VA IG Blasts IT disaster caused by centralization efforts
Roger A Maduro
VA's Inspector General has just released a blistering report blasting away at
the disastrous reorganization of the VA. The report puts the blame on
McFarland and his successors.
It uses extraordinarily strong language.
Articles and IG report attached.
This ought to be most interesting...
Cheers,
Roger
----------------------
Auditor blasts VA for poor IT management and oversight
Bob Brewin, Nextgov, June 1, 2009
http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20090601_9856.php
The Veterans Affairs Department does not have the ability to manage and ensure
effective oversight of its investments in information technology, which will
total about $3.5 billion in fiscal 2010, the department's inspector general
said in a report released on May 29.
Until the department's Office of Information and Technology develops
procedures to better manage IT projects, VA will have little assurance that it
has made the appropriate investment decisions and that it will make the best
use of its IT dollars, the IG reported.
The report traced the management and oversight problems to 2006, when Robert
McFarland, then the chief information officer at VA, changed the department's
management of IT from a decentralized model to a centralized one. VA's IT
budget decisions were brought under the leadership of the CIO, who also holds
the title of assistant secretary for information and technology.
-------------------------
Report: VA's IT plans threaten health care services
Peter Buxbaum, Government Health IT, June 08, 2009
http://govhealthit.com/articles/2009/06/08/ig-questions-va-it-
plans.aspx?s=GHIT_090609
Inadequate planning has thrown information technology projects at the Veterans
Affairs Department into disarray and jeopardizes VA’s ability to provide
veterans with timely, adequate health care services and benefits, the
department’s inspector general said.
In a report issued May 29, the IG blames the situation on a 2006 initiative
that sought to centralize VA’s IT management. The IG said VA's Office of
Information and Technology did not adequately plan for the transition, which
has led to lax management controls and oversight.
Specifically, the Replacement Scheduling Application (RSA), a $167 million
project to develop an automated system for scheduling patient appointments at
VA health facilities, had not developed a single scheduling capability it
could field, the report states. VA officials suspended the program earlier
this year and are now studying alternatives.
The IG also took VA to task for its management of HealtheVet, which will
replace the Veterans Health Information Systems and Technology Architecture,
the VA’s longstanding electronic health record. VA officials did not have a
comprehensive project management plan, the report states, noting that the
target for HealtheVet’s completion had slipped from 2012 to 2018.
--
Roger A. Maduro
LxIS
117 Davis Ave. SW
Leesburg, VA 20175
(571) 217-6921
K.S. Bhaskar
-- Bhaskar
On Jun 9, 2:47 pm, Roger A Maduro <ramad...@lxis.com> wrote:
> All,
>
> VA's Inspector General has just released a blistering report blasting away at
> the disastrous reorganization of the VA. The report puts the blame on
> McFarland and his successors.
>
> It uses extraordinarily strong language.
>
> Articles and IG report attached.
>
> This ought to be most interesting...
> Cheers,
> Roger
>
> ----------------------
> Auditor blasts VA for poor IT management and oversight
> The Veterans Affairs Department does not have the ability to manage and ensure
> effective oversight of its investments in information technology, which will
> total about $3.5 billion in fiscal 2010, the department's inspector general
> said in a report released on May 29.
>
> Until the department's Office of Information and Technology develops
> procedures to better manage IT projects, VA will have little assurance that it
> has made the appropriate investment decisions and that it will make the best
> use of its IT dollars, the IG reported.
>
> The report traced the management and oversight problems to 2006, when Robert
> McFarland, then the chief information officer at VA, changed the department's
> management of IT from a decentralized model to a centralized one. VA's IT
> budget decisions were brought under the leadership of the CIO, who also holds
> the title of assistant secretary for information and technology.
>
> -------------------------
> Report: VA's IT plans threaten health care services
> < 1KViewDownload
