Things appear to be rocky on the VA’s road to modernizing its EHR.
After being in the works for months, the VA finally inked a contract with Cerner in May to update its legacy electronic medical record system called VistA. By late June, the Office of EHR Modernization launched with the goal of managing the deployment and maintenance of the VA’s new Cerner EHR system.
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But on Aug. 24, one of its leaders abruptly resigned from her role.
Genevieve Morris served as interim chief health information officer for the Office of EHR Modernization at the Department of Veterans Affairs. Morris was detailed to the VA from her position as the ONC’s principal deputy national coordinator. She was tapped for the VA role only in July.
On Twitter, Morris shared a bit of insight into her decision to depart from the VA.
“Over the last few weeks, it has become clear to me that VA’s leadership intends to take the EHR modernization effort in a different direction than we were headed, and since my service as CHIO was always intended to be an interim solution, I am offering my resignation to the administration effective immediately,” she tweeted on Aug. 24.
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What exactly she meant when she said the VA wants to take the modernization process in a “different direction” is unclear. Morris did not respond to a request for additional insight.
Looking at the larger picture, will her departure delay or impact the EHR modernization timeline?
When reached via email, the VA said no. It added that John Windom will take over as acting CHIO of the Office of Electronic Health Record Modernization. Windom, who was previously a captain in the U.S. Navy, assisted with the Pentagon’s EHR modernization work and was also part of the VA’s negotiations with Cerner.
When asked how Morris’ departure impacts the EHR modernization timeline, a Cerner spokesman sent the following statement via email and deferred additional questions to the VA:
We are pleased with the great work and progress made to date in support of the VA’s Electronic Health Record Modernization Program. We have worked closely with VA’s senior leaders and Mr. Windom since program inception. We have total confidence in Mr. Windom’s leadership which provides program and oversight continuity. We look forward to continuing to work closely together on this transformational journey and in support of better care for our nation’s veterans.
But a few outside observers have a different opinion.
Representative Jim Banks (R-Indiana) serves as chairman of the House Subcommittee on Technology Modernization, which is dedicated to the oversight of the VA EHR modernization project. In an Aug. 24 letter to VA Secretary Robert Wilkie, he said he was concerned about the “deteriorating and rudderless leadership of the Electronic Health Record Modernization program.”
“It would be a tragedy for the program to be undermined by personality conflicts and bureaucratic power struggles before it even begins in earnest,” he wrote, hinting at the problems within.
In a phone interview, Ted Chan, founder and CEO of physician rating site CareDash, said that the transition from the VA’s legacy VistA EHR system to the new Cerner one is an intense undertaking. The scale and complexity of the data involved, plus the fact that there are multiple sites, make the replacement process all the more complicated. And there’s the additional complexity of the VA being a government agency.
“This is as big as it’s going to get,” Chan said.
The VA’s EHR modernization website also hints at the intricacy of the effort.
“The EHRM effort is anticipated to take several years to be fully complete and will continue to be an evolving process as technological advances are made,” it reads. The site adds that the VA will keep using its extant systems until all its EHR modules are replaced by the Cerner solution.
In this context, Morris’ departure is a bit concerning, Chan said.
“The number one thing you need to execute on these projects is executive commitment, executive buy-in and executive stability,” he said. “They have to figure out a way … to lock in a set of leaders and executive sponsors. That commitment has to be there.”
Photo: Mutlu Kurtbas, Getty Images
