Siemens Medical Systems has donated software for medical teams at the Houston Astrodome to create electronic medical records for refugees of Hurricane Katrina. EMRs offer exactly what is needed in a time of crisis -- the ability to track and prioritize patients in a chaotic environment. Officials say they will use the data gathered at the Astrodome to monitor for possible disease outbreaks. In fact, the serious damage caused to the health system by the loss of hundreds of thousands of patient records is one of the great underreported stories of Katrina. With digital records properly backed up, it would not have happened, and you can expect to hear much more about that from EMR vendors in the coming months.
- see this story from InformationWeek
PLUS: Shares of hospital IT vendor Cerner hit another 52-week high yesterday as Wall Street thinks spending on health IT infrastructure is likely to rise. Story