Two New York Communities Demonstrate Pioneering Interoperable Health Information Exchange

~ New York eHealth Collaborative Plays Key Role in Setting Standards for Interoperable Health Information Exchange ~

On June 27, 2008, New York’s efforts to build a statewide health information network, which will support improvements in health care quality, advanced through the demonstration of secure exchange of patient information between providers operating in two separate NY metropolitan area communities. This type of live clinical data exchange between community “regional health information organizations” (RHIOs), utilizing different technical vendors, is one of the first of its kind in the United States, and provides valuable lessons for broad nationwide application.

The demonstration, which took place as part of the New York eHealth Collaborative’s (NYeC’s) participation in the Nationwide Health Information Network (NHIN) Trial Implementations project, involved two RHIOs – the Manhattan-based New York Clinical Information Exchange (NYCLIX) and the Long Island Patient Information Exchange (LIPIX). A Visiting Nurse Service of New York (VNSNY) nurse used the NYCLIX network to securely access medical history for a patient from North Shore LIJ Health System’s records through the LIPIX network; in addition a North Shore LIJ physician was able to access the history for a patient from VNSNY’s records through NYCLIX.

Technical protocols and services based on national standards were used to implement the exchange of data between the organizations. Computer Sciences Corporation oversaw technical implementation of the solution. NYCLIX’s technical solution was implemented by MedPlus, and LIPIX’s technical solution was implemented by InterSystems.

The results and lessons of the NHIN project will inform the statewide collaborative process managed by NYeC which is setting policies and technical requirements for the Statewide Health Information Network of New York (SHIN-NY). Development of the SHIN-NY is a key part of New York’s strategy to improve health care quality and efficiency through interoperable health information exchange and electronic health record adoption.

Eloise Goldberg, Regional Administrator for acute care nursing for Visiting Nurse Service of New York in Nassau County, said “Eventually, this system will improve the quality of health care as well as lower costs for all parties concerned. It will be especially helpful in emergency situations, providing critical information on medications, lab tests and medical conditions allowing more timely and less costly treatment.”

Rachel Block, Executive Director of NYeC, said “NYeC’s NHIN demonstration is supporting statewide efforts to implement common technical standards and prove that data exchange is a feasible means to increase the quality and safety of care.”

Lori Evans, Deputy Commissioner, New York State Department of Health, Office of Health Information Technology Transformation, said “Design globally, implement locally sums up at a high level our technical strategy regarding the Statewide Health Information Network for New York. The essential ingredient to achieving interoperable health information exchange, however, is policy and governance regarding fair information practices, including privacy and security policies. Congratulations to NYeC and the two RHIOs – LIPIX and NYCLIX – for achieving this important achievement of policy interoperability as well as enabling the technical interoperability with their vendor partners.”

###

About the New York eHealth Collaborative (NYeC)
The New York eHealth Collaborative (NYeC) is a New York State (NYS) not-for-profit corporation that was founded by health care leaders across the state, with leadership and support from the NYS Department of Health (DOH), based on a shared vision of the urgent need to improve health care quality, safety, and efficiency in NYS and facilitate the secure and interoperable exchange and use of health information. More information about NYeC can be found at www.nyehealth.org.

About NYCLIX, Inc.
NYCLIX, Inc. is a New York State not-for-profit corporation whose mission is to create a clinical data exchange capability to improve patient care in the New York City region. Currently, it includes 11 hospitals (8 of which are in Manhattan), the Visiting Nurse Service of New York, a federally qualified heath center, and a faculty practice organization. More information about NYCLIX can be found at www.nyclix.org.

About Visiting Nurse Service of New York
VNSNY is the largest not-for-profit home health care organization in the nation. In 2007, VNSNY had an average of 31,000 patients under its care on any given day throughout New York City and Nassau and Westchester counties, and provided a wide range of health services to people of all ages. VNSNY participates in NYCLIX and other RHIOs in its service area that are developing secure computerized exchange of health information among the patient's medical providers, with the patient's consent. For more information, please visit www.vnsny.org.

About LIPIX, Inc.
LIPIX is a consortium formed to plan, develop, and implement a regional health information organization (RHIO) on Long Island. LIPIX' primary goal is to create an achievable, sustainable and replicable model for integrating clinical information across multiple health care organizations. LIPIX strongly supports New York State and Federal strategic HIT plans to a) improve access to patient data at the point of care, b) improve health care quality; and, c) reduce inappropriate utilization and cost. More information about LIXIP can be found at www.lipix.org.

About North Shore-LIJ Health System
The nation's third largest, non-profit, secular healthcare system, the North Shore-LIJ Health System cares for people of all ages throughout Long Island, Queens and Staten Island – a service area encompassing more than five million people. Including its clinical affiliates, the health system consists of 16 hospitals, 11 long-term care facilities, a medical research institute, four trauma centers, five home health agencies and dozens of outpatient centers.