ICNet Receives ONC Meaningful Use Certification for Syndromic Surveillance

ICNet Systems infection surveillance software has received 2011 Edition EHR Modular* ONC Health IT Certification for inpatient and ambulatory care. This is the second Meaningful Use certification achieved by ICNets software, which now includes certification for syndromic surveillance, in addition to core certifications for privacy and security.

The certification designates that the software is capable of supporting healthcare providers with Meaningful Use measures required to qualify for funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). ICNet NG v1.2 was certified on March 29, 2013, by ICSA Labs, an ONC-Authorized Certification Body (ONC-ACB) and Accredited Test Lab, as compliant in accordance with the criteria adopted by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS).

ICNet is the only electronic surveillance vendor to achieve certification for syndromic surveillance, one of three public health menu set objectives for hospital providers participating in Meaningful Use. Hospitals must show that they have met one of those objectives in order to be eligible for incentive payments under the ARRA. The syndromic surveillance objective certifies the capability to provide electronic surveillance data to public health agencies, including the National Healthcare Safety Network and the states. The objectives measure is to have
submitted results of a successful test of the capability to transfer this data.

This is another recognition of ICNets unique ability to provide healthcare organizations with all the tools they need to reduce, manage and report on healthcare-associated infections, says Adam Boris, CEO of ICNet Systems. As a global healthcare analytics company, we are committed to harnessing the power of information technology to drive improvements in quality, safety and patient outcomes. The efficiencies achieved through our automated surveillance and reporting technology allow infection prevention professionals far more time for
patient interventions and staff training.

To collect the necessary data for syndromic surveillance for public reporting and heath information exchange (HIE), ICNet is able to import data in a wide range of formats, including free text and coded data, from any existing hospital system, including lab, pharmacy, radiology and surgery systems. There is no need for the
hospital to have all its systems from one EMR vendor, as ICNet can extract admissions/discharge/transfer information, vital signs, blood chemistries and other data from the EMR or from ancillary clinical data systems.

With the increasing adoption of electronic medical records, many healthcare facilities are realizing that they have a wealth of electronic data, but have difficulty extracting the information they need, especially from disparate systems. ICNet solves this problem by providing integrated access to hospital data systems for real-time clinical decision support, delivering the right data right now at the point of care so clinicians can make the best decisions for patients with the information already stored in their systems.

With our syndromic surveillance capabilities, ICNet can deliver the future of clinical decision support today, providing specific and relevant data to clinicians
when they need it, to optimize care and prevent patient harm, Boris says.

ICSA Labs, an independent division of Verizon, offers vendor-neutral testing and certification. Its ONC health IT certification program provides verification that the certified EHR technology supports meaningful use and helps healthcare organizations protect sensitive and private patient information.

ICNet NG meets the following ONC General Domain Criteria:
- 170.302 (l) Public health surveillance
- 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
- 170.302 (v) Encryption when exchanging electronic health information

ICNet also had to use the following additional software to achieve certification: MySQL database server, IIS SSL, PHP (SHA1).

Source: ICNet