Helping build a statewide health information exchange network of networks in Wisconsin

We are a mobile society and consumers’ access to quality health care should reflect this. A statewide network that connects physicians, clinics, hospitals, pharmacies and clinical labs offers the promise of secured access to protected health information at the ready no matter where the health care consumer seeks care. The promise is more effective health care, patient safety and better outcomes. These efforts, of which WHIE plays a key role, are being driven by several organizations in health care.

Wisconsin Statewide Health Information Network (WISHIN) is the state designated entity charged with overseeing implementation of a secure statewide health information network and information-sharing services. Leveraging past investment and regional expertise, WISHIN is building a network of health information exchanges, like WHIE’s growing network. For this initiative, the Wisconsin Health Information Exchange serves as the technical manager, responsible for providing DIRECT Secure Messaging and health information exchange application services. It is this secure email system that allows providers (physicians, laboratories, hospitals, long term care and skilled nursing facilities, etc.) to share a patient’s medical history including lab results, discharge summaries, Continuity of Care Document, and other important information as attachments and in secure Direct Messages (secure health specific e-mail) with other providers involved in caring for that patient—even if those providers are not part of the same practice or health system and without a need for a paper record to be produced. It can also be used to send messages to Personal Health Records. Such messages may be related to patient referrals, discharge summaries and other messages that may be faxed today. Learn more at WISHIN’s website. Are you looking for the NIMI Request for Bid 2011-2013? Learn more.

Since 2009, the Wisconsin Health Information Technology Extension Center (WHITEC) has been the federally designated organization to provide education and technical assistance to small and independent primary care practices to help them implement electronic health records and achieve “meaningful use” of the data – that is sharing the information when and where it is needed. Learn more about WHITEC’s programs and resources at their website.

The changing role of hospital emergency departments

In health care today, the emergency department is no longer just the site where acutely ill people seek care. ER departments now serve as the primary care provider for many who have no primary doctor and no health insurance. In addition, emergency care physicians are coordinating care for people who have chronic medical conditions, particularly the elderly. More troubling, recent growth in the use of ER departments has been driven, not by the uninsured or under insured but by individuals with private insurance – 40% of all visits. This growth might be due to difficulty in scheduling primary care appointments, individuals viewing the ER as a convenient alternative or changing consumer perception of what constitutes the need for emergency care. Find a research report by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation in the Document Library.

Because of these trends, competitive regional health care systems shared growing concern over increased utilization, the risk of diminishing quality of care and financial impacts due to this increased demand. The Wisconsin Health Information Exchange’s efforts thus initially focused with ER departments. Successful in ER departments, the exchange has expanded into ambulatory settings and is expanding to include Medicaid Managed Care Organizations. Learn more about ED Linking.