Your Health

Health IT means that emergency room doctors will have access to crucial information when every second counts.

It means your elderly mother will be able to visit specialists without carrying all her records from physician to physician.

It means your child’s allergy information will be accurately recorded with any new doctor he visits.

It means your lab results, prescriptions, radiology reports, images, immunizations, allergies, and medical history, will all be securely, privately, and immediately available to the doctor who is treating you, when you both need it most.

It means lives are saved.

Healthcare is changing dramatically. It’s happening now, and its effects will touch the lives of all New Yorkers.
 

Health information technology refers to a variety of tools and computer programs that help securely store, organize, and exchange health information. One of the most important health IT tools is the electronic health record, often referred to as an EHR.
 

Electronic health records substitute those paper records, usually kept in files in a doctor’s office, for immediately accessible data stored in electronic form.  Most healthcare providers still keep patient data in paper form, but many are making the shift to digital records. And it’s changing the way medicine works.

We expect to be able to access our bank account immediately from anywhere in the world, let alone within our city or state. But for our medical information, we often have to wait hours, days, or weeks to access the sort of data that may be needed to save our life.

It was once almost impossible to imagine having secure access to all the complex information about a patient with just a few clicks of a mouse. With paper records, a patient’s information is accessible to only those within physical reach of those files. If a patient needs results of a test sent from one specialist to another, they must be faxed, emailed, or carried from doctor to doctor by the patient himself.  This makes the life of the patient more difficult, and forces a physician to wait for something that may require immediate attention.
 

Yes. For a patient on a routine visit, the immediate availability of their records can mean more one-on-one time with their doctor, and less time waiting while background information is collected. For those patients with chronic conditions who require careful monitoring, and those who must see more than one doctor on a regular basis, health IT means that many disparate records can be stored in one place, so each healthcare provider will have access to the most up-to-date information.

When visiting a new doctor, many patients still sit with a clipboard and enter the dates of all of their previous operations, illnesses and hospitalizations, many of which they may not remember perfectly. One of the great benefits of health IT is accuracy. When a doctor can accurately and privately access your medical history, regardless of where it was established, fewer mistakes are made. This is health information exchange, or HIE.
 

What HIE means is this: Any doctor you need to see will be able to access your detailed medical history with the highest degree of accuracy.

Even today, health records are, for the most part, static. While any branch of your bank will provide you with access to, and history of, your financial information at the touch of a button, most people’s health history is still limited to a collection of paper files shelved in various disconnected offices. To digitize this information means patients will be able to take control of their health.

When a system of health information exchange fully connects healthcare providers, a patient will no longer have to spend time on the phone ensuring that results from an MRI and blood work from a lab all make it back to the office of the primary care physician.

You will not need to endure numerous repeated x-rays, scans, and testing.  Should your child be admitted to an emergency room, his allergy information can be called up the minute it is needed, without extra time lost. As more private practices, nursing homes, clinics and hospitals begin to digitize their records, there is more opportunity for exchange.
 

There are currently twelve organizations in New York State which facilitate health information exchange. These Regional Health Information Organizations, or RHIOs, are local resources for patients and healthcare providers. Contact the RHIO in your area to learn how you can connect to your health.
 

The privacy and security of a patient’s health records are of utmost importance. Federal and state laws strictly protect the privacy and confidentiality of all patient health information, and these laws have been strengthened and adapted to conform to new information technology.

It’s important to know that an electronic health record will not be available to just anyone. Only those entrusted with your healthcare, such as doctors, nurses, and their office staff will have access, and only if you sign a consent form. Others, such as employers or immigration agencies, will not have access. You may also request a list of all those who have previously accessed your records using health IT.

Patients are protected through several laws, including the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA. HIPAA requires that providers, health plans and similar entities observe certain rules for privacy, and gives patients the right to access their information, restrict access by others, request changes to their record, and learn how their health information has been accessed. For more information on privacy regulations, see The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology.
 

To give consent means to sign a form which allows your medical records to be accessed by your healthcare providers through a secure computer network in your region. It will allow information such as your medical history, test results, diagnoses, and prescriptions to be available to those treating you. These will be accessible during regular office visits, consultations with specialists, or in the case of a medical emergency. To give consent will have no effect on your eligibility for health insurance coverage or healthcare. Ask your doctor about health information exchange in your area.