Healthcare IT Archives

Failure is Not an Option

by Barry P Chaiken, MD | Jan 22, 2011 | Archives

Healthcare could learn much from Gene Kranz. A recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom along with other mission scientists and crew, Kranz led his Tiger Team of experts at NASA in its successful effort to bring three astronauts on a perilous 500,000 mile...

Show Me the Money

by Barry P Chaiken, MD | Dec 7, 2010 | Archives

The most important lesson in medical care comes from a bank robber who spent more than half his life in jail and stole more than $2 million. Sutton’s law, named after the one of the most prolific bank robbers in history, Willie Sutton, states that when diagnosing, one...

A True Tipping Point?

by Barry P Chaiken, MD | Sep 20, 2010 | Archives

From the signing of healthcare reform legislation to the release of final rules for “meaningful use,” events in 2010 are driving toward a true transformation in the delivery of healthcare in the United States. Optimism is high that we will finally see tangible...

Regulate HIT Tools as Medical Devices? Yes and No

by Barry P Chaiken, MD | May 27, 2010 | Archives

The Food and Drug Administration announced it is reconsidering its previous decision to exclude health information technology (HIT) tools from regulation as medical devices. When evaluated in the late 1990s, this decision made common sense. At that time HIT consisted...

Health IT’s Glue

by Barry P Chaiken, MD | May 27, 2010 | Archives

With the march toward deployment of healthcare IT in full swing, concern mounts about obtaining the full value from the investment. Spending $19 billion on health IT tools does not guarantee patient safety, enhanced quality, improved access to care, or reduced cost....