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Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

Dr. Rebecca Ruebner from the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia presents research on kidney disease in young patients

Rebecca Ruebner, M.D., who cares for patients with kidney disorders at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, received a Young Investigator Award of the American Transplant Congress (ATC) at its national meeting this week in Boston.

Dr. Ruebner, a fellow in the Division of Nephrology at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, received the award in recognition of research she presented June 5 at the ATC, entitled, "Risk Factors for End-Stage Kidney Disease after Pediatric Liver Transplantation."

In this study, a retrospective analysis of outcomes after all pediatric liver transplantations performed in the U.S. from 1990 through 2010, Dr. Ruebner found that end-stage kidney disease was relatively uncommon in these children, occurring in 167, or 2 percent, of the 8,976 patients who received liver transplants.

"This rate of end-stage kidney disease in children is considerably lower than that found in adults who received liver transplantation," said Dr. Ruebner, "but children who do develop end-stage kidney disease have a high mortality rate." She added that in all patients who receive liver transplants, the immunosuppressive drugs they must take to prevent their bodies from rejecting the donor liver carry a risk of kidney damage.

Dr. Ruebner said the study reinforces the importance of closely following children for the first signs of kidney disease after they receive a liver transplant. The Nephrology program at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia was again ranked in the top two pediatric programs in the nation by U.S. News & World Report's 2012-13 survey of Best Children's Hospitals, announced this week.

About The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia: The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia was founded in 1855 as the nation's first pediatric hospital. Through its long-standing commitment to providing exceptional patient care, training new generations of pediatric healthcare professionals and pioneering major research initiatives, Children's Hospital has fostered many discoveries that have benefited children worldwide. Its pediatric research program is among the largest in the country, ranking third in National Institutes of Health funding. In addition, its unique family-centered care and public service programs have brought the 516-bed hospital recognition as a leading advocate for children and adolescents. For more information, visit http://www.chop.edu.

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Health IT Services Group (HITSG) announces the acquisition of the eRenalMD practice management system, which will be integrated with the Acumen nEHR clinical tool. Acumen PM, when used in conjunction with Acumen nEHR, will offer nephrologists a fully-integrated, web-based platform to manage all of the clinical and financial aspects of their business, and will provide them the tools to help satisfy the requirements of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ Electronic Health Records (CMS EHR) Incentive Program, commonly known as “Meaningful Use.”

Acumen nEHR currently provides nephrology practices with a real-time dashboard for clinical data and patient information, and also provides the technology to allow physicians, through their use of such technology, to demonstrate and meet the standards for Meaningful Use. Acumen PM will offer nephrologists an easy-to-use, integrated platform to manage administration, billing, accounts receivable, as well as revenue and receivables reporting.

“The addition of Acumen PM truly differentiates us from other platforms, and we’re excited to now offer nephrologists a complete system to help streamline the day-to-day operation of their practice and help fulfill Meaningful Use objectives,” said Dana Hensley, president of Health IT Services Group. “We hope to continue our success by providing our customers with a complete, robust system for nephrology with enhanced features for MCP and CKD billing needs.”

“We have an unparalleled expertise in nephrology Meaningful Use, and are excited to be able to add nephrology focus and expertise to the practice management environment,” said Hensley.

“Our practice management system was developed by nephrologists for nephrologists, and easily accommodates the workflows and processes that make nephrology such a unique specialty,” said Eric Maaske, president and CEO of eRenalMD, LLC. “We believe that this new, fully-integrated solution will quickly become the preferred choice for nephrology practices everywhere.”

For more information regarding Acumen’s new tools and platform, please visit www.AcumenEHR.com.

About HITSG

HITSG was formed to develop and deliver intuitive software tools to assist nephrologists in the practice of medicine. The Acumen solution was designed by nephrologists and made available under an internet-based service model. In December 2010, Acumen nEHR, version 6.0, was 2011/2012 ONC-ATCB Certified for meaningful use and is a CCHIT Certified® 2011 Ambulatory EHR. In addition to receiving these prestigious industry certifications, the Acumen nEHR product received a five-star usability rating from CMS, the highest possible score that can be achieved. HITSG partners with nephrology dialysis organizations and systems, hospitals, vascular access centers, laboratory systems, HIEs, and practice management systems to drive workflow and effectively streamline access, storage, and distribution of patient treatment information. HITSG, based in Brentwood, Tenn., is a wholly owned subsidiary of Fresenius Medical Care North America. More information regarding Acumen and Health IT Services Group can be found at www.AcumenEHR.com.

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