HIMSS Day 3... Day???

I have been on the road for a solid week now as most of us in the industry know kind of forgetting what my house looks like and hopeful that my boys remember my name when they see me.

Yesterday – I was able to enjoy the Cedars Sinai & Voalte presentation.  Most of you know I have an affinity towards Voalte..yes, yes, I am vendor agnostic but there are products that are disruptive, innovative, and extremely functional for nursing that shift the paradigm.  Or maybe it’s just the pink pants…..

The presentation was great – I tweeted it out and saw lots of people liking the thoughts.  Darren Dworkin is a real thought leader – I have had the pleasure of working with him and his phenomenal staff and have experienced firsthand their ability to grasp a concept and mobilize it (no pun intended).    Dworkin was humble in the revelation that Cedars has tried a number of different technologies to really find the right fits for their organization that also fit the fast changing IT infrastructure.  For communications devices they have landed on a more “consumer” type product – the iphone.    They have deployed more than 1000 devices.  I was most impressed with the statement that nursing came to him and said “we don’t want a batman belt” and IT listened to the end users and sought out a product that would not only be forward thinking but serve the nurses well.  He said that nurses don’t come up and tell you how much they love EMR but they do come up and tell you what a difference this device has made. 

My biggest disappointment yesterday was on the statements made by Epic.  I have debated whether or not to post anything (when you are a startup it’s better not to ruffle too many feathers…which I tend to do with Cerner on occasion.... ) but for the few of you who read my blog you know it’s my opinion. 

I didn’t like their statement.  I understand they got bad press because they weren’t sitting there on stage from the beginning.  I also understand that it appears that they are being strong armed into the party – twitter and speakers are brutal and love a good bit of drama and gossip..we are all grown ups and can see it.  I also understand how they could take this as a competitive movement…. 

But OH MY WORD…CAN IT JUST BE ABOUT THE PATIENT FOR ONE DAY IN HEALTH IT?! 

Why not say – we weren’t invited to the party but we think this is an idea worth exploring because we believe in patient care.   Then take a look and if it’s not a great idea – make a statement then.  The point is can't they just sit down and talk about it.....somehow they got Neal to sit next to Jonathan Bush (which was visually awkward) but they were there willing to talk. 

I don’t know Neal personally – I don’t know the other men on the stage (I met Jonathan Bush…and wow still not sure what to think of him)   I have to believe – that somewhere each of these men have some part of them is good intentioned enough to believe that CommonWell is really what it says for the Common wellness of patients…….

I am weary – weary – of going to events and seeing so little about the patient – seeing the vendors latch on to analytics because it’s the next hot topic and it will “save money” and it will “improve your efficiency” – they need something new to sell.  I just want them to know you won’t be able to really love analytics  and serve the hospital well until you step back and see the people in the numbers. 

Ok, soap box complete for Day whatever it is....