April 2010

Spotlight on CFHC’s IT Department

Whether we are talking about converting the organization’s computers to the domain or our upcoming electronic health record implementation, it is safe to say that there are a lot of technical changes happening at Chicago Family Health Center. Ever wonder who the person behind the scenes is, in charge of all of these technical changes and making sure the job is getting done? Meet CFHC’s Chief Information Officer, Jim Socha.

Jim joined the Chicago Family Health Center staff in June 2009 to manage our IT department. He will be overseeing the implementation of our new Electronic Health Records system as well as the conversion of all computers to the domain. As if that weren’t enough, Jim also maintains the server—that’s when your computer crashes and he goes to the origin — the server — to see what the problem may be. Jim handles the organization’s Finance Accounting System, and the patient intake interface. He comes to CFHCwith a strong background in technical support and management of IT systems. Most recently, Jim served as the CIO/IT Director at Family Christian Health Center where one of Jim’s primary responsibilities was to implement an EPM/EMR system. Jim was also responsible for the design, implementation and support of all technology systems and HIPAA compliance software.

Another aspect of our IT department is performance improvement. The objective of the performance improvement team is to monitor all department data reports to help increase quality of care and to report that data to our internal and external audiences.

With the help of a highly qualified staff, Jim and his IT department help ensure that a day’s work at Chicago Family Health Center is centralized and seamless. Below, is a brief profile of our IT team:

Mike Guerra, Networks
One face I am sure everyone is familiar with around here is Mike Guerra. He is a network specialist in CFHC’s IT department. Mike has many responsibilities in his position, but one of the most important functions of his position is to make sure that all computer systems are operational for day-to-day business. Mike officially joined the staff of Chicago Family Health Center four years ago, but before becoming a full-time employee he worked for two and a half years as our IT contractor. Mike has been in the IT industry for 10 years and he even owned his own computer repair service company, Intratech Computers and Boulevard Computers in Hammond, Ind. Mike’s hobbies are computers, of course, and going to the gym. His most memorable CFHC event is when the South Chicago building was finally completed and CFHC finally had an official IT department.

Stefanie Opasinski, Performance Improvement Coordinator
Stefanie joined the CFHC family in July of 2009 shortly after receiving her Master’s in Public Health Administration from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She was born and raised in Arlington Heights, Ill. and received her undergraduate degree from Bradley University. Stefanie has been in the healthcare field for three years and prior to joining CFHC she worked for the American Hospital Association in downtown Chicago and at Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights. With her free time, one of Stefanie’s favorite things to do is travel. One of her favorite trips was a two-week trip to Italy where she enjoyed sampling the local cuisine and visiting multiple cities in the beautiful country of Italy. Although she has many notable quotes that she considers her favorite, the one that she uses most readily is: “If you don’t know, now you know” – The Notorious B.I.G.

Reuben Louis Rosario, Performance Improvement Specialist
Reuben is a seasoned staff member at Chicago Family Health Center. He will meet his four year mark in December. Along with the rest of the IT department, he is stationed at South Chicago but would like to give a shout out to his fellow employees at Pullman, which is where he was stationed when he first began working for CFHC. Before he joined CFHC, Reuben worked as a Research Specialist at Target where he was in charge of a three person team that digitally inventoried stock. He has been in the technological field for three years now and is currently attending the University of Advancing Technology, working towards a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science so he can become a computer programmer. Reuben has a ton of hobbies like scenario paintball, playing a musical instrument and getting into interactive entertainment. Although he has been with CFHC for three and half years, his most memorable CFHC moment was just last December when he got to his work station in the South Chicago medical records room to find a mistletoe hanging above his seat. Reuben still hasn’t figured out who put the mistletoe at his work station, but in line with his favorite saying from the Queens of the Stone Age: “I can go with the flow.”

Javier Salazar, Senior IT Specialist
Another familiar face at CFHC is our Senior IT Specialist, Javier Salazar. Javier assists Jim with many IT related projects such as planning for network design, assisting in clinical database reporting, and in many instances he works hand-in-hand assisting Mike in networking computer issues. We all know how busy and hectic our IT department can get, especially now with the conversion of domains in full swing and EHR implementation just around the corner. For that reason, we were unable to catch up with Javier to get his personal insight on his role at CFHC and to learn about his personal likes and dislikes. But stay tuned, we hope to catch up with him soon so you can read about him in another issue.