We are drowning in information, but starved for knowledge. -Futurist John Naisbitt

Although many U.S. regions escaped significant snowfall this season, experiencing relatively mild winters, the same cannot be said for the landscape of health IT. In fact, it seems to be in the midst of the perfect storm.

Nurses are the largest workforce in the U.S., so their role in health IT is essential in reaching the potential benefits. Different organizations have incorporated nursing informaticists in a variety of ways.

Increasing efforts to collect, store and analyze data in every way are making data warehouses more important. An enterprise data strategy can help with effective and successful implementation.

Usability is a word that pops up as people start to get serious with any technology. Discussions with the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and colleagues from across the U.S. indicate that usability in all dimensions is one of the greatest next steps for us to successfully incorporate health IT into the practice of medicine.

The American Medical Informatics Association (AMIA) has appointed Kevin Fickenscher, MD, as president and CEO. Fickenscher will replace Ted Shortliffe, MD, PhD, who announced his decision to step down from the position several months ago.

The National Physical Laboratory (NPL), a national measurement institute in Teddington, England, has purchased a Flexitron afterloader from Nucletron, an Elekta company.

Sirolimus-eluting stents (SES) proved to be more effective than cutting balloon angioplasty for treatment of drug-eluting stent (DES) in-stent restenosis for focal lesions and are comparable to everolimus-eluting stents for treatment of diffuse DES in-stent restenosis, according to a study published March 20 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.