Health Information Exchange (HIE)
From an editorial in the Jan. 31, 2011, issue of The Boston Globe, this real-life scenario is all too typical. Providers make decisions absent easy access to a patient’s complete medical history as well as guidelines, best practices, checklists and scientific findings that support them in providing the best possible care to patients.
Once electronic health records become nearly ubiquitous, the information within them will enable new applications and services geared toward better population health management, says National Coordinator for Health IT Farzad Mostashari, MD.
The opt-in legislation for Maine's health information exchange was met with "clear opposition" by providers throughout the state, but a revised version that is pending the governor's approval, would make it a mandate that providers who are participating in the HIE provide their patients with a separate form to opt-out.
No matter what happens politically or in policy circles, "seismic shifts" are going to occur in healthcare, and IT needs to be a major part of reshaping the landscape, according to H. Stephen Lieber, president and CEO of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS).
As radiologists struggle with whether meaningful use is relevant to them or worth the IT investment, experts are working to educate them on why it matters.
The Medicaid subsidiary of New Jersey’s largest healthcare insurer, Horizon Healthcare Services, is rolling out a new provider communications portal aimed at making communications between physicians and insurer easier and more efficient.
"Historically, telehealth hasn't received the attention that it's deserved from the federal government," says Neal Neuberger, executive director of the Institute for e-Health Policy and president of Health Tech Strategies. A case in point is the government's meaningful use program.
Earlier this spring, Maine State Sen. Roger Katz (R-Augusta), introduced a bill to the Legislature's Committee on Health and Human Services titled “An Act To Ensure Patient Privacy and Control with Regard to Health Information Exchanges.”
To the healthcare executives who attended the American Telemedicine Association’s 2011 conference last month, the sight of a 3-year-old adopted Chinese orphan playing on stage was enough to prove the value of their pursuits.
Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital and Western Connecticut Health Network’s Danbury Hospital were recently recognized for their use of IT to bring meaningful data to their physicians, leading to a boost in hospital efficiency and millions in savings without compromising patient care.