Patient Outcomes

The Regenstrief Institute, recognized as a healthcare IT leader, has won a contract to help the Social Security Administration and Indiana healthcare providers make disability case determinations faster and better.

A first-of-its-kind "Physician Sentiment Index," released on Thursday, shows that 59 percent of physicians believe that the quality of American medicine will drop in the next five years—and only 18 percent feel that it will improve.

The FDA is following up on health IT system malfunctions that could pose major patient safety risks.

Five research teams will receive $2.4 million in grants to study how patient-recorded observations of daily life can be used to treat chronic conditions. According to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the projects involve mobile phone applications, remote patient monitoring tools and personal health record systems.

Lancaster General Health in Lancaster, Pa., has released new data on the benefits of auto-programming and interoperability of infusion pumps, bar-code medication administration and EHRs that reveals improved safety and better workflow.

Thirty-four urban, eight children's and three rural hospitals have been named 2009 Leapfrog Top Hospitals, based on results from The Leapfrog Hospital Survey. Information technology is a key component to reaching Leapfrog's top 45 best hospitals for quality, a list the watchdog organization released Thursday.

Hundreds of diabetics in the Washington, D.C., area have adopted an online personal health record to communicate with their doctors and to manage their disease, according to Howard University Hospital. The hospital's Diabetes Treatment Center is one of the first healthcare providers in the region to integrate the hospital's electronic medical record with a patient-focused PHR to manage diabetes treatment online.