percent of relevant encounters and transitions of care.
[22] Objective: Provide summary care record for each transition of care and referral.
Measure: Provide summary of care record for at least 80 percent of transitions of care and referrals.
[23] Objective: Capability to submit electronic data to immunization registries and actual submission where required and accepted.
Measure: Performed at least one test of certified EHR technology’s capacity to submit electronic data to immunization registries.
[24] Objective: Capability to provide electronic syndromic surveillance data to public health agencies and actual transmission according to applicable law and practice.
Measure: Performed at least one test of certified EHR technology’s capacity to provide electronic syndromic surveillance data to public health agencies (unless none of the public health agencies to which an EP or eligible hospital submits such information have the capacity to receive the information electronically).
[25] Objective: Protect electronic health information maintained using certified EHR technology through the implementation of appropriate technical capabilities.
Measure: Conduct or review a security risk analysis in accordance with the requirements under 45 CFR 164.308 (a)(1) and implement security updates as necessary.
Have the Details of MU been finalized?
The comment period for the NPRM (Notice of Proposed Rule Making) for Meaningful Use is currently open but will close on March 15, 2010. You can read the NPRM here. Many individuals and organizations have expressed concern that the timeline for implementing EHR and meeting MU criteria is too short for the majority of providers. The American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) recently sent a 7-page letter to acting CMS Administrator Charlene Frizzera (see story here) that included the following concerns:
- The administrative burden of reporting computerized physician order entry measures “is excessive to the point of being unachievable for most eligible providers.”
- The rule could require manually entering results from laboratories that don’t have an interoperable interface with the physician’s electronic health record.
- The term “health information” is used throughout the proposed rule, but is never defined.
- A requirement that a patient’s health information be shared with that patient within 48 hours doesn’t take in account that physicians or their staff may not be able to process the information if that 48-hour period includes weekend days.
- There is no incentive for physicians who meet less than 100% of the proposed requirements, so it is an all-or-nothing approach.
The Medical Group Management Association recently surveyed (see Modern Healthcare story here) 445 physician practice administrators in February 2010 with the following feedback:
- Nearly all are aware of the upcoming incentive programs for meaningful use of electronic health records, but fear the programs will reduce physician productivity.
- 68% of respondents expect physician productivity will decrease if all 25 proposed meaningful use criteria are implemented.
- Nearly one-third believe the decrease in productivity will be greater than 10 percent.
- Almost 25% of practices without an EHR doubt some of their providers will ever attempt to qualify for incentives.
- Among practices with an EHR, nearly 84 percent believe some of their physicians will attempt to qualify for Medicare or Medicaid incentives by the end of 2011.
How Do I Comment on the MU Standard?
You can submit your comments on the NPRM on MU here.
You can read comments already submitted here.
How Do I Know if My EHR is Certified?
No EHRs have been certified for the CMS Incentive Program and the certifying bodies have not yet been announced. It seems reasonable that CCHIT will be one certifying body, but there are expected to be others. If your vendor tells you that his EHR is certified before the rule has been finalized and the certifying bodies have been announced, ask him “For what?”
What Does it Mean to Be Eligible? (description courtesy of Everything HITECH)
This term encompasses three general types of payers to establish eligibility: 1) Medicare Fee For Services (FFS), 2) Medicare Advantage (MA) and 3) Medicaid.
For hospitals to be eligible, they can be acute care (excluding long term care facilities), critical access hospitals, children’s hospitals.
For providers, these include non-hospital-based physicians who receive reimbursement through Medicare FFS program or a contractual relationship with a qualifying MA organization. The Act defines the term “hospital based” eligible professional to mean an EP such as a pathologist, anesthesiologist,or emergency physician, who furnishes substantially all of his or her Medicare covered professional services during the relevant EHR reporting period in a hospital setting (whether inpatient or outpatient) through the use of the facilities and equipment of the hospital, including the hospital’s qualified EHR’s (Fed Reg p. 1905). The determining factor is the site of service as to whether the service is hospital based or not. If the EP provides at least 90 % of their services in a hospital inpatient, hospital outpatient or hospital emergency room setting (Point of Service codes 21, 22, 23), then they are considered a hospital based EP and not eligible for EHR incentive payments (i.e. providing substantially all of his or her Medicare covered professional services).
There is a difference between Medicare and Medicaid when it comes to defining an eligible professional for EHR incentive payment purposes. Medicare defines an eligible professional as (Fed Reg p. 1996):
- doctor of medicine or doctor of osteopathy
- doctor of dental surgery or dental medicine
- doctor of podiatric medicine
- doctor of optometry
- chiropractor
Medicaid, on on the other hand, defines an eligible professional as (Fed Reg p. 2001):
- physician
- dentist
- certified nurse-midwife
- nurse practitioner
- physician assistant practicing in a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) or a Rural Health Clinic, led by a physician assistant.
What are the Guidelines for Providing Patients With Their Medical Records Electronically?
Under HIPAA, patients currently have the ability to access their medical records. Meaningful Use does not change HIPAA in that regard. You may charge patients for the expense related to providing paper or electronic medical records. Each state has its own schedule for charging for medical records (state-by-state schedule here.)
Do Eligible Providers Have to be Participating With Medicare to Receive the Incentive Money?
No, the eligibility requirements only relate to the benchmarks for the percentage of Medicaid patients you have, or amount of allowed Medicare charges you have.
Can Eligible Providers Work at Locations Other Than Hospitals and Private Practices and Receive the Incentive Money?
The location where the provider works is not the issue. The issue is whether or not the provider meets the requirements, either for Medicare or Medicaid, to be considered eligible for the program.
It doesn’t matter where the provider accesses the certified EHR. If they meet the eligibility criteria, and they are using a certified EHR, they can collect on the stimulus money.
What Are Health Provider Shortage Areas?
Physicians practicing in determined “health provider shortage” (detailed info here) areas will be eligible for a 10% bonus payment.
How Does This Incentive Relate to ePrescribing or PQRI?
If the PQRI Program is extended in its current form, practices can participate in both PQRI and an EHR Incentive Plan.
If the EP chooses to participate in the Medicare EHR Incentive Program, they cannot participate in the Medicare eRx Incentive Program simultaneously. If the EP chooses to participate in the Medicaid EHR Incentive Program, they can participate in the Medicare eRx Incentive Program simultaneously.
Also, e-prescribing penalties sunset after 2014, so that no physician will be subject to penalties for failing to both e-prescribe and use an EHR!
How Do EPs Get Paid For Meaningful Use of a Certified EHR?
For the first payment year only, all an EP or hospital has to do is to be a “meaningful user” for a continuous 90-day period during the payment year. Hospitals’ payment year is October 1 to September 30 and EPs’ payment year is the calendar year. You must start and complete the 90-day period within the payment year with no overlapping.
Also, if you can qualify as a Medicaid Eligible Provider (or Hospital), are in the process of adopting, implementing or upgrading your EHR and your Medicaid patient volume is at least 30% (Pediatricians only need 20% minimum and Hospitals need 10% minimum), you can collect your incentive money without meeting Meaningful Use criteria.
Attestation forms and forms of other types are most likely the way that EPs will provide information to apply for the incentive funds, although the details have not yet been released.
What Does it Mean to Transition From One Program (Medicaid or Medicare) to Another?
EPs who meet the eligibility requirements for both the Medicare and Medicaid incentive programs will be able to participate in only one program, and will have to designate which one they would like to participate in. After their initial designation, EPs are allowed to change their program selection only once during payment years 2012 through 2014.
To Recap:
How Do I Get My EHR Stimulus Money?
- Decide whether you are an eligible provider for any of the programs.
- If you are, buy a certified EMR (once certification has been defined.)
- Use your EMR in a way that demonstrates your meaningful use of the product.
- Pass “GO” and collect your money.
ARRA (Stimulus Bill) Acronyms
• A/I/U –Adopt, implement or upgrade
• CAH –Critical Access Hospital
• CCN –CMS Certification Number
• CDS –Clinical Decision Support
• CMS –Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
• CY –Calendar Year
• EHR –Electronic Health Record
• EP –Eligible Professional
• eRx –E-Prescribing
• FFS –Fee-for-service
• FY –Federal Fiscal Year
• HHS –U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
• HIT –Health Information Technology
• HITECH Act –Health Information Technology for Electronic and Clinical Health Act
• HITPC –Health Information Technology Policy Committee
• HIPAA –Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996
• HPSA –Health Professional Shortage Area
• IFR –Interim Final Rule
• MA –Medicare Advantage
• MCMP –Medicare Care Management Performance Demonstration
• MITA-Medicaid Information Technology Architecture
• MU –Meaningful Use
• NPI –National Provider Identifier
• NPRM –Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
• OMB –Office of Management and Budget
• ONC –Office of the National Coordinator of Health Information Technology
• PQRI –Medicare Physician Quality Reporting Initiative
• Recovery Act –American Reinvestment & Recovery Act of 2009
• TIN –Taxpayer Identification Number
To see the full transcript of the CMS Audio Conference Call from February 23, 2010 which this article drew heavily upon, view the handout, or listen to the audio of the call click here.
Late Tuesday night (March 2), the Senate passed a 30-day extension to the delay in the 21.5% Medicare payment cut. The House passed a similar measure last week. If the extension is signed by President Obama tomorrow, March 3, Congress will have another 28 or so days to figure this payment thing out and managers can continue to sweat it out.
Stay tuned for possible additional delays: earlier today Senator Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) unveiled a $150 billion jobs bill that would delay the 21% cut in Medicare reimbursements until August.
CMS is not processing claims until March 12 so they can pay the correct amount and not have to make additional payments to providers. Payments will still reach providers within the 14-day time frame required.
A collective sigh of relief was heard across the land as it was revealed today during the CMS Open Door Forum that the requirement for providers to be enrolled in PECOS has been delayed until January 3, 2011.
Part B MACs (Medicare Administrative Contractors) will be sending revalidation letters to all providers who have not updated their Medicare enrollment since November of 2003, asking them to submit a paper enrollment form or to use the electronic enrollment system PECOS (Provider Enrollment, Chain and Ownership System.) This proactive stance on the part of CMS should help the many managers who have been desperately trying to determine if their providers are in PECOS or not.
An audio recording of today’s call will be available on the ODF website here and will be accessible for downloading on or around Monday March 1, 2010 and available for 30 days.
For automatic emails of Open Door Forum schedule updates (E-Mailing list subscriptions) and to view Frequently Asked Questions click here.
By William F. Jessee, MD FACMPE
MGMA President and CEO
Spend one day in the shoes of an MGMA member and you’ll experience the challenging, changing environment of a practice administrator. Our industry is always in flux: new healthcare information technology to implement; new CPT and ICD codes to bill; new insurance plans to support. MGMA is changing, too, to support new and current members and help them thrive in the face of change.
While 70 percent of our membership remains directly employed by medical practices, new member trends indicate that about a quarter of all MGMA members who joined in 2009 came from other types of healthcare organizations, including integrated delivery systems (IDS). Also this year, more than half our new members are 45 or younger. More current and new members are attaining or have attained Master’s degrees.
As our membership changes, so does the state of healthcare. Members frequently ask me about current healthcare trends. Here are four we’re watching and what MGMA is doing to support our members during these changes:
- Larger systems, influenced by the government, to become the norm
In 1975, 68 percent of physicians worked in one- or two-person practices (1). By 2005, that proportion had fallen to 32 percent and has probably declined more since then (2). I think group practices will increasingly merge to form larger groups, integrate with other specialties to form multispecialty groups or become fully integrated with hospitals (our new membership numbers reflect this) in order to compete in the marketplace.
Also, much of the Federal reform legislative language favors larger, more complex practices, e.g., incentives for implementing electronic health records, electronic prescribing and quality reporting. Penalties for not adopting new technology could hit smaller practices harder. There is even talk of exempting physicians in systems from any Medicare Part B payment caps that might otherwise apply.
- Hospital-owned groups already on the rise
MGMA’s physician compensation survey data indicate the proportion of physicians working in hospital-owned groups has steadily grown over the last several years. Both primary care and specialties are affected. The economic reasons for this are clear: Between 2001 and 2009, the Medicare conversion factor rose only 1.1 percent, while the consumer price index rose 24.2 percent; and median practice operating costs (for multispecialty groups) went up 43.1 percent. No matter the business, it’s a challenge to remain a viable, free-standing practice when revenue is flat and expenses increase by 6 percent or so a year.
This year we’ve ramped up efforts to provide practice management support for organizations that are part of IDSs. In our various print and electronic member publications, we’re featuring more stories and examples of what it takes to successfully run these health systems, and we recently published a book dedicated to the topic. At the MGMA 2009 Annual Conference, Oct. 11-14, we held IDS-specific sessions that drew more than 900 people, proving this aspect of practice management is here to stay.
- Practices increasingly collecting from patients
MGMA polled members earlier this year about their top challenges, and collecting from self-pay patients landed at number four (3). As high-deductible health plans, health savings accounts and uninsured self-pay patients have increased in recent years, collecting the patient’s share of the bill has become a greater challenge. MGMA is completing research on patient collections and we will release results early next year.
- Healthcare reform on the mind
We couldn’t forget about this topic. Impending healthcare reform legislation means even bigger changes to come – ones that require adaptation so healthcare management professionals and their organizations won’t become irrelevant.
No matter what the outcome, health insurance is likely to expand, and new taxes and/or payment cuts seem likely. MGMA is monitoring the latest developments and sending weekly e-newsletters to members through the MGMA Washington Connexion (membership required.) Our public policy and advocacy staff in Washington, D.C., is advocating on behalf of medical practices and has sent numerous comments and letters to Congress and the Administration regarding proposed legislation, especially to assure that administrative simplification measures are included in any bill that is eventually passed.
Notes
1. Goodman L, Bennet E, Odem R. Current status of group medical practice in the United States. Public Health Rep., 1977;92 430-433.
2. Cook R. Finances driving physicians out of solo practice. American Medical News, Sept. 10, 2007.
3. Schneck L, Margolis J. Medical Practice Today: What you have to say. MGMA Connexion, July 2009, Vol. 9, No. 6, p. 28. www.mgma.com/medpracticetoday
Mandatory adherence to the Red Flags Rule is delayed. Again.
So? So, why do medical practices have to be forced to do the right thing? Confirming patient identities is the right thing for so many reasons. Yes, it is one more thing in the long line of things that practices have had to fold into the mix of administrative tasks associated with, but not really related to, the care of patients. But it is the right thing to do.
Taking the role of the patient (because I am one), this is why I want my personal physician to adhere to the Red Flags Rule:
- I once had my driver’s license stolen and the thief or buyer of my information opened a cell phone account and ran up a $600 bill before I realized my driver’s license was gone. I got off easy, relatively speaking, but it took hours and hours on the phone to get everything straightened out. It was also frightening. I do not care to experience this again.
- If someone used my medical insurance to get care paid for, I wonder how I might find out. Maybe when my application for life insurance was turned down for illnesses or conditions I never had? Maybe when someone had run up a bill in my name and creditors came knocking? Maybe never, yet I could suffer the consequences without knowing the reasons why.
- I would wonder why my physician wasn’t implementing policies to protect me against identity theft. Is he too busy? Too lazy? Too complacent? What else is he lagging behind on?
Luckily for us, superstar Maria Todd has made implementation of the Red Flags Rule as painless as it can be. She is generously sharing her Identity Theft Prevention Program (ITPP) materials with managers who haven’t gotten their program launched yet. Click here for everything you need to get started.
So, why haven’t you implemented a program in your practice?
Doctors Slash Vaccines Due to High Cost (CNN Money)
Physicians are referring patients to the public health departments for vaccines because insurers won’t reimburse them for the cost of the vaccine, much less a profit to cover the overhead and labor. Physicians want to give high quality care to their patients, but why should they subsidize vaccines? Read about it here.
Ghostwriting: the Dirty Little Secret of Medical Publishing That Just Got Bigger (Public Library of Science)
Surprise! Pharmaceutical companies are writing journal articles and attaching physician names to them. What doesn’t pharma have a hand in today? Read it here.
InQuickER: The Answer to Making a Visit to the ER an In and Out Experience
InQuickER says that the average wait time in the Emergency Room is 3.2 hours. I recently spent 5 hours on a Sunday and 7 hours on a Monday in the ER, although I must say I was grateful that the ER was there. Atlanta-based InQuickER, launched in April of this year, announced the launch of a new service that allows patients with non life-threatening conditions to reduce their waiting time by calling ahead or signing in online. The price to patients is USD 24.99 per visit, and if the patient is not seen within 15 minutes of their “appointment” there is no charge for the ER treatment – no charge for the ER visit, no charge for diagnostic services, and no charge for supplies. Read more here.
Photo Credit: © Gbcimages | Dreamstime.com
Bill Moyers spoke with ex-insurance executive Wendell Potter recently, exploring why Potter left CIGNA and is now revealing insider information on how insurance companies maximize profits and influence lawmakers. Potter testified before Congress in June and writes and speaks on his now/new understanding of why insurance companies are lobbying ferociously against a single-payer system. He is now the Senior Fellow on Health Care with the Center for Media and Democracy, of which he says,
“One of the reasons I chose to become affiliated with the Center for Media and Democracy is because of the important work the organization does to expose often devious, dishonest and unethical PR practices that further the self interests of big corporations and special interest groups at the expense of the American people and the democratic principles this country was founded on.”
What I found most interesting is Potter’s discussion on how insurance companies dump businesses by raising premiums absurdly high for those companies whom they determine to have overly-expensive claims. Through the years I have had many meetings with physicians and staff discussing what increased premiums would mean for the practice.
In my earliest days, medical practices typically paid 100% of the employee (and sometimes the dependent) premium for very rich plans. As time went on, practices stopped paying for dependent coverage, started offering tiered plans (paying in full for the lowest tier), then increased co-pays and deductibles, then introduced cost-sharing, and now are offering high-deductible plans and health savings accounts. If I believe Wendell Potter, and I think I do, practice premiums have been raised year after year after year, not because the claims experience of the group was particularly high or off-ratio, but because there were other small businesses whose claim experience was lower, thereby affording the retention of more of the premium dollar by the insurance company.
It’s almost humorous to think of the time I’ve spent evaluating the administrative and customer service received from each insurance company, balancing the out-of-pocket dollars for the employees with the out-of-practice dollars paid by the physicians, trying to make each new yearly plan as palatable to everyone as possible, when offerings were priced in double digits to DISCOURAGE our business!
Possibly the most humorous (or depressing) of all situations is when I am simultaneously negotiating with an insurance company for health insurance for my staff, and negotiating with them for professional fees to provide care to their subscribers. Let us pray that insurance companies don’t decide to get into the food or sunshine business…
Bill Moyers’ Interview with Wendell Potter here.
Wendell Potter’s testimony to Congress here.
Wendell Potter writes about healthcare for the Center for Media and Democracy here.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) have become aware of a scam where perpetrators are sending faxes to physician offices posing as the Medicare carrier or Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC). The fax instructs physician staff to respond to a questionnaire to provide an account information update within 48 hours in order to prevent a gap in Medicare payments. The fax may have the CMS logo and/or the contractor logo to enhance the appearance of authenticity.
Medicare FFS providers, including physicians, non-physician practitioners, should be wary of this type of request. If you receive a request for information in the manner described above, please check with your contractor before submitting any information. Medicare providers should only send information to a Medicare contractor using the address found in the download section of the CMS.gov website found here or here.
Nextgov.com’s Bob Brewin reported June 8, 2009 that the Military Health System (MHS) has added social networking tools to its web portal serving 1.4 million people on active duty. The social networking tools are designed to connect with the 18-24 year-old demographic which makes up a large portion of the active duty personnel.
In addition to MySpace, FaceBook, and Twitter, Brewin notes:
The agency also uses sites such as YouTube to reach to the younger age group with videos on subjects ranging from prosthetic legs to golf therapy clinics for combat wounded veterans to a short profile of an occupational therapist who works with combat-wounded veterans.
The video on prosthetic legs had the most views last month. The second-most-viewed video was a 2008 video on the Bataan Memorial Death March at White Sands Missile Range, N.M., which features Army medic Staff Sgt. Matthew Sims, an indication that troops crave more than just medical information. Kilpatrick said MHS posted 66 videos on YouTube in May, with the top five viewed 3,785 times.
The portal has been available for about two years, but the Twitter feed was just launched in March.
The MHS web portal is impressive as is their stated mission: The Military Health System mission is to provide optimal Health Services in support of our nation’s military mission—anytime, anywhere.
In March 2009, PBS’s documentary program Frontline aired “Sick Around the World”, a look at healthcare in five capitalist democracies: the United Kingdom, Japan, Germany, Taiwan, and Switzerland. The documentary attempts to answer the question “What can the US learn from these countries?” In addition to watching the documentary online, you can read the transcript, or order the DVD ($55), and the website includes interviews, discussions, a teacher’s guide, reading and links, analysis (The Cost of Drugs Issue is enlightening) and more.
Also tale a look at “Sick Around America” from Frontline.
