Top Healthcare Leaders Examine EMR Adoption and Meaningful Use at 2010 Healthcare Forum

DENVER, CO–(Marketwire – September 9, 2010) –  The Breakaway Group will host an exclusive group of healthcare leaders, educators and innovators at the Inverness Hotel & Conference Center in Denver, from September 23-25, for the 2010 Healthcare Forum: Beyond Implementation, The New Leadership Agenda for Lasting EMR Adoption. Featuring a presentation by Wil Yu, Special Assistant, Innovations and Research, Strategic Health IT Advanced Research Projects, Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT, the central theme of the forum centers on the changing leadership agenda for three roles in healthcare: the CEO, CIO and Clinical Leadership.

Attendees and presenters include top leaders from Trinity Health, UT Medical Group, Arkansas Children’s Hospital, Baptist Health System and Hartford Health Care, and others. The 2010 Healthcare Forum continues the conversation launched in 2007 at the Healthcare Summit in Vail, Colo., where discussion focused on the challenge of how to treat an HIT implementation as more than a single event. 

“The Healthcare Forum provides a way for C-level executives to collaborate on finding successful ways to shift leadership priorities, to refocus organization efforts around EMR adoption,” said Charles Fred, chief executive officer of The Breakaway Group. “We are excited to offer the results of our research as a way to facilitate meaningful use and sustainable EMR adoption in the healthcare industry.” 

Recent Research Serves as Foundation for New Leadership Agenda
In the face of increased pressure to adopt new technology, healthcare executives have been led to reprioritize their everyday roles. Recent in-depth research from The Breakaway Group into the major barriers of EMR adoption and improved clinical outcomes (Beyond Implementation: A Prescription for Lasting EMR Adoption, 2010, Haugen, H., Woodside, J.) will serve as a foundation for the leadership agenda discussion. 

The authors, Dr. Heather Haugen and Dr. Jeffrey Woodside, M.D., conducted more than 18 months of research with leaders and healthcare organizations representing more than 3,200 physicians and 350 ambulatory sites. Through case studies and research, they examine why the transition to EMR is often overly costly, lengthy and frustrating.

“Despite the significant benefits of electronic medical records, healthcare organizations are not seeing the financial and clinical outcomes they had hoped for,” said Dr. Haugen, co-author of Beyond Implementation. “After investigating the outcomes of poor adoption and why physicians don’t get the full potential from EMR, we have identified one common thread. Too often, the primary focus is on go-live implementation when instead, this step should be the beginning of a sustained effort for the life of the application.”

About The Breakaway Group
The Breakaway Group helps healthcare providers quickly adopt new technology through a research-based method that uses innovative simulations and coaching to help improve patient care and safety. The firm’s unique approach to learning is based on the best-selling book “Breakaway” by CEO and Founder Charles Fred. For more information, visit www.thebreakawaygroup.com.