The efficient sharing of medical data is key to improving patient care across the country, which is why the federal government has pushed forward the development of the state health information exchange (HIE). Ever since the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act was passed in 2009, the healthcare industry has been adopting certified EHR technology and attempting to improve connectivity among healthcare IT systems as well as develop effective medical data exchange.
To learn more about the progress of health information exchange developments, the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC) has worked with NORC at the University of Chicago to evaluate the program over a handful of years.
In a finalized report called “Provider Experiences with HIE: Key Findings from a Six-State Review,” a summary of healthcare provider interviews detail the priorities and needs of the medical industry, case studies of health information exchange systems, and the challenges overcome during HIE program development.
Between March and May of 2014, the organization conducted site visits as well as general provider interviews and discussions throughout six states, which included Iowa, Mississippi, New Hampshire, Utah, Vermont, and Wyoming. The discussions revolved around viewpoints on state health information exchange programs as well as general attitudes toward medical data exchange.
A wide variety of medical facilities were visited such as long-term care centers, hospital associations, critical access hospitals, and physician organizations. Several key findings were uncovered. For example, HIE needs go beyond meeting meaningful use regulations or system connectivity. Providers now needs HIE systems to proffer important clinical data at the point of care to enhance the delivery of medical services along with care coordination.
“Meaningful use and payment reform are creating new requirements for health IT-enabled information sharing related to care coordination and management as well as new models for patient care,” the report stated. “Providers anticipate a growing need for vendor provided HIE services and infrastructure as expectations for electronic exchange of health information increase under this shift.”
The provider interviews also found that healthcare professionals encountered a variety of obstacles when it comes to advancing health information exchange at their facility. These challenges include competing priorities, difficulty managing the revenue cycle, lack of training or experienced staff, and insufficient support from their EHR or HIE vendors.
Some positive findings from the discussions revolve around the bringing of awareness for state health information exchange programs and the benefits of data sharing. Essentially, providers see the need for health information exchange. While the EHR Incentive Programs may not have targeted long-term care and behavioral health facilities, state HIE programs did further involve the participation of these providers.
“Awareness of and demand for HIE has been steadily increasing throughout the life of the program,” the report concluded. “Providers we spoke with in previous and current activities reported an appreciation for the State HIE Program’s role in communicating with providers of all types, bringing together stakeholders, and communicating the value of HIE. Now that HIE is better established—both in terms of visibility and available services—providers have identified new priorities and challenges. These have evolved from early issues surrounding basic implementation and awareness of the benefits of HIE into a search for solutions to meet greater demand for information, while balancing cost and multiple information exchange priorities.”
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