Health Information Exchange is not only to interact, communicate or exchange the health care information among health care organizations, but also to bring health care industry closer to each other.
According to the demand of the health care society, it is being a need to renovate the health care distribution into the proper system, which would be for the betterment and proper care of patients. Just to make health care issues easy for the patients, this is going to upgrade the levels of programs which are authorized by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. To make things more easy and accessible, it is about to provide the better facility of Health Information Exchange.
Health Information Exchange is the arrangement and transmission of health care information electronically among the health care organizations within community, hospital system and region. It is the integral part of health care technology.
Why Health Information Exchange is Important?
Now here the question arises that why health information exchange is important? Definitely for lower cost and improve quality, but on the other hand, most importantly, it is to interact, communicate and exchange the information and also to bring the health industry closer to each other. You can say that Health information exchange is another way to improve and increase communication among health care organizations. HIE helps to decrease the time and distance between people and also provide following benefits.
- The complete health care information of patient can be exchange with other organization within some minutes.
- Health Information Exchange helps to increase the business as well as PR in health care industry
- HIE gives the surety that the given health care information is authentic.
- It also decreases the duplication of services.
Benefits of Health Information Exchange
Health information exchange provides number of benefits to health care organizations which includes;
- The proper way to improve the safety and quality of patient’s care.
- Health information exchange also provides the facility of interoperability between the electronic health record system which is maintained by the individual organizations and physicians.
- HIE also helps public health officials to accomplish with their commitments to the community.
- This is for also giving the facility to efficient deployment of health care services.
Standards for Health Information Exchange
To make the health information exchange possible in the health care industry, the IT community of health issues sets a core of specifications and standards which make the EHR system assist to communicate faultlessly. These standards include;
Step I: Creation of Building Blocks
It has been observed that the discussing the problems with community to come together is a successful way to increase the development of consensus on specifications and standards. The health IT company is working on the standards of HIE to support interoperability.
Step II: To Make Sure about the Standards Agreement
After the development and agreement of standards by the Health IT Company, it must be sure that electronic health records software fulfills the adopted standards to make sure that the hospital organizations and providers are achieving the objectives of meaningful use and measures by the Center of Medicare and Medicaid Services.
Certification from the health information technology, are providing the assurance to its purchasers and other users that the EHR system offers the essential functionality, capability and security which helps them to meet the objectives and measures.
Step III: Implementation
We all have an idea that formation and development of standards of health information exchange is only one part. Without standards, health information exchange is not possible. The early implementations of standards results of spreading the health information exchange solutions, which helps to providers for looking to engage in health information exchange.
Value of Health Information Exchange
Health information exchange valued a lot. It must be understood that the value can be obtained through the properly exchanging of patient’s data. Some of the basic values and importance of HIE is;
- HIE decreases the medical costs.
- It includes the safety and quality of patient care
- It stimulates the personal health records
- Patients have easily access to initiatives of information exchange.
Challenges of Health Information Exchange (HIE)
The health care providers are keeping the computerized health care issues and solutions, but this effort seems useless if they do not get chance to share this health care information with other related organizations. Somehow health information exchange has to face some challenges which includes;
Sharing of data
HIE decreases the administrative costs, by reducing redundant testing, avoid to unnecessary hospitalizations because of efficient visits, missing information, medical reconciliation and others. All these we related to health information exchange.
Patient Authorization
Patient’s authorization is one of the important challenge faces by HIE, because authorization is to check the ability of EMR systems to work among health care organizations and health care technology platforms.
Move Forward
Apart from the challenges, it has been observed that the future of Health information exchange is very vast. It is fortunate to grow positively in the field of health care organizations, might be within 2-3 or 4-5 years.
Future of Health Information Exchange
Over the past several years, health information exchange is being the largest growth area of health care industry. No need to tell that HIE services includes; decreased costs, patient’s outcomes, facilitation of care coordination, patient information.
To continue the success of HIE in coming future; they are supposed to function seamlessly among the participants of community which also includes the EHR providers plus with each other. It is mandatory to HIE to acknowledge the new trends which also include the new type of data collection, so the industry connected with the personal health.