WHEELING, WV, March 6, 2009 – Electronic health records (EHR’s) are getting a lot of attention these days, especially since President Barack Obama is making e-records part of his economic recovery plan to save jobs and more importantly, to help save lives. Since 2005, the HEALTHeWV (HeWV) program has been helping West Virginia’s rural healthcare clinics make the change from paper to electronic records. HEALTHeWV is funded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and operates from the National Technology Transfer Center (NTTC) at Wheeling Jesuit University.

The NTTC’s Office of Health Technology Programs is offering two educational seminars on electronic health records in the Southern part of the state to assist health professionals in learning more about EHR’s and the HeWV program. The first event will be held on Wednesday, March 25, 2009 at Marshall University’s Graduate College in South Charleston. Another seminar will follow on Thursday, March 26, at the Mercer County Technical Education Center in Princeton. Each seminar will run from 12:30-3:30pm with lunch provided.

The seminars will focus on how EHR’s equip clinics and health care professionals with the tools to improve efficiency, quality of care and reimbursement for services. Speakers include: Chad Turner, MD - Cabin Creek Health Systems, Debbie Enigk, Administrator -Mercer Health Right, Mazharullah Shaik, MD, MBA, CPEHR - HEALTHeWV, and Kathy Platter, RN, MSN, CPHQ - HEALTHeWV. Clinic representatives will share their experience of converting from paper to electronic health records. The HeWV staff will explain how their electronic health records program is unique, provide a demonstration of the EHR and discuss features and future enhancements. There is no cost to attend. However, space is limited and anyone interested in attending must register. For more information contact Melissa Mealy, Program Manager, Health Technology Programs at (304) 243-4375 or .

The National Technology Transfer Center’s (NTTC) HEALTHeWV program aims to enhance the health care of people throughout rural West Virginia by incorporating a patient-focused, disease-management software tool in clinics around the state. HEALTHeWV is based on the U.S. Army’s award-winning HEALTHeFORCES program and has been adapted for use in rural civilian communities.

The youngest of the 28 Jesuit colleges and universities in the United States, Wheeling Jesuit University offers students a high-quality private education. Since 1995 U.S. News & World Report has ranked Wheeling Jesuit University among the top institutions in its “Best Master's Universities in the South” category. The campus is also home to the Robert C. Byrd National Technology Transfer Center, the Erma Ora Byrd Center for Educational Technologies®, the NASA-sponsored Classroom of the Future, a Challenger Learning Center® and the Clifford M. Lewis Appalachian Institute.