ABSTRACT
Meaningful Use, as defined by The Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act, may be a significant motivator for many hospitals and physicians to start Performance Management Initiative. As with any government program, there are numerous rules for what constitutes an eligible professional or hospital, how and when payments are made, deadlines for the start and end, penalties, and a host of other issues. While economics will certainly alter behavior for some physicians and hospitals, for our purposes, what matters is the health information technology regulations established for hospitals and professionals, including physicians. The electronic medical record Incentive program established core and menu set objectives for hospitals and Critical Access Hospitals. That is, demonstrating Meaningful Use for government financial enticements is but one example of a Performance Management Initiative. Moreover, the core and menu set objectives disclosed above may or may not have relevance to particular problem areas that need addressing.
