Digital Government
More Study Needed for EHR Safety
Dr. David Blumenthal, national coordinator for health information technology, said last week that an advisory committee investigating reports of adverse events and patient injuries from the use of electronic health records submitted their report to him about three weeks ago. The message: We need to study it more.
Ideas
Nextgov Award Finalists Named
Nextgov <a href=http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov_awards/awards_honorees.php>announced</a> on Friday that 19 finalists have been chosen for the inaugural Nextgov Awards. They represent a wide range of accomplishments, having developed new ways of managing cybersecurity, innovative systems to share information in real time and online applications designed to manage increasing workloads as the Baby Boom generation retires. And all the finalists did it in the face of bureaucratic inertia, strong political head winds, and big risks brought about by insufficient budgets and Byzantine rules that must be followed to the letter.
Digital Government
More Army Networking Coming
The Army plans announce in May plans to create what sounds like a social networking site that will bring together soldiers' families and specific communities within the service with the hopes that they will discuss, seemingly, mental health issues that may be common among soldiers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. The reason we say "sounds like" and "seemingly" is because that's the only details Brig. Gen. Loree Sutton, the highest ranking psychiatrist in the Army, would give.
Ideas
File Under 'Not What You'd Expect'
Wired.com's <em>Danger Room</em> blog has a surprising <a href=http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2010/04/actually-the-army-kind-of-likes-your-blog/>take</a> on what the Pentagon thinks about posts on left-leaning websites.
Ideas
A Look at the Workforce's Older Side
In its recently released <a href=http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20100423_7313.php>report</a> on the outlook for federal information technology jobs, the federal Chief Information Officers Council says it is difficult to estimate just how many federal employees will retire in the coming years because the aging Baby Boomers (those 45 to 54 years old, a group that makes up 60 percent of all government IT workers) are delaying retiring. The reasons are a longer life expectancy and an economic recession that reduced retirement accounts and home equity, according to the report.
Cybersecurity
Justice Beefs Up IP Bench
Tech Daily Dose reports the Justice Department has beefed up its bench to fight intellectual property crimes. They'll work in the department's Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property program. From TDD:
Digital Government
Agencies urged to change workplace practices to attract young workers
In a study on the federal technology job market, the CIO Council suggests managers should beef up technology, flexible schedules and employee feedback to compete for computer specialists.
Digital Government
Thrift Board Wants the Young
Dana Bilyeu, whom President Obama has nominated to join the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board, told a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs subcommittee on Thursday that the board needed to work harder to convince young military service members to begin saving early. From a <em>Federal Times</em> <a href=http://www.federaltimes.com/article/20100421/BENEFITS03/4210305/1001>article</a>:
Ideas
Risk Lessons from the Ash Cloud
Managing risk is the job of government, and arguably the central mission of any agency, as Robert Charette wrote in a Government Executive <a href=http://www.govexec.com/features/0309-01/0309-01s2.htm>March 2009 feature</a>.
Digital Government
FDA and Regulating E-health Records
Lurking behind the movement toward electronic health records has been the idea of which federal agency should regulate the digital files. Or, IF an agency should. At the Wednesday meeting of a Health and Human Services Department advisory panel, a representative from the Food and Drug Administration, which regulates medical devices, explained why the agency hadn't pursued EHRs. From a <em>Government Health IT</em> report on the meeting:
Cybersecurity
Cyberattacks From Brazil?
Although most of the government-targeted cyberattacks that occurred last year were launched from China, targeted Chinese cyberattacks were actually less likely to be directed at governments than those launched from Brazil, said a cybersecurity analyst.
Digital Government
The Cloudy Future of Federal Leadership
The Senior Executives Association released a <a href=http://www.seniorexecs.org/fileadmin/user_upload/Professional_Development/Research/Taking_the_Helm/Full_Report.pdf>report</a> on "Taking the Helm: Attracting the Next Generation of Federal Leaders." The group surveyed GS-14 and GS-15 managers to find out their attitudes about moving up to top positions in government, the Senior Executive Service, which includes some important tech posts. The bottom line can be found in Finding 5:
Cybersecurity
When to Discuss Security Publicly?
When is it appropriate to talk about security issues in a public forum? Pennsylvania's (former) chief information officer Bob Maley found out - or at least learned when it isn't.
Digital Government
Technology's Bargaining Chip
The Federal Managers Association's new president, Patricia Niehaus, told <em>Federal Times</em> in an <a href=http://www.federaltimes.com/article/20100416/BENEFITS01/4160305/1001>interview</a> this month that technology could play a role in bargaining, but not to the extent of dictating what an agency should buy. An excerpt from the interview:
Ideas
Cold? No, Warm, NOAA Explains
If you thought all that snow and cold in February knocked a gaping hole in the climate change theory, the scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration have some data that helps us decipher what went on. It turns out, according to the agency, that February was the sixth warmest ever recorded. It just didn't feel that way to those living in most of the United States, Mexico and Europe. The above <a href=http://www.nnvl.noaa.gov/MediaDetail.php?MediaID=390&MediaTypeID=1>image</a> says it all.
Ideas
So Much for a Recession Dividend
One of the few -- and I mean few -- positives that occurred during the recession was a predicted <a href=http://wiredworkplace.nextgov.com/2010/03/silicon_valley_losing_its_luster.php>shift of tech talent</a> from the private to the more stable public sector, where it is difficult to bring in top talent. It didn't last long. <a href=http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304628704575186362957042220.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_LEFTWhatsNewsCollection>From <em>The Wall Street Journal</em> on Thursday</a>:
Digital Government
Workers' View of Security? It's Scarier
When it comes to cybersecurity, lower level government employees are far more worried about the porous nature of federal networks than their top executives, according to a survey released this week. And the differences are stark and wide ranging.
Digital Government
On the Hook for Bad Systems
House members introduced a Defense Department acquisition bill on Wednesday that would directly impact procurement workers -- and some aren't too happy about it. Some of the provisions in the IMPROVE Acquisition Act are particularly tough for financial managers. According to a Government Executive <a href=http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=45033&dcn=todaysnews>article</a>:
Digital Government
What Meaningful Use Can Do
Meaningful use is still being debated in Washington, but its possible impacts on health delivery and outcomes already are being discussed. John Halamka, chief information officer at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and CIO at Harvard Medical School, has some ideas and does about as good a job in clearly identifying them.
Cybersecurity
Passwords as Easy as 123
For a peak into what passwords people choose - and just how easy they are to break - check out <a href="http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/articles/2010/04/11/passwords_we_love/">this article</a> the <em>Boston Globe</em> published on April 11. (It accompanied a <a href="http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/articles/2010/04/11/please_do_not_change_your_password/">larger article</a> on a study that concluded the cost of changing passwords outweighs the benefits - another interesting read.) A security firm analyzed 32 million passwords stolen from the social applications producer called RockYou and posted online. (A hacker had broken into the system in December 2009.) The most popular passwords were a form of 123456. And No. 4 on the list? "Password."
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