Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1219854
38 CIO / HEALTH IT 7 alerts, tools hospitals are adding to their EHRs By Jackie Drees H ere are seven digital alerts and tools that hospitals and health systems have developed or in- tegrated with their EHR systems. 1. Allina Health in Minneapolis is using a digital pricing tool in its Epic EHR system that allows physicians to see how much a patient is required to pay for a prescription. 2. e University of Virginia Health System in Charlottesville integrated a digital referral network with its EHR to better connect patients with resources that address their social determinants of health needs. 3. e Los Angeles County Department of Health Services integrated Safety Net Connect's e-consult services with its Cerner EHR system. 4. e University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine researchers in November were testing an EHR add-on that allows physicians to personalize the system and choose how information is grouped on screen. 5. Portland-based Oregon Health & Sciences University implemented a tool within its Epic EHR system that shows the price the patient will have to pay as soon as their clinician writes a prescription. 6. St. Louis-based BJC Health- Care announced in December it will implement Sectra's imaging soware, which can integrate with its Epic EHR system, across 14 of its hospitals. 7. Baptist Health in Louisville, Ky., integrated genomic decision support tools with its Epic EHR. n 'It's more profound than fire': Google CEO sets sights on AI By Mackenzie Garrity G oogle CEO Sundar Pichai is betting big on artificial intelligence, asking other countries to come together to enhance the technology, according to Bloomberg. "AI is one of the most profound things we're working on as humanity. It's more pro- found than fire or electricity," Mr. Pichai said at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, reported Bloomberg. Google's parent company Alphabet, where Mr. Pichai also serves as the CEO, has faced setbacks when it comes to AI in recent years. The company lost military con- tracts after employees allegedly delayed security features within Google's AI. However, Mr. Pichai wants to approach AI as a group effort. "AI is no different from the climate," he said, Bloomberg reported. "You can›t set safety by having one country or a set of countries working on it. You need a global framework." While Google looks to expand its AI capabilities, the company is being closely mon- itored over privacy concerns. Although Google is partnering with hospitals and health systems to collect patient data, Mr. Pichai says that hospitals continue to con- trol the data. "When we work with hospitals, the data belongs to the hospital," Mr. Pichai said, according to CNBC. "But look at the potential here. Cancer is often missed and the difference in outcome is profound. In lung cancer, for example, five experts agree this way and five agree the other way. We know we can use artificial intelligence to make it better." n How a Colorado hospital's IT department prevented a ransomware attack By Mackenzie Garrity T he IT department at Aspen Valley (Colo.) Hospital blocked a ransomware at- tack after discovering malicious malware was being used to infect its system, according to the Aspen Times. On Dec. 25, 2019, cybercriminals unsuccessfully attempted to encrypt computers at Aspen Valley Hospital through one of the hospital's third-party vendors. When the hospital was alerted to the ransomware, IT staff shut down the hospital's computers. "It was ransomware where they were trying to encrypt and shut us down and make the vendor pay a ransom," hospital CEO Dave Ressler told the Aspen Times. "We were collateral; it wasn't a direct hit on us." For 36 hours, clinicians and other hospital staff shifted to downtime procedures, including using paper-based records. Aspen Valley Hospital uses a Meditech EHR. The electronic system was up and running by the end of the day on Dec. 26, 2019. There is no evidence that patient data was affected. n