IHE concept extends to electronic health records at HIMSS 2005

August 2004 - Integrating the Healthcare Enterprise, the pioneering joint effort between the RSNA and medical informatics association HIMSS to stimulate device interoperability, has moved into the realm of the electronic health record. Attendees at the 2005 Annual Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society Conference & Exhibition will have a hands-on opportunity to create and manage their own online health records.

IHE will enable the interoperability for the showcase demonstrations, which will feature vendor-neutral health information exchange across multiple care settings. IHE began in November 1998 as a collaborative effort to improve the way computer systems in healthcare share critical information. Sponsored today by HIMSS, the American College of Cardiology (ACC), and the RSNA, IHE does not create new standards but instead drives the adoption of existing standards to address specific clinical needs.

"At this showcase, attendees will see the beneficial and leading role IHE plays in the implementation of electronic sharing of healthcare information. The showcase will bring the sometimes abstract concept of a personal electronic health record to reality." said Joyce Sensmeier, R.N., CPHIMS, and director of professional services for HIMSS. "Multiple vendor products that have incorporated the IHE framework and support different components of the electronic health record will create and share simulated patient data that could actually be used in a live health setting."

At the Cross-Enterprise Interoperability Showcase, the IHE will feature the Cross-Enterprise Clinical Document Sharing Integration Profile that enables document linkage and information sharing across acute care (hospital), ambulatory (outpatient) and other care settings.

Documents with simulated patient health information, created onsite as part of an attendee's own health record, will then be accessible in the booths of participating exhibitors to demonstrate the IHE integration capabilities of their products.

Continuity of care records, radiology images, cardiology reports, laboratory results, and the information infrastructure to support security applications will be part of the interoperability demonstration.

AMBULATORY CARE SHOWCASE

With almost a billion patient encounters every year, the ambulatory care setting has grown rapidly in importance, especially in the management of chronic disease as well as in preventive care. Accordingly, the investment in IT for ambulatory care is expected to grow rapidly. Forrester Research forecasts a 22% annual growth for ambulatory EHRs. The Ambulatory Care Showcase will demonstrate a vision for the future as well as the reality of what is available now for automating workflows, improving quality and safety, and increasing cost-effectiveness:

Demonstrations will be based on patient care scenarios, taking attendees through simulated settings that include the patient's home, small physician's office, multispecialty group practice, and freestanding diagnostic center. The scenarios were developed by the HIMSS Ambulatory IT Showcase Task Force to reflect the realities of patient care in the frequently fragmented healthcare delivery environment.

"We know that much of the inefficiency, frustration, and risk in patient care occurs in the gaps as patients move between locations and settings. It is crucial for the hospital to be able to electronically access health information from physician offices, and for offices in turn to be able to see data from hospital stays," said HIMSS medical director Dr. Mark Leavitt. "The Ambulatory Care Showcase at HIMSS gives clinicians an opportunity to see how electronic health records and related applications will work to benefit them and their patients."

Additionally, the showcases will provide information on the latest issues, standards, processes, products, and insights related to U.S. initiatives in support of the framework for strategic action. This framework is under the direction of Dr. David Brailer, National Coordinator of Health Information Technology.

The upcoming workshop, Deploying Interoperability in the Real World, held Sept. 13 to 15 at the Marriott Oak Brook in Oak Brook, IL, will present the IHE approach to implementing standards-based interoperability solutions. For more information, visit www.rsna.org/IHE/participation/.