Getting this report out in a matter of days at a time of national need highlights the intrinsic superiority of a web-based application over our competitors that need to be installed with on-site, server-based systems, said Ryan Howard, CEO of Practice Fusion. The ability to help our doctors immediately and accurately respond to a public-health crisis, without need for 'product upgrades,' is only possible with a web-based system. We are proud of our ability to help our country face H1N1 flu armed with the powerful tools and technologies Practice Fusion is developing.

Through local intermediary organizations, private practicing physicians across the country received questionnaires in the last 1 “2 weeks asking for patient counts in the 5 high-risk categories (described below), in order to know how much vaccine to ship to each doctor ™s office. Without an EHR, generating this list would be an exceedingly slow, labor intensive, error-prone process for physicians and their staff.

*CDC criteria for vaccination

A central response to the H1N1 influenza pandemic has been the development of widespread vaccination. Because of the scope of this disease, unlike other vaccines, the CDC is making the H1N1 vaccine available to private and public health care providers free of cost (for the vaccine supply itself). To control quantities, the CDC has developed criteria for who should be the first to get the vaccine.

The H1N1 vaccine recommendations are significantly different than those for annual (seasonal) flu. Whereas seasonal flu vaccination programs focus on seniors, adults with chronic conditions, and children, the H1N1 recommendations target these populations:

Pregnant women All infants and patients <24 years of age Healthcare workers Adults taking care of infants <6 months of age Adults ages 24-64 with specific chronic medical conditions (diabetes, renal disease, COPD, angina or cancer).

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