Health Information Exchange Summary

Health Information Exchange: History The history of the health information exchange (HIE) starts in the 1990’s. It began as an attempt to organize several networks so that they could share patient data with each other. Unfortunately, these attempts were unsuccessful. The main cause of failure for these attempts was that in the 1990’s, almost all of health care providers were paper-based, and these networks were electronically based. There was not much advantage to an electronic exchange system without electronically based data. However, these unsuccessful attempts started to set up the blocks that would be needed in later years. (Morrisey, 2011) In 2001, the HIE concept as we know it today was conceived. The National Committee on Vital Health Statistics published a report in which it recommended a nationwide electronic health information exchange. (AHIMA, n.d.) Under the George W. Bush administration, in 2004 the Department of Health and Human Services created the

These consent forms should be acknowledged, and signed by a patient when services are first rendered to a patient. (Sayles, 2013)

Health Information Exchange: Summary Health information and how it is shared has come a long way from the 1990’s. Most healthcare organizations today are either fully electronic or on their way to becoming fully electronic. This new way of sharing information has benefits that will outweigh any challenges its users may come across. Health information exchanges have the potential to make the quality of care a patient receives better than it has ever been as physicians and support staff have a plethora of information at their fingertips. It truly is an exciting time to be a part of this constantly evolving