BOSTON—Big data have the potential to help improve clinical care, but it will be a while before benefits are realized, according to the panelists of an Oct. 25 presentation at the ninth annual Connected Health Symposium, hosted by Partners HealthCare.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has posted the 64 clinical quality measures that eligible professionals and hospitals will be required to report beginning in 2014.

The National Quality Forum (NQF) endorsed six new quality measures and reaffirmed its support for 10 existing quality measures related to the diagnosis and treatment breast and colon cancers.

The addition of written-prescription data to measures of adherence identified nearly twice as many nonadherent patients and markedly improved prediction of changes in low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, according to a study published in the October issue of The American Journal of Managed Care.

The Office of the Inspector General posted a video on its website covering the top priorities of its healthcare activities for 2013.

Advanced health information systems provide the big data necessary to merge healthcare business intelligence and clinical analytics in support of dual needs to reduce costs and improve the quality of care, but organizations are just beginning to realize its value. Representatives from Lakeland Regional Medical Center and Broward Health shared their early experiences during an Oct. 10 webinar hosted by the Institute for Health Technology Transformation.

Brown University has launched an Executive Master of Healthcare Leadership program, to begin in August 2013. The 16-month program targets high-level, experienced clinicians, executives and senior administrators who have significant responsibility in the healthcare industry.