Guide Bridges Stage 1 and 2 for EHR Vendors

The Drummond Group announced yesterday they will begin providing to electronic health records (EHR) software developers and vendors a Decision Guide to 2014 Edition. The guide bridges the knowledge gap between the ONC’s 2014 (Stage 2) and 2011 (Stage 1) Edition criteria. Drummond Group was recently approved to test and certify 2014 Edition criteria by the ONC.

The new guide is meant to help EHR vendors improve Stage 2 meaningful use readiness for eligible professionals and hospitals.

Drummond Group lists the three components of the Decision Guide to 2014 Edition as:

• A Framework Document that helps EHR software developers focus on the specific 2014 edition criteria, clinical quality measures (CQMs) and testing options that will best support customers. This document bridges the complexity gap between the ONC criteria and the necessary Meaningful Use measures.
• An optional Wave Testing Approach that enables vendors to incrementally test for various certification criteria in phases, instead of all at once. This approach helps bridge the marketing gap between testing and certification that enhances opportunities for early adopters by offering as many as three certification points.
• A Pre-Test Assessment Tool to gauge testing readiness. The assessment tool bridges the uncertainty gap between development and testing by helping the clients determine their preparedness which can lead to more successful test results.

“The complexity involved with testing and certifying for the ONC criteria with the different Meaningful Use choices is so large that it could easily overwhelm and discourage many vendors. As a software certification body, we can’t make the requirements less demanding, but we can offer informative tools that make it possible for vendors to quickly gain much-needed insight into their certification needs and testing readiness,” says Kyle Meadors, Drummond Group’s Director of EHR Testing. “And, we can offer a software testing approach that makes the process more palatable for vendors. Having worked with hundreds of software vendors over the years, Drummond Group knows what the vendor is facing in software testing, certification, as well as product development and marketing. As such, we have a genuine understanding of the myriad of challenges that vendors face in preparing their customers for implementing Stage 2. We are confident that the Decision Guide to 2014 Edition can help organizations navigate the new requirements more successfully.”

The Decision Guide is a ‘self-help’ tool that enables EHR vendors to asses their current development status and walks developers through an “EHR category decision tree” to determine classification of their EHR as complete or modular.

To receive the Decision Guide to 2014 Edition or to get additional information about Drummond Group’s Wave Testing Approach, please contact  EHR@drummondgroup.com.