Changing of the guard

As we go to press with this issue, the health IT community is abuzz from the announcement that Farzad Mostashari, MD, PhD, will step down as national coordinator of health IT. He cited this period between rulemaking cycles as a good time for a switch in ONC leadership. 

There will much debate about who should step into the ONC chief shoes next. Some have noted the deep bench of talent already at the ONC from which to draw the next leader. That group has the added advantage of already having experience combating the wide range of criticism facing the Meaningful Use program. One thing is certain, however; if the federal government wants to maintain the momentum regarding EHR adoption, information exchange, interoperability standards and other health IT achievements, a new leader will need to fill the role in short order.

This month, Evan Godt wrote the cover story on cancer care informatics and how the health IT workflow of nuclear medicine is working to improve outcomes. Organizations are facing challenges in allowing multiple clinicians to access imaging studies and reports stored on PACS solutions but interoperability workarounds are helping—for now. Learn more starting on page 6.

My story on the role home healthcare focuses on how the field is handling the issues affecting the rest of healthcare: reimbursement, interoperability, standards, care coordination, patient engagement and more. The advances that technology has allowed will be exciting to watch develop in coming years. Read about the efforts some of the largest home healthcare providers in the country are making to further their cause on page 26.

Laura Pedulli looks at health information exchange sustainability in her article on page 12. Increasing participation is the most critical driver of future success and organizations are offering training, setting up exchanges as data hubs and more to demonstrate value to participants. 

This issue also includes an article that shares the thoughts of several authors of tomes on healthcare innovation. While that term has been thrown about over the past couple of years, these writers cover detailed strategies and tools for fostering a culture of innovation, especially as we try to manage healthcare reform. There is no shortage of thoughts on this topic—learn more beginning on page 24.

Health IT continues to present a rapidly changing, evolving landscape. Here’s to much more as we await the announcement of the next national coordinator.