Jun. 3, 2009
Media Contact: Marjorie Musick, mmusick@gmu.edu 703-993-8781
The following George Mason University experts in the areas of health data management and computer security are available to comment on health data administration and electronic medical records.
HEALTH DATA MANAGEMENT
P. J. Maddox
Professor and Chair in the Department of Health Administration and Policy
Expertise: Health Data Systems (Administrative and Clinical) Implementation and Policy, Health Systems Management, Health Workforce Planning
Maddox is a nurse with experience in systems management and health services and policy research. She has working experience in the organizational challenges of health data systems acquisition and can address the promise, perils and pitfalls of health information technology and electronic health records. Maddox can also touch on the challenges and barriers to implementing the President’s mandate for wide-spread adoption and use of electronic health records. She has authored numerous textbook chapters, articles and papers on policy, technology and ethics in health management, applied health services research and health services workforce shortages. Prior to joining Mason, Maddox served as Deputy Director for Nursing and Service Chief at the Clinical Center of the National Institutes of Health.
“Unauthorized use of personal health information can harm an individual’s reputation, employment or ability to get health insurance. Additionally, fear about the fallibility of information systems to protect health data is a barrier to current health reform efforts calling for wide-spread adoption and use of electronic health records to reduce administrative costs and improve the quality and safety of health care,” says Maddox.
Media Contact: Marjorie Musick, 703-993-8781, mmusick@gmu.edu
Tony Yang
Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Administration and Policy
Expertise: Health Law, Policy, and Ethics
Yang is an assistant professor in Mason’s Department of Health Administration and Policy. His current research focuses on legal and policy issues in the health care sector. Prior to joining Mason, Yang worked as a post-doctoral researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He holds a graduate degree in public health and health policy from Harvard University and a law degree from the University of Pennsylvania.
“Electronic medical records systems can integrate evidence-based recommendations for preventive services (such as screening exams) with patient data (such as age, sex, and family history) to identify patients needing specific services. However, all health care professionals and employees with any relationship to patient information are challenged by the issues of confidentiality, privacy, and security, and are now charged with responsibility to protect its access, use, and disclosure,” says Yang.
Media Contact: Marjorie Musick, 703-993-8781, mmusick@gmu.edu
COMPUTER SECURITY
Anup Ghosh
Research Professor and Chief Scientist in the Center for Secure Information Systems
Expertise: Computer Security (Including Software and Operating System Security), Cyber Security, Networking Security, Malicious Code and Software, Virtualization
Ghosh is a research professor and chief scientist in Mason’s Center for Secure Information Systems. He is also the founder of Secure Command, LLC, a start-up developing next generation Internet security products. Ghosh's research focuses on combating malicious software. He has developed novel approaches for securing desktops using virtualization. He is also developing techniques for detecting malicious code within enterprise networks by classifying network traffic flows. Prior to joining Mason, Ghosh was senior scientist and program manager in the Advanced Technology Office of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) where he managed an extensive portfolio of information assurance and information operations programs. He has served as principal investigator on contracts from DARPA, NSA, and NIST's Advanced Technology Program and has written more than 40 peer-reviewed conference and journal articles. Ghosh is also the author of three books on computer network defense.
“It is imperative that organizations create a policy for who is granted access to data stored on servers and plan for how they will protect sensitive data. It's not unusual to outsource servers and data to third parties that often remain obscured behind layers of sub-contracts, so it's important that all parties with access to data be carefully scrutinized and managed,” says Ghosh.
Media Contact: Jennifer Edgerly, 703-993-8699, jedgerly@gmu.edu
Sushil Jajodia
Professor of Information Technology and Director of the Center for Secure Information Systems
Expertise: Information Systems Security, Steganography and Digital Watermarking, Virtual Machines, Malicious Software Protection, Information Assurance, Voice Over IP, Intrusion Detection
Jajodia is a University Professor, BDM International Professor of Information Technology and the director of Mason’s Center for Secure Information Systems. He served as the chair of the Department of Information and Software Engineering from 1998-2002. Jajodia joined Mason after serving as the director of the Database and Expert Systems Program within the Division of Information, Robotics and Intelligent Systems at the National Science Foundation. The scope of his research interests encompasses information secrecy, privacy, integrity and availability problems in military, civil and commercial sectors. He has authored six books, edited thirty books and conference proceedings and published more than 350 technical papers in refereed journals and conference proceedings.
“Moving America’s medical records is without a doubt the only way to go. However, we have to assume that in spite of our efforts, hackers will manage to break into our systems. To protect from this, sensitive data needs to be fragmented and encrypted,” says Jajodia.
Media Contact: Jennifer Edgerly, 703-993-8699, jedgerly@gmu.edu
Khalid Moidu
Associate Professor in the Department of Health Administration and Policy
Expertise: Health Care Informatics, Electronic Health Records, Personal Health Records, Computerized Physician Order Entries, Medical Decision Support Applications, SMARTPHONE Interfaces
Moidu is an associate professor in the Department of Health Administration and Policy where he coordinates graduate education programs that prepare students to serve as applied health information technology professionals. Prior to joining Mason, he was an associate professor of health information systems at Purdue University’s Computer and Information Technology Department. His research has involved the development of an e-Prescribing application, integration of clinical and administrative data systems and clinical data device integration with health information systems. His current research interests include the design and development of modular information applications to support clinicians. Moidu is currently conducting a study to evaluate compliance for a commercial security platform for wireless health applications.
“Today in health care, we use the IT solutions designed for other domains and they fall short. The complex world of health care, in which multiple professionals work in an interdisciplinary team to care for a patient and all need immediate access from multiple locations, poses new challenges. The old castle and moat approach to security needs to be re-designed from the bottom up for health care,” says Moidu.
Media Contact: Marjorie Musick, 703-993-8781, mmusick@gmu.edu
Duminda Wijesekera
Associate Professor of Computer Science
Expertise: Computer Security, Security Policies, Multimedia, Networks, Secure Signaling (Telecom, Railway and SCADA), Avionics, Missile Systems, Web and Theoretical Computer Science
Wijesekera is an associate professor in Mason’s Department of Information and Software Engineering where his research interests include security, multimedia, networks, secure signaling (telecom, railway and SCADA), avionics, missile systems, Web and theoretical computer science. Wijesekera holds courtesy appointments at Mason’s Center for Secure Information Systems, the Center for Command, Control and Coordination, and the Potomac Institute of Policy Studies. Prior to joining Mason, Wijesekera held positions at Honeywell Military Avionics, the University of Minnesota’s Army High Performance Research Center, and the University of Wisconsin.
"Guarding personal health information within electronic medical records, public health records and other health care portals builds patient confidence by empowering patients to decide who has access to their heath-related information. Electronic medical records are important because they bring the required data to care provider's fingertips at the time of need while also satisfying patient consent,” says Wijesekera.
Media Contact: Jennifer Edgerly, 703-993-8699, jedgerly@gmu.edu
Janusz Wojtusiak
Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Administration and Policy
Expertise: Use of Intelligent Systems in Security, Security Education
Wojtusiak is an assistant professor in Mason’s Department of Health Administration and Policy and the director of the GMU Machine Learning and Inference Laboratory. His research interests include health informatics, in particular using artificial intelligence in clinical decision support and knowledge discovery in medical data, machine learning, evolutionary computation, knowledge mining, intrusion detection, and a wide range of applications of these fields in health care.
“Patients need to know that their data is secure. Without full confidence that their health data is accessed only by those whom they permit, and only when they permit it or it is truly necessary, people will not use even the best electronic health records. To achieve this goal, a combination of advanced technological solutions, training of highly qualified personnel, and education of patients is needed. None of these can solve the problem by itself,” says Wojtusiak.
Media Contact: Marjorie Musick, 703-993-8781, mmusick@gmu.edu
About George Mason University
Named the #1 national university to watch by U.S. News & World Report, George Mason University is an innovative, entrepreneurial institution with global distinction in a range of academic fields. Located in the heart of Northern Virginia’s technology corridor near Washington, D.C., Mason prepares its students to succeed in the work force and meet the needs of the region and the world. With strong undergraduate and graduate degree programs in engineering and information technology, dance, organizational psychology and health care, Mason students are routinely recognized with national and international scholarships. Mason professors conduct groundbreaking research in areas such as cancer, climate change, information technology and the biosciences, and Mason’s Center for the Arts brings world-renowned artists, musicians and actors to its stage.
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