Neal Waterstreet

Shuttering the PASS Healthcare Virtual Group

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Last week PASS Healthcare Virtual Group members received an email notifying them that the group is being shut down due to inactivity. We’ve only had a handful of meetings the last couple of years, and after an ongoing discussion, Damu and I decided it was time to shut it down.

When we started the group in 2011, we thought that having a vertical in healthcare would be a nice addition to the virtual chapters. We got off to a strong start the first couple of years and were able to get some excellent presenters to join us. The presentations covered a broad range of topics that apply to most healthcare data users.

Unfortunately, we were never able to gain enough traction with the PASS community to attract speakers on healthcare. The attendance numbers were never able to come close to matching many of the other chapters, so it was understandable that presenters preferred those.

In addition, the healthcare IT community seemed hesitant to participate. We believe that this is due to how specialized and diverse the different companies are. It appeared that many developers expect that the concerns they have are unique, but that isn’t always the case. Healthcare data professionals share many of the same issues. To alleviate this, we reached out to a wide variety of speakers with some success. We considered having general SQL presentations that also applied to healthcare, but it made more sense to keep the focus on healthcare specific topics.

Thank you to all the group members and presenters for being part of it, and hope you all had a good learning experience.

PASS Healthcare February meeting

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Time to jump back into the Healthcare VC with our first meeting of 2015. This month’s speaker is by David Moutray. Please sign up at the PASS Healthcare website. The meeting is scheduled for Thursday, February 19, 2015 at 1 PM (Eastern).

Here are some details on David’s presentation.

Topic Name
Data Quality: Boosting Software Performance and Business Profit

Topic Synopsis
If “Data is the Lifeblood of Modern Business,” then most businesses are walking corpses with sludge in their veins, because 10% to 25% of all data records in the average enterprise are wrong. Until the dramatic problems of Data Quality Management are addressed, SQL can never fulfill its original promise to eliminate application “silos”, enable systems to communicate and provide useful, actionable information to the modern business. I believe that we are on the cusp of a revolution in Data Quality that is even greater in scope and impact than the revolution in manufacturing quality that began over 40 years ago. Businesses that make the transition will survive and thrive. Those that don’t will finally stop shambling about and lay down to die. What is this revolution in Data Quality? How can you be a part of it (and avoid the headman’s ax)?!? This presentation will change the way you think about your jobs as Database Administrators and Application Developers.

Speaker Bio
As a database administrator and ETL developer for a large data warehouse team, I am passionate about fast query performance, data integrity and the relational data model. Like most Database Administrators, I am highly opinionated, but unlike some, I am willing to endure personal abuse in the spirit of open discussion. I also tell (bad) jokes. Hecklers are welcome.

PASS Healthcare VC June Presentation

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Topic: How Data Standardization Impacts Healthcare BI
Attendee Link: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/6285539990531223552
Speaker: Laura Madsen (@lbmadsen)
Date/Time: June 20, 2013 1:00PM EDT

Topic Synopsis:
As Healthcare BI moves forward in its maturity and data sharing is becoming the norm, lack of data standardization is becoming a better known and understood issue.  In this webinar we will discuss the impact that the lack of data standards had on healthcare BI and what BI professionals can do to ease the pain.

Speaker Bio:
Laura Madsen, Author of Healthcare Business Intelligence:  A Guide to Empowering Successful Data Reporting and Analytics, is the BI Evangelist and Healthcare Services Lead at Lancet Software, a BI Consulting firm based in Minneapolis, MN.

PASS Healthcare July Presentation

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Topic: SQL Server MDS with Maestro Healthcare
Speaker: Tyler Graham, Profisee
Date/Time: July 25, 2012 1:00PM Eastern Standard Time (Wednesday)
Attendee Link: www.livemeeting.com/cc/8000181573/join

Topic Synopsis: In SQL Server 2012, MDS is matured into an enterprise MDM solution. To leverage all its capabilities, companies should have a standardized, industry-specific model to jumpstart their business into a single view of all known entities. In Healthcare, an enterprise-ready solution must fully comply with HL7 V3 requirements and all other healthcare standards bodies’ recommendations.

Building on this requirement, Maestro Healthcare goes the extra mile to include complete reference data that solves your ICD9-ICD10 transition dilemmas. In this presentation, Tyler Graham will discuss how a wide variety of healthcare companies can leverage the reference data support of Maestro Healthcare Industry Solutions with SQL Server 2012. He will then delve deeply into Profisee’s ICD9 and 10 reference data support and demonstrate that Maestro Healthcare provides a comprehensive, industry-specific MDM solution with a full body of features – matching, survivorship, and data quality strategies; integration, collaboration, and governance services; expert skills transfer and implementation services; and complete platform and solution support.

About the Speaker: As a key member of the former Stratature team, Tyler Graham joined Microsoft during its acquisition of the original MDS technology in 2007. During his tenure at Microsoft, he designed and managed development of many MDS features, including the Entity Based Staging and Excel add-in, which are new in SQL 2012. Tyler also co-authored the first ever MDS book in 2011 with an updated edition scheduled for release later this summer. In 2012, Tyler joined Profisee where he is director of Industry Solutions, building specific Maestro and MDS models for industries such as Retail, Insurance and Healthcare.