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Challenged With The Lack Of Solutions Designed For Systems

CIO Review

Deanna Wise, EVP & CIO, Dignity Health

Deanna Wise, EVP & CIO, Dignity Health

Challenges in technology to meet enterprise needs in 2013 and expectations

With reformed Healthcare and accountable care organization coming in to place, we are challenged with the lack of solutions designed for systems. My expectation for the industry is the ability to have the systems change the way healthcare reform is changing; to have the full continuum of care and cost model and to have them in place immediately.

The areas in business environment where solutions do not yet exist or not up to the mark, and which if existed, would've made job easier

When you look at solutions that we are trying to deal with, it becomes concerning who is going to use it if we make the patient, owner of the data. The aging patients are not accustomed to use computers and there are people who cannot afford to have these devices in their home. Then you have other patients, who are extremely knowledgeable and good about mobile computing.

Manner in which data is used to head off problems and complications before they happen

Re-monitor trending information about compliance and medication of bar code scanning: By preventing medication errors on the bed side, we found med air reduction by 40 percent. We also use data through EDE and monitor bottle necks in order to make sure we get patients into the emergency department as quickly as possible. In addition to that we are in a process to track variables that leads to re-admission.

Thoughts on how IT strategic planning supports organization-wide efforts to improve quality, cut costs and improve efficiency in the health care sector

We have spent a lot of time aligning with our business partners, their focus and understanding the changing dynamics of healthcare.

I think so many times IT is not brought to the planning table. But we are sitting at the table in the beginning looking at how to get business forward.

Technology Trends Impacting Enterprise Business Environment

It’s all about Mobile computing and I think it’s mainly about how physicians coming straight out of schools are running the data in real time and everybody is walking around with iPads or other devices. The competition is coming in as everybody wants the data real time.

Adding to it, cloud technologies are having a big impact on healthcare sector.

My roles and responsibilities as a CIO

CIO is much more integrated into the business. In the past it was the businesses designing or strategy but now it’s more strategic and more business focused than the ‘implementer’ CIOs in the past.

Lessons learned and advice for fellow CIOs

It is all about planning, doing the gap analysis, and changing the work flow when you deploy systems. When people skimp on cost and say that we don’t have enough time and don’t have enough money to train and test effectively, it bites the people on backend. I think it’s all about partnering with the business and designing the solutions.

The other thing is having a business analysis. It’s not an IT implementation but the business is deploying an EMR (Electronic Medical Record) as it helps prop up the business process and leave leaders time to lead their organizations. CIO should be acting like COO behind the scenes in order to facilitate the major deployments and change impact in these organizations.

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