WASHINGTON, Aug. 31 /PRNewswire/ -- Health information technology thought leaders will converge on Washington, DC Sept. 7-9 to take part in the second annual Health Information Technology Summit (http://www.hitsummit.com) hosted by the eHealth Initiative. The summit will bring together global, national, state, and regional stakeholders to discuss the current menu of emerging policy changes relevant to eHealth Initiative and its goals. More than 900 attendees are expected to attend the historic three-day conference.
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Healthcare information technology is at the center of a number of public and private sector efforts to improve healthcare quality, safety and efficiency. There are currently several high-profile bills before Congress regarding healthcare IT, as well as a number of policy changes on tap within the Bush administration. The Summit's slate of high-level speakers reflects the heat and light now directed at healthcare IT.
Summit discussions will also be informed by the August 29 release of the eHI Foundation's "Emerging Trends and Issues in Health Information Exchange," a report illuminating findings from the survey of 109 health information exchange initiatives. The report reveals a rapid surge in the number and maturation of these state, regional and community efforts, which are rapidly advancing through the steps necessary to electronically exchange health information to support improvements in patient care. It also brings to light the common barriers they face and approaches more advanced efforts are using to overcome challenges such as navigating health information sharing policies that ensure public trust and creating business models that will result in ongoing sustainable operations.
Mike Leavitt, secretary of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services, will deliver the special keynote address at the Thursday, Sept. 8 morning session. As governor of Utah, Leavitt was among the first in leadership to recognize the importance of information technology to improve healthcare safety, quality and efficiency.
Among the keynote speakers are several from the public sector, including David J. Brailer, MD, PhD, national HIT coordinator, Department of Health and Human Services; Richard Granger, director general of information technology for England's National Health Service; Mark McClellan, MD, PhD, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services; Carolyn M. Clancy, MD, director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; Senator Tom Carper (D-DE); Virginia Governor Mark R. Warner; and a bi-partisan panel of Congressional staff providing leadership on healthcare and HIT issues within both the House and the Senate.
Other keynote speakers are William R. Braithwaite, MD, PhD, known as "Doctor HIPAA," who serves as senior vice president and chief medical officer for the eHealth Initiative; Francois de Brantes, program leader of health care initiatives, GE Corporate Health Care and director of Bridges to Excellence; Mark Frisse, MD, MBA, MSc, director, Regional Health Initiatives, Vanderbilt Center for Better Health; John Glaser, PhD, vice president and chief information officer of Partners Healthcare System; Allan Korn, MD, FACP, senior vice president of clinical affairs, Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association; Janet Marchibroda, chief executive officer of the eHealth Initiative and its Foundation; J. Marc Overhage, MD, PhD, chief executive officer, Indiana Health Information Exchange; and John Tooker, MD, MBA, FACP, executive vice president and chief executive officer, American College of Physicians.
"The summit program is exceptional, mirroring the high level of interest we are now experiencing with the intersection of information technology and quality," Marchibroda said. In addition to the keynote addresses, the Summit will feature specialized breakout learning tracks led by national and regional leaders who have used information technology in an innovative way to address healthcare challenges.
"The role of healthcare IT as a healing element for America's broken healthcare system has moved to the center of the public policy agenda," she said. "The Summit features the leaders who are implementing this change on the ground, so it follows that we have seen an intense interest in the conference and its proceedings."
The Health Information Technology Summit will be held at Washington, DC's Renaissance Hotel. For more information or to register, go to http://www.HITSummit.com.
About eHI
The eHealth Initiative and its Foundation are independent, non-profit affiliated organizations whose missions are the same: to drive improvement in the quality, safety and efficiency of healthcare through information and information technology. For more information, go to http://www.ehealthinitiative.org.
CONTACT: Karla Hurter of Health2 Resources, +1-703-319-0957, khurter@health2resources.com, for eHealth Initiative.
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