Health Care Providers Recognized as Leaders in Implementation of Electronic Health Records

LEXINTON, Ky. (June 17, 2013) -- Kentucky health care providers and hospitals were recently recognized by the Kentucky Regional Extension Center (Kentucky REC) in conjunction with the Office of the National Coordinator at Health Information Technology (ONC) at six regional events across the state for their leadership in the nationwide transition toward electronic health records (EHR).

Kentucky REC, based at the University of Kentucky, is one of 60 regional extension centers across the country commissioned by the Office of the National Coordinator to help providers and hospitals transition to EHR technology.

Kentucky REC and Kentucky Health Information Exchange (KHIE) held the 2013 Meaningful Use Survival Seminar Series in Bardstown (March 15), Paducah (March 22), Hazard (April 12), Bowling Green (April 19), Somerset (May 10) and Lexington (May 31). These seminars provided informational sessions on hot topics in Health Information Technology such as Meaningful Use Stage 2, Privacy and Security, and Meaningful Use Audits.

These practices and hospitals are among an exclusive group of leaders – the Meaningful Use Vanguard (MUV).  MUV is an initiative of ONC, and is designed to honor, thank, and bring together clinicians who have successfully implemented electronic health records.  MUVers (members of the MUV program) serve as local leaders and advisors in the nation’s transition toward an electronically-enabled health care system.

“On behalf of the Kentucky REC, I would like to congratulate these practices and hospitals on this important distinction,” says Dr. Carol Steltenkamp, Chief Medical Information Officer for UK HealthCare and Director of the Kentucky REC. “Their experience is invaluable in helping clinicians take the necessary steps to transform from paper-based practices to electronically-enabled systems. We commend them for being at the forefront of EHR implementation, and hope their example will encourage others to follow in their footsteps.”

Kentucky REC implementation specialists provide resources and guidance to help providers gain federal incentives through the Meaningful Use Incentive Program. To date, the Kentucky REC is assisting more than 2,500 individual providers in more than 600 provider locations. Kentucky REC is also assisting more than a third of all Kentucky hospitals.

To date, the Kentucky REC has helped providers in Kentucky secure over $56 million in Meaningful Use incentive dollars. For more information about the Kentucky REC, visit www.kentuckyrec.com.  Follow @KentuckyREC on Twitter and connect with us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/EHRResource.

The following Kentucky health care practices and hospitals were awarded:

Bardstown, KY

• Bardstown Primary Care
• Bardstown Women’s Center
• Beverly M Gaines, MD & Associates, PSC
• Bluegrass Community Family Practice
• Casey County Hospital
• Central Kentucky Optometric Associates
• Coppola & Dorman PSC
• Gay Fulkerson, MD, PSC
• Godfrey Godfrey & Eklund PSC
• Jane Todd Crawford Memorial Hospital
• Kentuckiana Pulmonary Associates
• Molloy G. Veal MD, PSC

Paducah, KY

• Caldwell Medical Center
• Crittenden County Hospital
• Family Practice Care
• Generations Primary Care
• Heartland Cares, Inc.
• Infectious Disease Associates
• Jackson Purchase Medical Associates
• James Eickholz, MD, PSC
• Kyle D. Parish, MD, PSC
• Livingston Hospital and Health Services, Inc.
• Marshall County Hospital
• Marshall County Surgical & Medical Group
• Murray Medical Associates
• Oncology Associates of West Kentucky
• Paducah Dermatology
• Paducah Primary Care
• Total Life Care
• Trigg County Hospital
• Troy M. Nelson, D.O.
• Urology Group of Paducah, PSC
• West Kentucky Rheumatology
• Western Kentucky Family HealthCare, Inc.
• Western Kentucky Neurology

Hazard, KY

• Aaron Jonan Memorial Clinic
• Appalachian Regional Healthcare, Inc.
• Asthma & Allergy Center
• Edwards Clinic, PSC
• Hazard Clinic
• Hazard Radiology Associates
• Internal Medicine of Eastern Kentucky
• Juniper Health, Inc.
• Kentucky Lung Clinic
• Manchester Memorial Hospital & Physician Services
• Mark P. Caruso MD
• Medical Associates of Southeast Kentucky
• Mountain Comprehensive Health Corporation
• Pediatric Associates of Pikeville
• Primary Care Centers of Eastern Kentucky
• Prestonsburg Primary Care, PLLC
• Salyersville Medical Center
• The Doctor’s Office, PLLC

Bowling Green, KY

• Bowling Green Warren County Primary Care Center
• Breckinridge Memorial Hospital
• Caverna Memorial Hospital
• Center for Orthopaedic Services
• Clinton County Hospital
• Cumberland Family Medical Center
• First Choice OB/GYN
• Graves Gilbert Clinic
• Kimberly Y. Eakle, MD
• Logan Family Practice
• Mohammad Gayasaddin, MD
• Nagy H. Morsi, PSC
• Ohio County Hospital
• Taylor Regional Hospital
• Teresa S. Sheffield, APRN, LLC
• Timothy D. Hume, MD, LLC
• Twin Lakes Regional Medical Center
• Western Kentucky Heart and Lung
• Wilkes Clinic

Somerset

• Breckinridge Memorial Hospital
• Clinton County Hospital
• Ephraim McDowell Health
• Freeman Family Practice
• Huffman & Huffman, PSC
• Keith Sinclair, MD, PLLC
• Lake Cumberland GI & IM Associates
• Lake Cumberland Women’s Health Specialists PSC
• London Women’s Care
• Mohammad Afzal MD Internal Medicine, LLC
• Mountain View Family Physicians
• P.D. Patel, MD PSC
• Phillips Pratt McFarland, PSC
• Rockcastle Regional Hospital
• Turner Whitley and Morton, PSC
• Wayne County Hospital
• Westlake Regional Hospital

Lexington

• AC Wright, MD PSC
• Appalachian Regional Healthcare, Inc.
• Arthritis Center of Lexington
• Bluegrass Community Health Center
• Bluegrass Dermatology and Skin Surgery Center, PSC
• Capital Surgical Clinic
• Central Internal Medicine
• Children's Care, PLLC
• Corbin Pediatric Associates, PSC
• Cynthiana Vision Center
• Danville Medical Specialists
• Dr. Carl E. Smith Jr, MD
• Drs. Borders & Associates, PSC
• Eye Care Center Optometrist, PSC
• Eye Consultants of Kentucky, PSC
• Family Practice Associates of Lexington
• Family Care Associates
• Fayette Surgical Associates
• Frankfort Eye Center
• HealthFirst Bluegrass
• HMH Physicians Group
• Hometown Family Care, PLLC
• Kentucky Orthopedic Associates
• Lexington Neurology
• Lexington Surgeons
• Magdalene Karon, MD, PSC
• MedEast Physicians PLLC
• Metzger Eye Care
• Nephrology Associates of Kentuckiana
• Pain Management Medicine
• Pediatric Associates of Frankfort
• Plastic Surgeons of Lexington
• Richmond Women’s Health Care
• Specialty Orthopaedics, PSC
• UK HealthCare
• Versailles Family Medicine
• Women’s Health Clinic of Cynthiana, PLLC

Media Contact: Kristi Lopez, kristi.lopez@uky.edu