Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/674245
79 FINANCE HEALTH IT 7. Leakage Rob Grant, Cofounder and Executive Vice President of Evariant (Farm- ington, Conn.): "Leakage" is oen considered a "dirty" word in hospital and health system business development. Attempts to soen the term, for ex- ample "keepage," aren't much better. With the evolving nature of healthcare contracting and care delivery, the term is out of date. "Physician (or pro- vider) network activity" is more encompassing. Network activity can relate to the physician's own rendering of care at various sites of service. within a defined organization/affiliation; or the network of other providers and facil- ities a particular physician sends patients to for follow-on care. Networks are being developed around specific services, disease management protocols, contracting configurations, etc. Understanding "network activity" is clearly important. Labeling activity leaving the health system as "leakage" is no lon- ger always appropriate. 8. Uberization Bill Balderaz, President and Founder of Futurety (Columbus): e term "disruptive" is so overused it no longer has any meaning. e only thing it disrupts is the flow of the conversation. Second, "the Uber (or Google, or LinkedIn or Facebook) of healthcare." Analogies are helpful, but most of the technology I hear described as the "Uber of healthcare" is nothing like Uber, and sometimes not really about healthcare. Kristin Darby, CIO of Cancer Treatment Centers of America (Boca Raton, Fla.): e term "uberize" coined from the successful ride-sharing company Uber is quickly becoming trendy in the technology world. As a CIO, I am hearing this term with increasing frequency, and my counterparts and I are frequently approached to solve issues through "uberization." Uber's business model has been indisputably successful in the transport industry because the company addressed an unmet consumer need. In the healthcare industry, however, where creating high-quality processes and IT platforms for our cli- nicians and patients is paramount, the complexity of matching this approach with a viable opportunity is oen underestimated. 9. User-friendly Jon Elion, MD, Founder and President of ChartWise Medical Systems (Wakefield, R.I.): is term, of course, conveys no information whatsoever about functionality. What vendor is going to admit that their soware is hard- to-use or unfriendly to users? n Hospitals in Kentucky, Maryland Suffer Ransomware Attacks By Akanksha Jayanthi A growing number of ransomware attacks made headlines in March, with two inci- dents in particular highlighting the threat this type of malware poses to the healthcare industry. Methodist Hospital in Henderson, Ky., declared an internal state of emergency after a ransomware virus limited access to and use of web-based ser- vices and electronic communications. The virus, which the hospital discovered March 16, was sent through a malicious email that passed the hospi- tal's spam filter. The recipient opened the email, which then penetrated the system. In initial reports, Methodist Hospital COO David Park said the hospital would consider paying the ransom depending on the number of re- cords that were locked. The hospital was able to regain control of its computer systems without paying the ransom, and it did not disclose how much was demanded. While the networks were down, Methodist Hospital reported activating a back-up system, which allowed the hospital to continue to func- tion without interruption. No patient information was compromised, and the systems were back up and running on March 21. A week and a half later, Columbia, Md.-based MedStar Health disabled its computer networks on March 28 after discovering a virus that prevent- ed certain users from logging in to the system. The health system decided to take down all sys- tem interfaces to stop the virus from spreading. MedStar Health has not called the malware a ran- somware attack, but hospital employees have told the media they saw pop-up notices on their com- puters demanding payment in exchange for a key to unlock the systems. The Baltimore Sun reported receiving a copy of the hackers' demands, which asked for three bitcoins (approximately $1,250) to unlock one infected computer, or 45 bitcoins (ap- proximately $19,000) to unlock them all. By April 1, MedStar reported gaining 90 percent functionality of its computer network. The system said its inpatient EHR, outpatient EHR and regis- tration and scheduling system — the three main clinical information systems supporting patient care — were functioning. n McKesson Cuts 1,600 Jobs, 4% of U.S. Workforce By Akanksha Jayanthi S an Francisco-based McKesson is eliminating nearly four per- cent of its U.S. workforce, which equates to nearly 1,600 jobs, in an effort to reign in costs, reports Bloomberg. In an emailed statement to Bloomberg, McKesson said, "reductions to our workforce would be necessary to align our cost structure with our business needs." The company began notifying workers of layoffs in mid-March. Bloomberg reports McKesson is seeking ways to cut costs after its contract with Optum expired and changes in a contract with Om- nicare took place. Additionally, the report suggests slowed growth on generic drug prices is also playing a role in the company's op- erating profit. McKesson shares dropped 32 percent in the past year, according to the report. n