BLOOMFIELD HILLS, MI – The Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology today announced that gloStream's product gloEMR version 5.0 is a CCHIT Certified 08 Ambulatory EHR additionally certified for Cardiovascular Medicine and Child Health and meets the Certification Commission's electronic health record (EHR) criteria for office-based use. Ambulatory EHRs are designed for physician offices and clinics where most Americans get their healthcare. The Commission - a private, nonprofit organization - is the recognized certification body in the United States for certifying health information technology products.

"Two key new areas of interoperability are required to achieve 08 certification," said Mark Leavitt, M.D., Ph.D., chair, CCHIT. "First, ambulatory EHRs must be capable of advanced electronic prescribing functions so physicians can qualify for bonuses under Medicare's new incentive program. Second, EHRs must be able to send and receive an electronic patient summary. These and other new criteria will ensure that certified health IT products help improve quality, safety and efficiency while protecting the privacy of health information."

In the third year of the program's operation, the criteria and testing have been significantly updated again to provide physicians with more assurance that certified products will meet their needs for functionality, interoperability and security. The Commission added 19 criteria to the 200 required in 2007. Those changes were focused on the ability to exchange patient information with other systems. A CCHIT Certified 08 Ambulatory EHR ensures:

• Additional electronic prescribing features: access to the patient's medication history, formulary, and eligibility.
• Better and safer medication dosing, adjusted for patient weight and other factors.
• Better ability to prevent adverse reactions due to drug interactions or allergies.
• Use of standard formats to exchange basic patient information for continuity of care.
• Enhanced ability to view X-rays and other diagnostic images.
• Better management of patient consents and authorizations.
• Increased use of standard formats when receiving and storing laboratory results.

As a CCHIT Certified product, gloEMR has been tested and passed inspection of 100 percent of these new criteria.

We're thrilled to have achieved certification each year that CCHIT has been in existence and we're committed to maintaining the highest standards for product functionality, interoperability and security," said Mike Sappington, gloStream's CEO. "As the only Microsoft Office-embedded electronic health record and practice management solution supported by a network of local technology partners, gloStream is the best choice for doctors seeking a flexible and easy-to-use system that they can customize to the way they practice medicine."

The CCHIT Certified "seal of approval" for EHR products provides a consensus-based, government-recognized benchmark for ambulatory EHR products. By looking to products with the CCHIT Certified seal, physicians and other providers can reduce their risk in selecting an EHR product, allowing them to focus their evaluation on the special needs of their practices.