Last week most of our healthcare team, including me, Lynne Dunbrack and Janice Young, headed to Atlanta for the HIMSS 2010 event.  The change in energy at the event from 2009 was apparent from the moment we arrived.  While the atmosphere at HIMSS 2009 was laced with cautious optimism as providers examined the HIT provisions of the recently-published American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, it was clear in the first hours of HIMSS 2010 that the pace had shifted and action and investment were underway. 

The hotspots of activity at HIMSS 2010 were clearly the EHR/EMR and HIE-related topics, and the booths of vendors with EHR/EMR and HIE applications, hardware, software and services to support EHR/EMR.  While there was definitely energy around EHR/EMR in 2009, the emphasis had definitely broadened to include HIEs in 2010, particularly as more of the meaningful use requirements had emerged over the course of the year to entail deeper requirements in the data exchange area that many expected at this time last year.  Some of the key trends I noticed coming up again and again in our HIMSS conversations:

• Actionable analytics continue to be a key focus for EHR/EMR implementers who wish to make the most of their newly-available electronic data for use in operational, clinical and quality decisions, as well as to assess performance on the meaningful use quality measures.  Analytics offerings abounded at HIMSS, and those shown at HIMSS 2010 included new embedded analytics offerings from EHR/EMR vendors, offerings from HIE vendors who are aggregating data across providers such as Intersystems DeepSee, and MEDai, as well as standalone offerings from HP, Oracle, IBM and Microsoft.  
• Analytics are also emerging as a way to help look at provider performance with the process aspects of meaningful use. Interesting process performance tools were seen embedded in the system performance applications from Compuware, as well as many EHRs including the new service—based CareTracker from Ingenix.  Eclipsys' new announcement with Microsoft's Amalga UIS is also promising for customers looking for this functionality.
• Shortening and simplifying the implementation process are important for ambulatory providers, and numerous ambulatory EHR/EMR vendors mentioned new emphasis on, and programs to support the implementation and configuration process, including Allscripts and eClinicalWorks.
• Connectivity and data exchange were top of mind as a critical component of meaningful use.  HIE technologies abounded at HIMSS, and relationships between HIE and EHR/EMR vendors continue to flourish.  Look for IDC-HI's forthcoming HIE Vendor Short List to learn more about HIE technologies. 

Did you miss connecting with IDC Health Insights at HIMSS?  Feel free to contact me to set up a post-HIMSS briefing … jhanover@idc.com