Health Information Exchange (HIE)

In a HIMSS25 preview, Muhammad Babar, management information systems officer for the Pakistan Ministry of Health, notes healthcare technology hurdles the ministry has faced and how it's strengthening the country's health information systems.

Janice Reese, program manager of FAST (FHIR at Scale Task Force), says making patient access simpler is a key benefit, along with identity consent and security.

The court battle with Particle Health highlights how national health information exchange networks rely on a chain of trust that can be broken, jeopardizing patient privacy under HIPAA.

A health analytics company is partnering with pharma to allow patients to unify their health information across multiple providers. By leveraging artificial intelligence, the DTP platform analyzes medical records and makes recommendations. 

In its second Data Usability Implementation Guide, the TEFCA coordinator's data usability workgroup defines health information exchange priorities that can be readily adopted within 18 months.

Indian Health Service moves forward on interoperability by selecting the health information network as its designated QHIN under the national agreement.

The Ministry of Health has secured their commitment to integrate patient data with the national EHR starting next year.

The Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response will be surveying agencies to assess the readiness of state, local, tribal and territorial public health organizations to manage cyber threats and gauge their needs for support.

EHR customers could take part in the direct sharing of health information – including X-rays and MRIs – between providers, payers, government agencies and others under the TEFCA nationwide interoperability framework.

Through a successful referral coordination pilot with Epic, MedAllies, OCHIN and others, doctors can receive automated updates on their behavioral health referrals, regardless of their EHR, while reducing mental health clinicians' burdens.