[acb-hsp] FW: VA Begins Process to Create Open Source Electronic Health Record

[Baracco, Andrew W]

I wonder how this will bode for accessibility.
Andy

VA Begins Process to Create Open Source Electronic Health Record

Formally Announces Request for Proposal & Implementation Schedule

WASHINGTON (April 1, 2011)- The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
today released a draft Request for Proposal (RFP) aimed at forming an
Open Source community around its ground-breaking VistA (Veterans
Integrated System Technology Architecture) electronic health record
(EHR) system.  When award is made under a planned RFP for a custodial
agent, VA will commit to deploy the Open Source version of VistA to all
of its facilities, and will contribute all non-security essential
modifications to the product it makes or pays for directly to the Open
Source custodian.  VA will also commit to participate in Open Source
VistA with other public and private sector participants.

"VistA is an important asset for VA, and for the Nation," said Secretary
of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki. "As we work to ensure that we
provide Veterans with the best in health care, modernization of VistA is
absolutely critical. This move towards Open Source welcomes private
sector partners to work with us to improve VistA, and is an important
part of our strategy to ensure that VA clinicians have the best tools
possible, and that Veterans receive the best health care possible." 

VA expects to begin conversion to an Open Source version of VistA by
this summer.  A key step in this process will be the selection of a
custodial agent to perform all aspects of operating the Open Source
community.  On Feb. 18, 2011, VA released a Request for Information
(RFI) asking for information from stakeholders and potential offerors
for a custodial agent. Concurrent to this announcement VA issued a draft
RFP for custodial services. 

The VistA system is widely viewed as the most extensively used
electronic health record system in the Nation.  It is currently used in
153 major VA hospitals and more than 800 community based outpatient
clinics across the U.S. It forms the basis of the Resource and Patient
Management System (RPMS), the EHR system used by the Indian Health
System, as well as the basis of installations in more than 50 hospitals
globally. A vibrant community outside VA already uses VistA. 

"Over the past year, we have followed a deliberative process to examine
the implications of Open Source for VistA, and we are convinced that
this is the best approach for VA, Veterans, and taxpayers," said Roger
Baker, VA assistant secretary for information and technology. "Our
primary goal is to re-ignite the innovative processes that made VistA
such a great EHR system. We also want to ensure that vendors of
proprietary products can easily and confidently integrate their products
with VistA to make them available for VA to purchase and use in our
facilities."

VA expects that other organizations may commit to VistA Open Source, and
welcomes their participation in the development, use and governance of
VistA.  

VA Chief Technology Officer Peter Levin, who helped lead the Open Source
initiative, said, "This is a terrific example of what the Administration
means by Open Government:  transparent, collaborative and truly
participatory.  This is a historic moment for health care informatics.
By moving towards standards-based systems that incorporate health
records and the best that industry and government can offer, VA will
remain at the vanguard of electronic health care delivery."

Hundreds of companies, organizations, government agencies, universities,
Congressional stakeholders, and individuals advised VA's path towards
Open Source via published studies, RFI responses, meetings or individual
comments.  In the best traditions of Open Source, the combined wisdom of
this community has ensured establishment of a much better path than any
single institutional stakeholder could possibly have achieved on its
own.