The Health Information Technology board is composed of healthcare professionals in Nebraska. Two executives from Gothenburg Health have joined the HIT board. They are Dr. Anna Dalrymple, M.D., and Lynn Edwards.
Dr. Anna Dalrymple, M.D.
Photo provided by Gothenburg Health
The HIT board was created by Nebraska legislature’s LB1183 in 2020 and was tasked with “the responsibility of assuring appropriate application of health information technology, wide availability and access to data sources, and adherence to federal regulations involving privacy and security.”
Board members are responsible for decisions, recommendations and oversight of the collection and use of data for the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP) and the Health Information Exchange (HIE).
Dalrymple serves as vice president on the executive board of the Nebraska Academy of Family Physicians. She said she was asked to apply for a position on the board because they wanted a family practice physician in a rural area. “I believe it is significant to have a rural voice for how information is used and protected in electronic data bases,” she said.
Lynn Edwards
Photo provided by Gothenburg Health
Edwards’ professional membership in the Nebraska Health Information Association provided her with the awareness that volunteers were wanted and needed. She said she submitted a resume and qualifications. After being interviewed by a panel which included a senator and was televised, she was selected.
“I am surrounded by very intelligent and qualified people. What I can provide is how these studies apply to the end user. Anna’s and my roles are different. She comes in as a doctor with a focus on utilization. I look at it differently because of my background with HIPAA and patient security,” Edwards said.
The HIT board works in partnership with CyncHealth, aiming to dismantle the opioid crisis and monitor the PDMP. The HIT overview states the mission as: “continues to evolve and must be flexible to change in order to remain a role model for PDMPs across the nation.”
The board was formed in April 2022. Dalrymple and Edwards will serve for five years while attending quarterly meetings, at least half of which will be hosted in Lincoln. Dalrymple said meetings are typically related to approving requests for access to and overall governance of the databases.
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