The machines never died / We will be vindicated, sang Frodus frontman Shelby Cinca in  the song The Awesome Machine.

ORLANDO, Fla. -- In the three-month period from Sept. 1 to Dec. 1, 2009, more than 567,000 medication alerts sounded at Sisters of Mercy Health System in St. Louis. Its no wonder alert fatigue had set in among physicians. During a poster presentation at HIMSS11, Physician Informaticist Michael Hunt, DO, explained revisions made to the medication alert process to trim the frequency of the alerts, helping physicians to better tune in when the alerts sounded.

Oracle has bolstered its Healthcare Master Person Index (MPI) with support for Integrating the Healthcare Enterprise (IHE) clinical use case profiles that enable healthcare enterprises and health information exchanges (HIEs) to create, manage and share EHRs.

Health Language (Booth 1821) is demonstrating three medical terminology products that enable hospitals and health systems to meet Stage 1 meaningful use measures, during the 2011 HIMSS show Feb. 20 to 24 in Orlando, Fla.

Clinical Architecture (Booth 2689) is displaying its new Symedical Server during the 2011 HIMSS convention Feb. 20 to 24 in Orlando, Fla.

MedHost (Booth 3831) is exhibiting OpCenter, its inpatient flow and bed-management support tool, at the HIMSS conference and exhibition Feb. 20 to 24 in Orlando, Fla.

Since interoperability and integration are at the core of nearly every other aspect of health IT, I hope to spend any spare time at HIMSS11 next week in the Interoperability Showcase area. It promises to be a larger part of HIMSS than ever before, with expanded exhibit hours and more connected vendors and agencies as well.

Ultrasound fusion imaging-guided biopsies for detecting bone and soft tissue cancers are safe, effective and as accurate as CT-guided biopsy, according to a study presented at the 2011 American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) annual meeting, held in San Diego from Feb. 15 to Feb. 18.