Composite Health Care System (CHCS)

See the following -

VistA & 'Open' EHR Systems spread across West Virginia & Appalachia

The installation and use of 'open source' electronic health record (EHR) systems have continued to spread across West Virginia and many other states across the U.S.  See the map of healthcare facilities running some variant of the open source VistA electronic health record (EHR) system in West Virginia and oth Read More »

VistA & Open Source EHR Systems in Florida and the Caribbean

The installation and use of 'open source' electronic health record (EHR) systems have continued to spread across Florida and many other islands and nations across the Caribbean.  See the map of healthcare facilities running some variant of the open source VistA electronic health record (EHR) system in the regi Read More »

VistA and 'Open Source' EHR Systems in Kansas & the Great Plains States

The installation and use of 'open source' electronic health record (EHR) systems have continued to spread across Kansas and other states across the U.S.  See the map of healthcare facilities running some variant of the open source VistA electronic health record (EHR) system in Kansas and other states in the Great Plains. Read More »

VistA and 'Open' EHR Systems Spreading Across Asia & Pacific Rim Nations

The installation and use of 'open source' electronic health record (EHR) systems have continued to spread from the U.S. to other countries around the world.  See the map of healthcare facilities running some variant of the open source VistA electronic health record (EHR) system in nations across Asia and the Pacific Rim. Read More »

VistA and Other 'Open Source' EHR Systems in New York & New England States

The installation and use of 'open source' electronic health record (EHR) systems have continued to spread across New York and many other states across the U.S., especially in the New England region of the country. See the map of healthcare facilities running some variant of the open source VistA electronic health record (EHR) system in New York and other New England states. Read More »

VistA and Related 'Open Source' EHR Systems in use Across California

The installation and use of 'open source' electronic health record (EHR) systems have continued to spread across California and many other states across the U.S.  See the map of healthcare facilities running some variant of the open source VistA electronic health record (EHR) system in California. We keep learning of more sites from members at the WorldVistA meeting taking place this week at George Mason University. Read More »

VistA is Going Places, and Also Staying Put

The Veterans Health Administration's hospital software, VistA, is a computing legend. Few pieces of software have become the subject of a popular book (Best Care Anywhere), won repeated awards for their usability, or been credited with a 180-degree turn-around in an organization's quality. But VistA is getting long in the tooth, and many--including now the VA itself--are questioning whether it's time for something new.The speculations aren't just about VistA. They extend to all health care software of that generation, including the industry's leading electroinc health record (EHR) system--Epic--and the venerable Intermountain Healthcare.

Read More »

VistA Marketing Ramps Up in Advance of DoD EHR Award

Molly Bernhart Walker | FierceGovernmentIT | January 14, 2015

A marketing campaign aimed at raising the profile of the Veterans Affairs Department's open source electronic health record is in full swing. A non-profit group founded through a VA contract to advance the department's Veterans Health Information Systems and Technology Architecture has stood up a website, Twitter account and LinkedIn group to promote VistA. Read More »

VistA, AHLTA, CHCS: An Evolving Alternative Roadmap to the Future

The obstacles to continue moving U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) in a common direction with regard to their clinical IT systems are fairly well-known. Having made that statement, it may therefore seem strange that this blog suggests that a conceptually simple technical approach may have the potential to untie the Gordian knot that has defeated many previous efforts. The proposed approach is not some yet-to-be-developed technology that exists only on Powerpoint slides. In fact, the proposed approach is based on technology that has already been validated by the-powers-that-be – at taxpayer expense – and the official conclusion in the official report on file at the DoD(1) states unambiguously and explicitly that the technology works as claimed is scalable, and can handle very large M/Caché systems.

Read More »

Who Needs An EHR? Some Defense Hospital Emergency Rooms Still Use Paper

Bob Brewin | Nextgov.com | October 2, 2014

Despite investing billions of dollars in information technology over the past decade, three out of seven military hospitals surveyed in a review of the Military Health System reported their emergency rooms still use paper records...

Read More »