HealtheConnections - Health Information Exchange is Working in Central New York

SYRACUSE, N.Y., Feb. 22, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Most people would agree that getting the best medical care would be much easier if there was a way to connect all providers. Today, many patients visit more providers than their general practitioner on a regular basis, and healthcare organizations can have difficulty coordinating health information between their various providers. HealtheConnections, a local not-for-profit organization, is making strides toward bridging the healthcare information gap for patients through the accessing, sharing and exchanging of health information amongst the region's connected healthcare delivery and support organizations. HealtheConnections has operated the central New York region's health information exchange (HIE) for the past 6 years.

HealtheConnections is pleased to announce exponential growth in 2016, with providers utilizing more services than ever before throughout the central New York area. HealtheConnections and its participating organizations support one and a half million lives in the 11 counties of central and northern New York. New participating organizations using HealtheConnection's services grew by 27 percent, with 700 at year-end. Users accessing the HIE grew by 63 percent. In fact, of all the region's healthcare providers, 70 percent are taking advantage of HIE services and 60% are contributing patient health information with HealtheConnections.

Patients are also on board with the services offered by HealtheConnections. 1.2 million patients throughout the central New York area have provided consent for their information to be available to authorized parties, up 20 percent. By providing consent, patients grant participating doctors access to their healthcare information if needed, including test results, reducing the potential for unnecessary and/or repeated tests. This also helps to prevent confusion between providers, which can lead to harmful or costly medical mistakes.

Additional statistics include:

• 206 percent growth in clinical patient summaries (CCDs) contributed by providers (340,000 per month)
• 67 percent growth in total clinical documents accessed (over 48,000 per month)
• 62 percent growth in unique patients accessed (over 22,000 per month)
• 34 percent growth in patient consents for provider access (2.5m total)
• 79 percent growth in clinical documents delivered to providers (114,000 per month)

HealtheConnections is fully accredited by the New York State Department of Health, offering numerous free resources that make it much easier for physicians, hospitals, public health and human services organizations, mental health professionals, insurers and consumers to collaborate for improved patient care, improved population health and lower health care costs. When the right information is delivered at the right time, it helps to eliminate errors, duplicative services, medication issues and many other patient and provider benefits. HealtheConnections is a secure, confidential, and integral part of the region's healthcare delivery system.

According to HealtheConnections President Rob Hack, the growth of the organization is encouraging, because it means patients throughout the area are receiving improved, consistent medical care. "Efficiency and accuracy are absolutely essential in healthcare," he says. "We've continued to refine our services to improve provider efficiency, information convenience and office workflows, allowing healthcare professionals to focus on what is most important – the patient."  

To learn more about HealtheConnections, visit their website at www.healtheconnections.org.

About HealtheConnections
HealtheConnections (pronounced "healthy connections") delivers trusted and valued services, which support health care transformation and efficiency initiatives focused on achieving the triple aim of better care, better population health and lower health care costs. HealtheConnections provides health information exchange (HIE) services* and population health improvement support services for the 11 counties of the Central New York region. The name HealtheConnections represents our commitment to engage and collaborate with health care physicians, hospitals, public health, mental and behavior health and human services, and other health care providing entities, insurers, businesses and consumers to deliver regionally valued services and initiatives that support New York state's health information exchange and population health improvement agendas. *HealtheConnections is accredited by NYS Department of Health as a qualified participant of the State Health Information Network of New York (SHIN-NY).

CONTACT: Alicia Schaumberg  
[email protected] 
(315) 671-2241 ext. 260

SOURCE HealtheConnections

Related Links

http://www.healtheconnections.org/