1. Healthcare and Technology Engineering careers at Cerner Corporation Frank Rydzewski Senior Software Architect – Cerner Corporation
2. Background 1999: University of Pennsylvania Bachelor’s Degree in Biological Basis of Behavior 1999-2001: Research Assistant & Student University of Iowa 2001: University of Iowa Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science 2002-Present: Cerner Corporation Started as a Software Engineer Currently a Senior Software Architect iAware Platform team
4. Cerner’s Mission To contribute to the systemic improvement of health care delivery and health of communities.
5. Cerner at a Glance Founded in 1979, based in Kansas City Lead by 3 founders still with the company Most experienced healthcare IT management Largest standalone healthcare IT company in world Largest, most strategic global client footprint ~9,000 facilities around the world, 2,600 hospitals 3,500 physician practices covering more than 30,000 physicians 500 ambulatory facilities 800 home-health facilities 1,600 retail pharmacies. 9,000+ Associates Worldwide Over 3,500 in Professional / Managed Services Over 2,000 person Intellectual Property (IP) Organization
6. Impacting Health Care through technology Who are our clients? Hospitals and Health Systems Physician Practices Laboratories, Clinics and Pharmacies Communities and Governments Employers Using Cerner solutions… Clinicians spend more time with patients Enhanced information access for superior care Hospitals reduce errors and waste while improving workflow Consumers better manage their health Employers save money by reducing administrative friction and improving the health of their associates Our Work is proven… Over 7,000 Cerner Millennium solutions live at 1,200 facilities 160,000 total physician users
8. Cerner is Transforming Healthcare Issues with Healthcare today are systemic Efficiency Eliminate waste, reduce variance of outcomes, prevent errors Insurance Uninsured, Availability, Unnecessary friction/costs Community Educate, Promote, Incentivize
9. How Cerner is Transforming Healthcare Innovative Healthcare IT Solutions Cerner is self-insured, as a model on how to improve employer-provided insurance and reduce costs and friction We operate our own on-campus clinics and pharmacies for associates and their families Reduces employer costs & improves associate productivity Cisco Systems recently consulted with Cerner to build their own clinic Community Efforts Kansas City Slimdown Challenge http://kcslimdown.com Focused on improving the health of Kansas City residents
11. Healthcare is Complex – coordinating people Each person below played a some role during the treatment of this patient’s cardiac condition Every interaction presents a risk in the patient’s outcome Keeping everyone aware of changes or updates Unnecessary duplication of effort (clinical tests, forms, billing)
12. Healthcare is Complex – information overload Each participant in the treatment of a patient may be faced with an amazing array of complex interactions, each of which must be documented, managed, and updated flickr.com/nomadicentrepreneur/2327177503
13. Healthcare Technology – Health Records Paper records are still a reality Easy to misread or transcribe something incorrectly Most retailer’s POS systems contain higher tech solutions than some doctors’ offices Huge opportunities for innovation and creative engineering solutions exist throughout healthcare
14. Enter the EMR The EMR (Electronic Medical Record) Also known as a patient’s “Chart” Initially, focus was on putting the data INTO the system Manual entry by user Achieved the goal of eliminating paper charts Data could be shared and more easily retrieved during future visits Eliminate a patient having to fill out the same form repeatedly However, most modern medical treatments are complex – remember our NICU patient! Dozens of people interacting with the data Each requires a different set of data to make their decisions Thousands of data points possibly changing by the second Cost cutting reduces staffing, meaning fewer clinicians per patient
15. Cerner Millennium / Powerchart Electronic Medical Record Started with old character-cell computers Clinical data entry / viewing Multi-tier client-server technology stack Powerchart suite of applications Clinical settings Admissions Billing Focused on recording data and venue-specific views of data Meaningful, but requires a lot of navigation to access all the data you need Goal was to develop a new platform to bring together customized views that show theright data to the right user at the right time
17. Cerner Solutions – iAware Platform System independent Millennium New Cerner Solutions Non-Cerner (vendors/competitors) Device Integration Customizable Applications for a user/role/workflow Collaboratively designed with clinicians Multiple solutions Critical Care Infusion Management Staffing Enterprise Tracking / Capacity
18. Cerner Solutions – innovating “at the edges” Community Web-based solutions that connect individuals in the community with the appropriate caregivers / physicians Link the community together in health-improving efforts kcslimdown.com – competition underway Collaboration between associates and clinician users of Cerner solutions www.ucern.com - blogs, documentation, discussion boards Chart Search “Google” for your EMR Search charts by terms and conditions, not patient names or ids Quickly find information on a related diagnosis or re-visit a previously diagnosed patient Chart Crawling “Crawl” and aggregate clinical information to identify trends in a population (e.g. disease outbreaks identified early)
19. Cerner Solutions – innovating “at the edges” Mobile Windows Mobile, iPad/iPhone, Android Remote access to clinical data Remote interaction with applications Device Connectivity Infusion Pumps Ventilators Barcode scanners Medication Dispensing Real-time data
22. What is Engineering? From Wikipedia: “Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order todesign and buildstructures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of people.”
23. Engineering at Cerner Software Engineer Individuals engaged in the practiceof computer programming System Engineer Individuals engaged in installing and maintaining Cerner software systems Intelligent, pragmatic, critical thinkers who are able to use software and hardware to transform requirements into practical, deliverable, high-quality solutions Work in teams and collaborate Continue learning and applying new knowledge Interact with clients and business partners Deliver on-time, quality solutions
24. Engineering at Cerner Software Development Opportunities Multi-tier application development System support, Client support, and troubleshooting Internal systems, tools, and processes Technologies Java And other JRE scripting languages Server and Client side development Web Services & Development REST, JAX-RS, Client Web Applications HTML, Javascript, Ruby on Rails, Grails Win32 .NET, C#, VC++ Data access Oracle, SQL, CCL (Cerner-developed scripting) Mobile iOS, Windows Mobile,Android Continuing Education Software Conferences Prototyping with new technologies Cerner Knowledgeworks Courses
25. Computer Science at Iowa Absolutely essential if applying for Software Engineering role Recommended coursework: 22C:016 – Computer Science I: Fundamentals 22C:019 – Discrete Structures 22C:021 – Computer Science II: Data Structures 22C:022 (OO Software Dev) and/or 22C:031 (Algorithms) http-//xkcd.com/927/
26. Cerner Velocity The Velocity Associate Development Program provides the training necessary for associates to become effective and experienced contributors to Cerner clients and organizations. Velocity Programs Business Consultant Delivery Consultant System Engineer Software Engineer
27. Velocity System Engineer System Engineers oversee implementation and/or support of Cerner’s Enterprise Solutions. Velocity System Engineers may be responsible for: Performing processes related to system upgrades, foreign system interfaces and system performance management Consulting with clients to identify problems and provide outcomes Building, refreshing, and maintaining domains Installing and supporting Cerner and/or third-party licensed software Configuring systems for optimal performance Designing and implementing data interfaces with non-Cerner information systems
28. Velocity Software Engineer Software Engineers develop and support Cerner’s leading edge clinical and management information systems. Responsibilities include: Understanding user requirements Providing input to functional design Developing applications Testing and troubleshooting across Cerner’s family of solutions Cerner’s primary programming languages: Java, C Languages (C#, C++, VC), SQL, .NET, JavaScript, Web
29. References Cerner www.cerner.com www.cernercareers.com Cerner in the community Cerner and Cisco Clinic Partnership http://www.ucern.com kcslimdown.com Contact Me http://www.linkedin.com/in/frydzewski frydzewski@cerner.com Follow Cerner Careers www.facebook.com/CernerCareers twitter.com/cernercareers
30. Important Dates 9/29: Engineering Career Fair 10/4-10/7: On-Campus Interviews Sign up for interviews and entry level training programs at: HireaHawk.com
