DeSalvo Taking On Dual Roles?
By Christine Kern, contributing writer
ONC Update will continue to maintain leadership of ONC while concurrently serving as ASH.
Reports of Karen DeSalvo’s departure from HHS were premature according to Health IT Buzz. While DeSalvo has, indeed, been chosen by Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell to serve as Acting Assistant Secretary of Health (ASH), HHS is indicating DeSalvo will also maintain her leadership at ONC.
The new role serves to provide assistance in matters of public health, particularly the current Ebola response efforts now in the public eye.
The blog post states DeSalvo will “continue to work on high level policy issues at ONC, and ONC will follow the policy direction that she has set. She will remain the chair of the Health IT Policy Committee; she will continue to lead on the development and finalization of the Interoperability Roadmap; and she will remain involved in meaningful use policymaking. She will also continue to co-chair the HHS cross-departmental work on delivery system reform.”
The blog announcement comes as growing concern over the future of ONC’s interoperability framework and other initiatives has been called into questions by the seeming revolving door of leadership at the agency in recent months.
Modern Healthcare reported the response of physician informaticist Joseph Schneider, chief medical information officer and medical director of clinical information at Baylor Health Care System, who said of the blog announcement, “I suspect, with all the hue and cry that came up out of it, they backpedaled and said they didn’t really mean it that way – she (DeSalvo) really is the coordinator. There was a crisis of confidence.”
As if to underscore the ONC’s stability amidst the turnovers, the blog post states, “But most importantly, the team that is ONC is far more than one or two leaders. The team of ONC is personified in each and every individual – all part of a steady ship and a strong and important part of HHS’ path toward delivery system reform and overall health improvement.”
Although Schneider expressed his pleasure that DeSalvo will retain leadership over the ONC, he also expressed concern that her attention will be divided between the two roles. “If you give people too many things to do, they don’t get done terribly well.”