VETERANS’ HEALTH CARE - Preliminary Observations on VHA’s Claims Processing Delays and Efforts to Improve the Timeliness of Payments to Community Providers
existing VA care in the community programs, as required by law, the agency said it will examine strategies for improving the timeliness and accuracy of its payments to community providers ... VHA’s timeliness in processing claims; (3) community providers’ experiences; and (4) VHA’s recent actions and plans to improve its claims processing and payment timeliness. To conduct its ongoing work ... in geographic location, performance, and workload); reviewed VHA documents and 156 claims from those 4 locations; and interviewed officials from VHA, Medicare, TRICARE, and selected community providers and state ... Data processing hold back by technology limitation, workload and administrative burden ... US GAO analyzed all factors of slower processing and user unfriendliness that occur sometimes to the veterans healthcare. The main focus is data processing - and it has been proved that it can ... be failing not only because of technology, but also because of work-process design, staff and organisation.
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Audit on the broadband internet infrastructure access
Poland has been granted over PLN 4 billion from the European Regional Development Fund to build the broadband internet access infrastructure. As part of three operational programmes 90 percent ... of assumed financing was contracted, namely PLN 3.9 billion. By the end of 2015, Poland should complete the investment and account for the expenses. According to NIK there is a risk that the infrastructure ... construction will not be completed by the deadline and the EU funds may not be used to the full. ... ... Simpler regulations and better supervision needed ... Polish SAI audited a project, which aim had been to develop broadband internet network across the country. They revealed that legal obstacles, idleness and lack of supervision were the main causes ... of delays. Some of the projects are in danger of not being completed on time and some of the EU funds may not be fully used.
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Informatisation of hospitals
The goals of the audit were: 1. Assesment to what degree service providers are prepared to implement the electronic health information system. 2. Assessment of government activities related ... to the construction of the health information system within the framework of the "Healthcare Informatisation Program" ... ... Sometimes it is really not about the money.. ... Informatisation of healthcare is one of the most money-consuming IT activities of the State. Polish NIK shows how a poor concept can delay modernization of hospitals. The new IT system was expected ... to take some burden off doctors, streamline medical care, prevent fraud and improve efficiency. But will it be created at all?
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Public access point to the Polish e-Administration
Coordinated audit series (46 auditees) focused on a web solution applied to give an easy access to Government e-services (the project planned to be completed in 2013) The audit was performed in 2008 ... and public report issued in March 2009. Primary goal of th presentation was intended to illustrate the use of 'e-Government Algorithm' elaborated by EUROSAI IT Working Group in 2005. One of issues mede better ... known by the audit was 'Project Frameworks vs Public Procurement'. ... ... Buyer, provider and methodologies need a balance ... Presentation based on a vast audit by Polish SAI which subject was of big network project aiming to provide one access point to Government and Selfgovernments services. The presentation illustrates ... old EUROSAI IT Wg 'Algorithm approach' and focuses on procurement systemic problems.
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Performance Audit of Public Debt Management Information Systems
and External Financing Department – Ministry’s organizational unit responsible for public debt management. Audit team evaluated the activities of the IT service provider - LEPL Financial-Analytical Service ... The usage and development of the information technologies in public financial management is an important priority of the country at the phase of intensive implementation of electronic governance ... (E-Governance). The fact that information systems play crucial role in the business processes of the Ministry of Finance affects the state and the public in general. <br/> Bearing in mind the role and importance ... ... More effective IT governance needed ... Importance of effective performance of public debt management e-systems may be explained by the world’s increased dependence on such systems. In parallel with the performance audit of debt management ... information systems of the Ministry Of Finance of Georgia, Supreme Audit Institutions of 11 countries also studied this topic, both in terms of systems’ performance and their practical application by local ... financial institutions. Audit conducted by the State Audit Office of Georgia has revealed security and governance shortcomings related to management and usage of these systems.
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Management of Information Resources of the Ministry of the Interior
works is being implemented7 and the Information Technology and Communications Department under the Ministry of the Interior was appointed one of the four public IT service providers. <br/> The purpose ... Many activities of the Ministry of the Interior require the use of information resources that are of great significance to the entire State, such as the state and departmental registers, and public ... information systems. Whereas the Ministry has failed to implement some of the public audit recommendations of 2007 and 2010,6 we analysed, whether there have been any positive changes in the field of IT ... ... Process maturity examination can help in IT audit ... Main risk areas in case of this audit were strategic and organisational - Ministry’s weak ownership of IT resources, insufficient audit and internal control function. SAI Lithuania auditors found ... also flaws in change management and security processes. But the finding, which gave them the key to the root cause of problems, was connected with maturity assessment of the auditee's IT processes.
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Effectiveness of the execution of the eHealth project
The Court of Audit of the Republic of Slovenia has audited how effectively the Ministry of Health had managed the project eHealth - the national plan for developing information system support ... to the national public health system in the period between 1st of January 2004 and 26th of September 2013. The audit has focused on the effectiveness of the Ministry in achieving the project’s goals, time ... management, management of the human resources and financial oversight. The goal of the Ministry was to implement a modern information system, which would support secure eHealth operations and effective ... ... Clear concept, good planning and financial control are indispensable conditions for a successful IT project ... The Court of Audit of the Republic of Slovenia analysed a Government eHealth project. Its goal was to implement a modern information system, which would support the health services and health related ... data. The Court has pointed at a long list of project management fundamentals to be corrected.
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Correct information at the right time in healthcare and nursing – collaboration without effect?
The Swedish National Audit Office has conducted an audit to determine whether Government initiatives have contributed to the objective that authorised healthcare staff shall have access to the right ... patient information at the right time by means of direct electronic access. ... ... Information share is crucial for competitive health care ... Health and social care staff has very limited access to patient information from other care-giving institutions, which may lead to health damage and wrong-treatment. The cooperation between ... the Government and the municipalities must improve if the investments in better access to common patient information shall get impact in practice.
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Parallel Audit on Biometric Passports - Overall Results (anonymised)
A biometric passport (or ePassport) contains biometric information which serves to authenticate the identity of travellers. Biometric passport management is the process of establishing ... and implementing the regulation on standards for security features and biometrics in passports and travel documents issued by the member states. The aim is to develop and maintain efficient and secure biometric ... passport production procedures (see page 5). ... EUROSAI ITWG: Parallel Audit on Biometric Passports ... Swiss SAI summed up results of audits concluded in seven countries (Belgium, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Portugal, Switzerland). The evaluation of the reported results showed that the overall passport ... process is generally under control while a couple of high-risk findings were identified in the non-process-specific assessments. In the non-process-specific assessments, most of the countries found ... deficiencies and weaknesses related to the IS/IT system and the IT management. Medium risks have been identified in the area of laws and regulations, cost-benefit realisation and transparency, as well
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Activities of the state in implementing the e-health system - Do the state, doctors and patients benefit from ehealth?
Estonia’s population is aging and the share of elderly people is increasing, as fewer children are being born and people are living longer. This creates a constantly growing need for health ... and social services and patients are also becoming more and more demanding about the volume and quality of the services provided. The more extensive and systematic implementation of e-health solutions helps ... make the health system more efficient, improves people’s health via more effective prevention, raises the awareness of patients and also contributes to the more reasonable use of health resources ... ... Why state, doctors and patients do not benefit from e-Health as much as they could? ... The report reviews whether the objectives set to the e-Health – ambitious multiyear program of Estonian Government - have been achieved. They are: higher quality of the health service and more ... efficient organisation of health care. As SAI Estonia found out, wide range problems started from two basic points: lack of strategic manager and unrealisitc schedule.
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