Melissa Nix

Our Top 10 Stories of ’22 Show that Change in Healthcare is the Only Constant

Interoperability “The only constant in life is change.” This quote is often attributed to the ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus. If you’ve worked in healthcare—particularly in the past few years—then you understand change. Our top 10 most-viewed…

At Mount Sinai, Managing 10,000 Patients Is Personal

CARE MANAGEMENT Robert Dean leaned back in his chair and took a moment to think. “For me, knowing that we’re doing the right thing for our patients at the right time, and that we’re getting them into a better place in terms of health and quality of…

Innovation, Please: Tapping Tech to Improve Specialty Medication Prescribing and Fulfillment

SPECIALTY MEDICATIONS If you’ve been prescribed a specialty medication, or care for someone who has, the story is a familiar one: the journey from prescribing to fulfillment is riddled with antiquated processes that leave many guessing just how and…

Breaking Down Silos in Specialty Medication Prescribing and Fulfillment

SPECIALTY MEDICATIONS Technology has the power to simplify the complexity of specialty medication prescribing and fulfillment, especially if industry stakeholders come together. In a recent conversation, my colleague Mike Pritts described a weekend…

Our Top Ten Articles of 2020: Looking Back at What Mattered Most

Our countdown reveals what our readers cared about during what was undoubtedly one of the most challenging years to work in healthcare. Behind the scenes, the world of health IT stayed highly engaged and forward focused. The pace of innovation…

Our Top Ten Articles of 2020: Looking Back at What Mattered Most

Our countdown reveals what our readers cared about during what was undoubtedly one of the most challenging years to work in healthcare. Behind the scenes, the world of health IT stayed highly engaged and forward focused. The pace of innovation…

From Broken to Beautiful

INTEROPERABILITY What do you do when you notice that something you use every day is broken? Most people would fix it or replace it, right? But what if it seems like you don't have much choice other than to suffer through the glitches, to put up with…

Jeff Sponaugle Talks Cars in Space, Solving with Purpose and Saving Patients Lives

When I sat down with Jeff Sponaugle to talk about his role as Chief Technology Officer at Surescripts, one thing was clear: he’s fueled by curiosity. A true engineer, Jeff is all about learning how things work, why people do what they do and finding…

A Faxless Future: Dare We Dream?

Invented in the time of steam engines—1843 to be exact—our healthcare system still relies on an antiquated technology to deliver sensitive patient data billions of times each year. We’re well into the digital age, but the fax machine is ever present…

The Opioid Crisis Is Still with Us

The COVID-19 pandemic has an understandable hold on our attention. And yet, there’s another preexisting public health crisis that continues to ravage communities across the country, and, according to experts, is likely getting worse. The opioid…

How One Small-Town Pharmacist Is Growing His Business with Heart-Led Care

It’s 4pm on a blustery February day in Blackwell, a small town in northern Oklahoma. The glass door to Hutton Pharmacy swings open, jangling a bell that announces the latest customer. “Hey Clark, I need some advice,” says an elderly man with a raspy…

Opening Our Eyes to New Possibilities

Winston Churchill once said: "The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty." While it may seem grossly insensitive to look for opportunity when the world is off kilter, in truth, there’s…

5 Questions: Michelle Trombetta on Improving the Patient Experience and the Power of Vulnerability

While Michelle Trombetta has held many different titles in product, technology, and operations, and had the opportunity to work across the globe, one thing has been consistent, and that’s her desire to make a positive impact on the world around her.…

Five Questions: Ken Whittemore Talks Past, Present & Future of E-Prescribing Controlled Substances

In the early 2000s, as the nation moved towards e-prescribing, Ken Whittemore was one of the key drivers and proponents of this new technology. By 2007, as a result of the efforts of Surescripts and other stakeholders, e-prescribing had become legal…

Changing the Script on the Opioid Crisis

“I entered the pharmacist profession because I care about people,” says Rodrick Marriott, Connecticut’s Director of Drug Control. “And I left it because I felt I needed to find a different way to do it. And I think I found my way. And I’m really…

“When It Goes Well, It Feels Like Magic” Two HIT Experts Chat about the Real-World Impact of Interoperability

One of the great things about working in health information technology are the people you encounter who have the enthusiasm and expertise to envision how digital tools can transform patients’ lives--and then deliver on that promise. It’s truly…

Pharmacist Stacy Ward-Charlerie on the Opioid Crisis, the Philosophy of Steve Jobs and What Moves Her to Tears

As a product innovation manager, Stacy Ward-Charlerie brings her clinical background to bear on practicable solutions that help clinicians in the field. “I’ve known since childhood I wanted to help people. That’s why I became a pharmacist. Working to…

Patients Are Carting Paper Records in Three-Ring Binders to the Doctor. We’re Changing That.

Every day, 10,000 Americans turn 65. And according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, many suffer from chronic conditions, such as high blood pressure (58 percent), heart disease (29 percent) and diabetes (27 percent). Such patients may…

HIMSS19 Showed Glimpses of a Bright Future, But Also Problem Solving in the Here and Now

Dr. Andrew Mellin, Surescripts VP of Medical Informatics Physician has been to nearly 20 HIMSS conferences over his career, wearing different hats as a physician, as a vendor and as a health system leader. But this one, his first one as a member of…

Tara Dragert Talks Perspective, Feminism and Why We’re Never Going to be ‘Done’ with Healthcare Interoperability

Tara Dragert has a drive for creating harmonious environments, both at home and at work. This knack for solving problems, which has been a continuum in her career, as well as her desire to bring out the best in those around her, brought her to her…