ONC announces 15 spring HIT fellows

The Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC) has announced the selection of 15 provider and administrator champions to join the Health IT Fellows Program. This class increases the HIT Fellows program's ranks to 50 provider and administrator champions from 28 states.

The Spring 2014 HIT Fellows are the following:

• Colin Banas, MD, of Richmond, Va.
• Becky Blevins of Stanford, Ky.
• Kacey Bolton, RN, of London, Ky.
• Sandra Brown of Pine Bluff, Ark.
• Timothy Burdick, MD, of Scappoose, Ore.
• Jacqueline Delmont, MD, of Freeport, N.Y.
• Frank Floyd, MD, of Johnson City, N.Y.
• James Gould, MD, of Paducah, Ky.
• Chad Jensen of Anchorage, Alaska
• Sarah Churchill Llamas, JD, of Austin, Texas
• Peggy Patch of Davenport, Iowa
• Michele Reed, MD of Rosedale, N.Y.
• Margot Savoy, MD, of Wilmington, Del.
• James Spillane of Anchorage, Alaska
• Jo Lynne Varner of Little Rock, Ark.

The Health IT Fellows are primary care providers and administrators representing a range of organization setting types including small practices, large practices, critical access hospitals, rural clinics and tribal health organizations. They have been divided into the following three tracks which correspond with the National Quality Strategy:

• Patient Safety (NQS priority 1)
• Million Hearts (NQS priority 4)
• Leveraging Meaningful Use in Community (NQS priority  5)

All tracks are responsible for defining their goals and objectives as fellows and are supported by ONC subject matter experts.