AHDI and MTIA Submit Comments for Ways and Means Committee Hearing

On Tuesday the Ways and Means Health Subcommittee held a hearing on provisions within the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act for implementation of health information technology. AHDI and MTIA submitted comments and questions (“Efforts to Promote the Adoption and Meaningful Use of Health Information Technology") that reflect the necessity for health IT adoption to preserve narrative documentation of patient encounters and the human intelligence factor while maintaining secure, accurate, and efficient measures for capturing health information.

ACE 2010 Presentation Highlight: Donald Mon, PhD

HIT and Interoperability: The Important Role of Medical Transcription
Thursday, August 5
CE Credit: 1 CM

This presentation will provide a review of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) and the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clincal Health (HITECH) Act and how it sets the stage for health IT and interoperability. Dr. Mon will highlight the areas in which the medical transcription sector can play a critical role. Read Dr. Mon’s biography.

Download PDF Registration Form
Register Online

Registration Extended Through Today--Industry Trends: HIT Adoption and Medical Transcription

Date: July 7, 2010
Presenter: Jim Tate
Time: 10 AM PDT / 11 AM MDT / 12 PM CDT / 1 PM EDT
Duration: 1 Hour
Registration Close: July 5, 2010
CE Given: 1 PD

A review of current HIT industry trends affecting MTSOs and the path forward into the age of EHR incentives, Meaningful Use, and HIT adoption.

Jim Tate brings a unique combination of skills to the eHealth field. His direct experience encompasses both clinical and technological environments. Jim is an experienced project manager in the implementation of both EHR and Practice Management systems and has led numerous implementations in the United States as well as China.

Register now!

Webinar Highlight: Industry Trends: HIT Adoption and Medical Transcription

Date: July 7, 2010
Presenter: Jim Tate
Time: 10 AM PDT / 11 AM MDT / 12 PM CDT / 1 PM EDT
Duration: 1 Hour
Registration Close: July 1, 2010
CE Given: 1 PD

A review of current HIT industry trends affecting MTSOs and the path forward into the age of EHR incentives, Meaningful Use, and HIT adoption.

Jim Tate brings a unique combination of skills to the eHealth field. His direct experience encompasses both clinical and technological environments. Jim is an experienced project manager in the implementation of both EHR and Practice Management systems and has led numerous implementations in the United States as well as China.

Register now!

Webinar Registration Closes Today for "MT Intelligence: The Value of MTs in HIT Implementations"

Date: June 29, 2010
Presenter: Gary David, PhD
Time: 10 AM PDT / 11 AM MDT / 12 PM CDT / 1 PM EDT
Duration: 1 Hour
Registration Close: June 24, 2010
CE Given: 1 PD

With the continuing development of new medical record technologies and the constant pressures to cut costs, the question that keeps being asked is, “What is the value of medical transcription?" While it often is assumed that medical transcription can be cut without any negative impact on documentation, this premise has not been sufficiently tested. Drawing on primary research and a review of other studies regarding physician record-keeping practices, this webinar will examine what value medical transcription provides in creating quality and useful healthcare documentation. The webinar will cover the importance of perception in creating value, the area of behavioral economics, and messaging strategies for the medical transcription industry.

Gary David’s research focuses on: 1) examinations of workplace practices, 2) ethnic identity and community, and 3) intercultural communication. He has conducted research primarily in workplace settings where intercultural/intergroup interactions take place on a regular basis. Past studies include the analysis of interactions between workers and customers in Arab-owned convenience stores in Metropolitan Detroit. Present projects include examining the nature of collaborative activity in multicultural worksites, the impact of speech recognition technology and electronic medical records on healthcare, the implementation of enterprise systems on workplaces, and how co-workers build a collaborative relationship through engaging in workplace practices. He has done extensive research on Arab-American communities, identity formation, and medial portrayals. Dr. David is the Administrator of an online discussion group dedicated to Arab-American studies.

Register now!

This Week's Webinar Highlight -- Using Natural Language Processing to Achieve Meaningful Use and Promote HIT Adoption

Presenter: Kyle Silvestro
Date: June 10
Time: 10 AM PDT / 11 AM MDT / 12 PM CDT / 1 PM EDT
CEC Given: 1 TW
Registration Close: June 7


This webinar will review current HIT industry trends affecting MTSOs and the path forward into the age of EHR incentives, "meaningful use," and HIT adoption. This will be followed by an introduction in NLP (Natural Language Processing), a leading-edge technology, and how it is currently being used to enable MTSOs to provide solutions to their clinets to address the "meaningful use" requirement and drive secondary data use.

Register Now!

Need CECs? "MT Intelligence: The Value of MTs in HIT Implementations" Webinar Open for Registration

Date: June 29, 2010
Presenter: Gary David, PhD
Time: 10 AM PDT / 11 AM MDT / 12 PM CDT / 1 PM EDT
Duration: 1 Hour
Registration Close: June 24, 2010
Cost: $20 Members / $30 Nonmembers
CE Given: 1 PD

With the continuing development of new medical record technologies and the constant pressures to cut costs, the question that keeps being asked is, “What is the value of medical transcription?" While it often is assumed that medical transcription can be cut without any negative impact on documentation, this premise has not been sufficiently tested. Drawing on primary research and a review of other studies regarding physician record-keeping practices, this webinar will examine what value medical transcription provides in creating quality and useful healthcare documentation. The webinar will cover the importance of perception in creating value, the area of behavioral economics, and messaging strategies for the medical transcription industry.

Gary David’s research focuses on: 1) examinations of workplace practices, 2) ethnic identity and community, and 3) intercultural communication. He has conducted research primarily in workplace settings where intercultural/intergroup interactions take place on a regular basis. Past studies include the analysis of interactions between workers and customers in Arab-owned convenience stores in Metropolitan Detroit. Present projects include examining the nature of collaborative activity in multicultural worksites, the impact of speech recognition technology and electronic medical records on healthcare, the implementation of enterprise systems on workplaces, and how co-workers build a collaborative relationship through engaging in workplace practices. He has done extensive research on Arab-American communities, identity formation, and medial portrayals. Dr. David is the Administrator of an online discussion group dedicated to Arab-American studies.

Register now!

Hot Topic Webinar Now Open for Registration - Using Natural Language Processing to Achieve Meaningful Use and Promote HIT Adoption

Date: June 10, 2010
Presenter: Kyle Silvestro
Time: 10 AM PDT / 11 AM MDT / 12 PM CDT / 1 PM EDT
Duration: 1 Hour
Registration Close: June 7, 2010
Cost: $20 Members / $30 Nonmembers
CE Given: 1 TW


A review of current HIT industry trends affecting MTSOs and the path forward into the age of EHR incentives, "meaningful use," and HIT adoption. This will be followed by an introduction in NLP (Natural Language Processing), a leading-edge technology, and how it is currently being used to enable MTSOs to provide solutions to their clinets to address the "meaningful use" requirement and drive secondary data use.

Kyle Silvestro currently serves as the Vice President of Corporate Strategy and Business Development for NLP International, a company that focuses on natural language processing for healthcare and life sciences. Kyle has been in the healthcare industry for the last 9 years. He gained his extensive background in Medical Informatics and Semantic Technologies, specifically Natural Language Processing, while at Language and Computing. As the VP of Sales and Business Development, Kyle worked with industry leaders in transcription, quality, revenue cycle management, interoperability, computer assisted coding, and electronic medical records, in the adoption of Natural Language Processing. Prior to Language and Computing, he was a partner in a management consulting firm that specialized in early to mid stage companies. During that time, he ran the North American Sales program for a clinical criteria vendor focused on patient quality, medical necessity and case management. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from California State University, Chico where he currently resides.

Register now!

Registration Ends Monday for Must-see Webinar: The Medical Data Exchange powered by Verizon – Laying the Groundwork for Digital Exchange

Date: April 15
Presenters: Robin Daigh, Blake Martin & Peter Tippett, MD, PhD
Time: 10 AM PST / 11 PM MST / 12 PM CST / 1 PM EST
Duration: 1 Hour
Registration Close: April 12, 2010
Cost: $20 Members / $30 Non-members
CE Given: 1 TW

This webinar will give an overview and update on the medical data exchange, private, secure, network-based platform for the distribution and sharing of medical transcription and related medical records in electronic form. Founding transcription members, MD-IT and Sten-Tel, and developers of the exchange, Verizon Business, will be presenting an overview/roadmap on where the exchange is going and how this can enhance your current business. We invite you to learn about the advancements in the medical transcription service organizations field and how you can become involved.

Robin Daigh currently serves as vice president of marketing and business development for MD-IT, a national company that specializes in providing medical documentation software and service for physicians and ambulatory care clinics. Her current job responsibilities include working with ambulatory practices to make an effective transition from paper-based to electronic medical records, as well as establishing collaborative relationships with EMRs and other HIT vendors. She currently serves as co-chair for the MTIA/AHDI task force on EMR integration.

Blake Martin has 16+ years' experience working in information technology in health care, manufacturing, and publishing. He has held positions including software and web applications developer, help desk manager, business analyst, operations manager, and currently is the CIO and business technology director for Sten-Tel.

Peter Tippett, MD, PhD, is the chief medical officer of Verizon and vice president of innovation & technology. His responsibility includes security and healthcare solutions. Tippett is world-renowned in the security arena as he is credited with creating one of the first anti-virus products that was later renamed to Norton AntiVirus. He has advised the Joint Chiefs of Staff on cyber warfare, has served on presidential advisory councils, and has testified in front of congressional panels and committees such as the HIT Standards Committee.

Click here to register!

Must-see Webinar Open for Registration: The Medical Data Exchange powered by Verizon – Laying the Groundwork for Digital Exchange

Date: April 15
Presenters: Robin Daigh, Blake Martin & Peter Tippett, MD, PhD
Time: 10 AM PST / 11 PM MST / 12 PM CST / 1 PM EST
Duration: 1 Hour
Registration Close: April 12, 2010
Cost: $20 Members / $30 Non-members
CE Given: 1 TW

This webinar will give an overview and update on the medical data exchange, private, secure, network-based platform for the distribution and sharing of medical transcription and related medical records in electronic form. Founding transcription members, MD-IT and Sten-Tel, and developers of the exchange, Verizon Business, will be presenting an overview/roadmap on where the exchange is going and how this can enhance your current business. We invite you to learn about the advancements in the medical transcription service organizations field and how you can become involved.

Robin Daigh currently serves as vice president of marketing and business development for MD-IT, a national company that specializes in providing medical documentation software and service for physicians and ambulatory care clinics. Her current job responsibilities include working with ambulatory practices to make an effective transition from paper-based to electronic medical records, as well as establishing collaborative relationships with EMRs and other HIT vendors. She currently serves as co-chair for the MTIA/AHDI task force on EMR integration.

Blake Martin has 16+ years' experience working in information technology in health care, manufacturing, and publishing. He has held positions including software and web applications developer, help desk manager, business analyst, operations manager, and currently is the CIO and business technology director for Sten-Tel.

Peter Tippett, MD, PhD, is the chief medical officer of Verizon and vice president of innovation & technology. His responsibility includes security and healthcare solutions. Tippett is world-renowned in the security arena as he is credited with creating one of the first anti-virus products that was later renamed to Norton AntiVirus. He has advised the Joint Chiefs of Staff on cyber warfare, has served on presidential advisory councils, and has testified in front of congressional panels and committees such as the HIT Standards Committee.

Click here to register!

AHDI and MTIA Score an Advocacy Success

Last week, AHDI and MTIA members proved yet again that grassroots membership involvement is key to the success of our advocacy efforts. Members’ calls, emails, and faxes to their Representatives helped defeat an amendment that would have eliminated from the Small Business Financing and Investment Act of 2009 (H.R. 3854) loans for which our members would be eligible and could use to purchase health information technologies. The amendment was withdrawn, and the bill passed in the House of Representatives and now moves to the Senate. This success demonstrated not only the value of membership participation in advocacy, but also the value of working with the Dewey Square Group (DSG). DSG alerted us to the amendment, helped us craft our official statement to legislators, and coordinated delivery of that statement to every member of the House of Representatives. Thank you for your continued support of our associations’ advocacy efforts and stay tuned for future developments concerning the bill.