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SEEDIE Self-Attests Approval As Certification Body PDF Print E-mail

August 25, 2010

SEEDIE, the Society for Exorbitantly Expensive and Difficult to Implement EHR's, has self-attested that it is an accredited certification body for electronic health record systems which qualify for ARRA funds.

"We got tired of waiting for ONC to confer accredited status, so we decided to take a page from the meaningful use playbook and self-attest," said Sal Obfuscato, SEEDIE executive director. "In our last shareholders meeting, somebody pointed out that we are a certification organization, and as such we can certainly certify ourselves. Who are we to argue with our own logic?"

"Most EHR vendors tell us that ARRA stands for Ain't Really Ready Anyway, and they were pressuring us to come out with a new SEEDIE certified seal that gives doctors the impression their solutions will meet incentive funding requirements," added Obfuscato. "Starting immediately, EHR vendors can pay us $30,000 and add our misleading ARRA stamp of approval to their marketing materials."
 
SEEDIE Announces Holiday Turkey Certification Program PDF Print E-mail

November 24, 2009

Deeming certification of electronic health record applications “awfully difficult” in light of yet to be defined meaningful use criteria, the Society for Exorbitantly Expensive and Difficult to Implement EHRs is using this period of uncertainty to certify holiday turkeys.
 
“The dirty little secret of the poultry industry has to do with giblets,” announced SEEDIE executive director Sal Obfuscato. “When turkeys are processed, their giblets are removed early in the process and tossed in a bin. Just prior to shrink wrapping the end product in plastic, a set of random giblets is plucked from the bin and inserted into the turkey cavity. What people fail to understand is that giblets are not interoperable, and shipping a turkey without its proprietary giblets can dramatically impact oven performance, taste and even the quality of a post-holiday meal nap.”
 
According to Obfuscato, the parallels with the EHR industry are obvious. “The healthcare IT bleeding hearts evangelize about plug and play interoperability and demonstrate standards-based data exchange at their connectapaloozas, but SEEDIE and its vendor sponsors will spend lavishly to protect the proprietary fortresses we have so carefully erected.”
 
“Our SEEDIE advocacy team is working behind the scenes to gut interoperability requirements from meaningful use criteria,” added Obfuscato. “In the meantime, we will focus our efforts on certifying turkeys, pheasant, duck and other delectable holiday birds.”
 
SEEDIE Backs Away From PHR Initiative PDF Print E-mail

November, 2009 

After a raucous 3 minute debate, the SEEDIE board of directors voted against PHR standards that would force certified EHR vendors to interoperate with personal health record systems using a common set of data standards.

"Our members advocate a walled garden approach, with a distinct preference for proprietary PHR applications that treat interoperable vendors as untouchable members of a caste system," said SEEDIE executive director Sal Obfuscato. "Like Farmer Brown in the tale of Peter Rabbit, we want to keep all those rapidly multiplying PHR companies from nibbling our electronic health record cabbage."

Asked about the presence of well-funded consumer health platforms from some of the largest IT corporations in the world and the resulting pressure to interoperate, Obfuscato was less than impressed. "Our research, such as it is, indicates that some of the healthcare IT cognoscenti will clamor for the affordable exchange of electronic health information between consumers and physicians," said Obfuscato. "However, most people can’t even pronounce cognoscenti, let alone define it."

When pressed about ARRA meaningful use requirements that place a premium on patient engagement, Obfuscato replied "ARRA, schmarra, we are encouraging SEEDIE vendors to offer expensive, tethered, un-interoperable patient portal solutions designed to create the illusion of information portability while charging consumers a ‘baggage handling’ fee that would make even the most brazen airline executive blush."
 
SEEDIE Submits Meaningful Use Recommendations PDF Print E-mail

October, 2009

SEEDIE, the Society for Exorbitantly Expensive and Difficult to Implement EHRs, has submitted unsolicited recommendations to HHS regarding ARRA guidance and policy around physician incentives for EHR adoption.

"What is meaningful use?" asked executive director Sal Obfuscato at a recent SEEDIE executive retreat in Belize. "We believe the question is the answer, as man has always struggled to find meaning in this world."

This insight led SEEDIE to suggest that certified EHR vendors should embed quotes from well known philosophers in their applications. This approach will prompt physicians and other caregivers to actively seek meaning as they document patient encounters.

"When I am treating a patient, a thought-provoking quote from Jean Paul Sartre or Voltaire is far more valuable than the ability to e-prescribe or adhere to evidence-based guidelines," said Dr. Timothy Farragut, a Vermont pediatrician and SEEDIE board member. "You get so caught up in diagnosing a condition that you forget to ask yourself the important questions - why am I here, what does it all mean, can I still make my tee time?"

These recommendations are part of a SEEDIE effort to be designated as an ARRA certification body. "Unlike certification organizations that focus on subjective functional requirements, our innovative approach to meaningful use is focused on a much deeper meaning of the word meaning," said Obfuscato.