News

VA Releases Custodial Agent RFP

On Friday the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) released its long-anticipated Request for Proposal (RFP) for an open source custodial agent. This custodial agent will manage the open source EHR ecosystem for VA's VistA system.  Read More »

VeHU Training Site Pilot Opens April 26

Huge news for the VistA community. The VA's eHealth University will be launching a pilot for a new training web site on April 26. The site, MyVeHUCampus, will feature the VistA-based Health IT training materials available to the VA staff.  Read More »

RPMS Awarded Meaningful Use Certification

One of the most poorly-funded federal agencies, the Indian Health Service (IHS), has defied the odds once again and it has become the first federal agency to have its health information system certified for Meaningful Use. 

IHS Director Yvette Roubideaux announced “the Indian Health Service is very proud to be the first federal agency to earn this certification, which is based on industry standards.” She emphasized that RPMS will “help us provide quality health care delivery to patients in the Indian health system,” adding that the “monetary incentives made available by this certification will also benefit IHS, tribal, and urban Indian health facilities.”

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Top 'Open' Health IT Picks for 2011

Based on number of users, community support, quality of software, and longevity,  the following 'open source' health information technology (HIT) systems have risen to the top of our  HITS List for 2011. Check them out –

 caBIG            CARE2X       ClearHealth      Epi Info             FreeMed       Globus Toolkit
 iPath              Mirth            OpenClinica     Open Dental      OpenEMR      OpenMRS  
 OpenHRE      OSCAR          RODS              RPMS                VistA          WHO HealthMAPPER   
 

*For more information on other 'open source' and 'public domain' health IT software solutions, go to OHN Resources

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RFP to Open Source VA VistA

The VA has released a draft RFP to create a new open source project around their electronic health record (EHR) system known as VistA. This is a landmark event for both the VA and the open source community. The need for cheap and robust EHR systems is clear, and the VA has one of the leading platforms out there. Stay tuned. Read More »

Wisconsin reps trying to torpedo VA's open source strategy

For those of you folks who think that open health is a staid field, this week saw the unfolding of an epic scandal. NexGov's inimitable reporter, Bob Brewin, author of the column What's Brewin, got his hands on a stash of documents showing that elected representatives from Wisconsin are trying to torpedo the open source strategy being pursued by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).

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Welcome

We are excited to be able to launch this site after many years of work. Open Health News is a combination news, knowledge, and resource portal on all things related to open source in the healthcare field.  We introduced the Beta version on March 1st, 2011, and continue to enhance the site daily. Check out our Blogs and stay tuned for Hot News! Read More »

Simulation Technology and 'Open' EHR Systems for Medical Education & Training

Models of human patients have been used in medicine for thousands of years. Some of the first medical 'simulators' were simple representations in clay and stone that were used to demonstrate the clinical features of disease states and their effects on humans. Today, ever more sophisticated medical simulation tools and techniques have been developed and integrated into the education and training programs for medical professionals. There are now approximately 300 medical simulation centers in the U.S. Most are affiliated with medical schools, nursing schools, and major teaching hospitals.

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