For the first time, all Veterans Affairs Department’s medical centers have placed on the “Most Wired” hospitals list, which annually ranks the effectiveness with which hospitals explore and implement new and innovative health information technology.
The list is released by Hospitals & Health Networks, in partnership with the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives, McKeeson, and the American Hospital Association. A total of 1,713 hospitals were surveyed.
“This year’s Most Wired organizations exemplify progress through innovation,” Rich Umbdenstock, president and CEO of the American Hospital Association, said in a statement. “The hospital field can learn from these outstanding organizations ways that IT can help to improve efficiency.”
The past year has been a successful one for VA healthcare IT, and advancements made to the VA Blue Button program have improved patient access to medical information, the department said.
According to VA, its telehealth technologies have also been revolutionary in providing better access to health care for veterans. VA said it has made significant improvements in the deployment of asset-tracking devices and the use of technology to better link specialty-care providers to primary-care physicians in rural areas.
“This recognition and this year’s 10th anniversary of the introduction of VA’s Personal Health Record, My HealtheVet, indicate we’ve made great strides in accomplishing our goals,” Dr. Robert Petzel, VA’s undersecretary for health, said in a statement. “And we’re eager to build on this progress.”
