- Connecticut: Silver Hill Hospital is collaborating with a local news service, HAN Network, to produce a talk show focused on mental illness and substance misuse. The program, titled "Straight Talk with Tracey," debuted on May 11 and airs live at noon on the second Thursday of every month via the HAN Network. Tracey Masella, a licensed clinical social worker at Silver Hill, hosts the program, which features guests and answers questions regarding mental health care and substance misuse (AP/Sacramento Bee, 5/15).
- Massachusetts: Kevin Rowley and Sean O'Connor—both police officers in Boston—on Thursday helped a woman deliver a baby just steps away from Brigham and Women's Hospital. The officers said they spotted a car just outside the hospital, and when they went to check on it, they discovered the woman, Haoyan Sun, who was in mid-delivery. Rowley immediately went to the ED to get supplies and personnel, while O'Connor—a former EMT who has previously helped in childbirth—helped the woman complete the delivery and ensured the baby girl could breathe. According to Boston 25 News, the family has written a thank you note to the police department for their help (Morelli, Boston 25 News, 5/14; Betancourt/Prim, NECN, 5/14).
- Washington, D.C.: The Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT has tapped Genevieve Morris to serve as principal deputy national coordinator for health IT. Morris, who has worked before with ONC to develop multiple health IT policies, previously worked as the senior director for health IT policy at Audacious Inquiry (Cohen, Becker's CIO and Health IT, 5/13).
Your guide to demystify health care IT jargon
Health care is full of acronyms and jargon—the world of health IT even more so. How does a data mart differ from an enterprise data warehouse? Do you know about FHIR? Can you describe an API?
Here, we have assembled a collection of the most frequently referenced health IT terms, including IT-related professional organizations, regulatory mandates, infrastructure components, concepts, and major IT topics. While this list is certainly not comprehensive, it defines many of the major terms to help you decode health IT jargon.