Skylight® Healthcare Systems Achieves Meaningful Use Certification

SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Skylight® Healthcare Systems, the pioneer in interactive patient systems, has attained ONC-ACB 2011 Edition Modular Inpatient EHR certification for CareNavigator Inpatient 2.5. Granted by ICSA Labs after extensive testing in the ONC Health IT Certification Program, this certification confirms that Skylight CareNavigator™ satisfies a specified set of standards established by the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Incentive Program and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) as defined by Meaningful Use.

“As a certified EHR technology provider, we are able to help our client hospitals address their meaningful use requirements and receive incentives payments”

Meaningful Use is a set of standards and requirements established by CMS and ONC as part of CMS’s EHR Incentive Program. The incentive program was established by the government to promote use of technology in healthcare by offering rewards and establishing penalties to eligible hospitals, healthcare professionals, and organizations.

In the inpatient environment, information gathered from the Skylight CareNavigator system can be transferred to the hospital’s electronic medical record (EMR). This capability is considered to be a key characteristic of software systems required for certification. As a certified EHR technology provider, hospitals using Skylight CareNavigator in the inpatient environment are eligible for incentives from CMS.

“As a certified EHR technology provider, we are able to help our client hospitals address their meaningful use requirements and receive incentives payments,” mentioned Tom Klopack, CEO for Skylight Healthcare Systems. “As the first interactive patient system to achieve this certification, this marks a milestone in the market. Skylight’s certification confirms the use of interactive patient systems as a vital component in helping hospitals take advantage of incentive payments. Coupled with documented HCAHPS improvements, Skylight can help hospitals optimize the shifting landscape of healthcare payment.”

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) was established to improve American health care delivery and patient care through investment in Health IT and included The Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act. The HITECH Act was established to promote the adoption and meaningful use of technology by health care professionals and hospitals.

Under HITECH, the ONC was charged with creating an EHR (electronic health record) certification program. Certification ensures that the EHR technology providers offer the necessary capabilities, functionalities, and security that will help eligible professionals, eligible hospitals and critical access hospitals (CAHs) achieve Meaningful Use and receive incentive payments. Use of a certified EHR technology is one criterion to achieve meaningful use. Eligible professionals, hospitals and CAHs must "Meaningfully Use" the certified EHR and successfully attest to this in order to qualify for an incentive payment.

For more information on meaningful use and the CMS Incentive program, visit: http://www.cms.gov/Regulations-and-Guidance/Legislation/EHRIncentivePrograms/Meaningful_Use.html
For more information on ONC, visit: http://www.healthit.gov/newsroom/about-onc
Information on the HITECH Act, can be found at http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/administrative/enforcementrule/hitechenforcementifr.html

Legal notice

This EHR Module is 2011 Edition compliant and has been certified by an ONC-ACB in accordance with the applicable certification criteria adopted by the Secretary of Health and Human Services. This certification does not represent an endorsement by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services or guarantee the receipt of incentive payments.

Skylight CareNavigator 2.5 successfully met the following 2011 Edition criteria:170.302(m) Patient specific education resources, 170.302(o) Access control, 170.302(p) Emergency access, 170.302(q) Automatic log-off, 170.302(r) Audit log 170.302(s) Integrity, 170.302(t) Authentication, 170.302(u) General encryption, and 170.302(v) Encryption when exchanging electronic health information

About Skylight® Healthcare Systems

For more than a decade, San Diego-based Skylight® Healthcare Systems has been transforming the patient experience throughout the continuum of care. From pre-admission through post-discharge, Skylight CareNavigator™, the company’s innovative interactive patient care system, uses common communication devices including televisions, computers, and mobile devices to address patient and family needs in health education, services and communication with physicians and care teams. Hospitals subsequently experience improved HCAHPS, reduced readmissions, greater clinical efficiencies and increased reimbursements. Together with Skylight’s account management and clinical consulting teams, hospitals, health systems and Accountable Care Organizations deploy CareNavigator™ to manage populations, increase patient satisfaction and achieve meaningful use. CareNavigator also integrates with existing hospital systems to streamline clinical workflow, improve operational efficiencies, and enhance revenue through additional service offerings including pharmacy and retail. For more information about Skylight’s tools and impact on the patient experience, visit www.skylight.com.