Few healthcare systems have the rich history and scope of reach as Geisinger Health. To learn more about the organization’s mission and its goals for the future, we spoke with John Kravitz, MHA, CHCIO.
Some of the subjects we discussed included:
- his career path leading up to his ascension to his new role at Geisinger Health;
- the vision of the organization’s new leadership;
- the function and power of implementing an Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL);
- the need for thorough patient education and the use of analytics to identify gaps in patient education;
- his view of interoperability within Meaningful Use;
- the Keystone Health Information Exchange (KeyHIE);
- xG Health Solutions and
- what he sees as the next big thing in healthcare.
(Editor’s note: To hear audio excerpts of this interview, click on the media player buttons that run throughout this article.)
I. Background
Kravitz details his past working as CIO with smaller IT shops. He describes how a co-venture with the University of Pennsylvania led to the creation of Penn Medicine Rittenhouse which provided him with experience needed to serve CIO at Geisinger Health.
II. Next steps as CIO
Kravitz describes how Geisinger Health is implementing an ITIL, as well as standardizing and centralizing many of its services such as its Compliance Analyst roles.
III. New leadership’s vision
Kravitz talks about Geisinger Health’s new leadership under Dr. David Feinberg. He goes on to define how the organization’s focus has shifted more emphatically toward patients.
IV. Rise of the patient
When asked if he sees “the rise of the patient” in healthcare, Kravitz responds by discussing the need for organizations to prioritize patient education and information. He also talks about using analytics to identify gaps in care within patient populations.
V. Meaningful Use
Kravitz talks about the role of interoperability within Meaningful Use, and how with the Keystone Health Information Exchange (KeyHIE), Geisinger Health has been able to connect multiple organizations to their health system.
VI. Geisinger Health’s innovation
Kravitz describes the function and goals of xG Health Solutions.
VII. NBT
Kravitz talks about how Geisinger Health is looking to continue its work with Big Data in the future. He also describes how he envisions the changes coming to electronic health records via this work.