Hospitals, provider groups, post-acute care facilities and home care agencies are using Health Information Exchange (HIE) to improve the way in which patient care is coordinated.
View the links below to learn more about healthcare organizations that are using HIEs to improve communication among care providers, reduce hospital readmissions, improve patient care and support Meaningful Use objectives.
When Milford Regional Medical Center learned that one of its patient had been admitted to the hospital 11 times in the same calendar year, it knew it needed to find a way to reduce unnecessary readmissions. Part of the problem was that patients transitioned out of the hospital and into other care settings were given paper instructions that are often difficult to track and never made it to the next care setting. Through a grant provided by the Massachusetts eHealth Institute (MeHI), MRMC is working with a skilled nursing facility and a home care outfit to swap out its nebulous paper system in favor of an electronic one. The partnership will rely on the state's health information exchange (HIE), the Mass HIway.
Learn MoreUMass Memorial Health Care (UMass) and Milford Regional Medical Center (MRMC) launched their connection to the Massachusetts Health Information Highway (Mass HIway) in May when MRMC began sending patient lab results electronically to UMass, an achievement that represents a significant step forward for secure and efficient transfer of patient information in Massachusetts and better overall care outcomes.
Learn MoreHeywood Hospital and Gardner Visiting Nurse Association (GVNA) have developed a strong care delivery partnership. Their care coordination improved because the two organizations committed to sharing patient lab results electronically through the Massachusetts Health Information Highway (Mass HIway), the statewide health information exchange (HIE).
Learn MoreThe Massachusetts Health Information Highway (Mass HIway) has reached a new milestone with its first HISP to HISP connection, an achievement that immediately benefits patients and providers at a group of Winchester, Mass.-area health care organizations and lays the groundwork for similar connections across the Commonwealth that can improve care quality through the secure and efficient transfer of electronic patient information.
Learn MoreBrigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) often requires specialists to come from Boston Children’s Hospital (BCH) to evaluate and consult on patients in the BWH Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). During this process, consultant notes are generated and must be sent between the two hospitals. A new process was implemented to share information using the Mass HIway.
Learn MoreWhen the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) selected the Mount Auburn Cambridge Independent Physician Association (MACIPA) and Mount Auburn Hospital as a Pioneer Accountable Care Organization (ACO) in 2012, MACIPA Chief Information Officer Paul Sawyer and his team knew a bold, multi-faceted health IT strategy would be a key factor to becoming an ACO.
Learn MoreFour unaffiliated healthcare providers in the Merrimack Valley region of Massachusetts came together in a collaborative effort to solve a care coordination challenge through the use of Health Information Exchange (HIE) technology for their Community of Care. Their health IT strategic vision was to enhance care coordination by securely sharing of electronic patient data. This particular Community of Care consists of four providers, including the Home Health VNA, Lawrence General Hospital, Pentucket Medical Associates, and the Greater Lawrence Family Health Center, who started working together to address a clear long-standing logistical challenge: the ambulatory care providers did not receive notification when one of their patients visited Lawrence General’s Emergency Center.
Learn MoreAt Holyoke Medical Center, CIO Carl Cameron and his team have created a community health exchange includes a secure repository for patient data. The key is patients are in control, and can opt-in or opt out in deciding which providers can access their data. The initiative is streamlining the flow of information, making it easier for providers and Holyoke Medical Center to coordinate on care.
Learn MoreHebrew SeniorLife, a 110-year-old national senior services leader dedicated to rethinking, researching and redefining the possibilities of aging, effective care transitions are key to the health of its senior population. Ensuring that patients’ health information follows them across the care continuum is enabled through a broad health IT program that bridges multiple care settings.
Learn MoreCaring for the homeless population is among the most challenging jobs in the medical profession. The point of care range can from a health center to, sadly, a city street corner or park bench. Furthermore, many homeless need to worry about finding their next meal, staying safe and securing a place to sleep before focusing on getting treatment for an illness or heading in for a regular check-up. The Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program is using ingenuity and innovation to help care for what is arguably the city's most vulnerable population. Doctors and other health care providers armed with tablets and laptops take to the streets to bring care directly to the patients. The electronic health record is a key component of keeping track of this largely transient population. See what BHCHP is innovating in this success story.
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