VAN WERT COUNTY HOSPITAL GOES ELECTRONIC
10-Jul-2012
MORE WEST CENTRAL OHIO HOSPITALS “LIVE” ON STATEWIDE HEALTH INFORMATION EXCHANGE, CLINISYNC
Columbus – Van Wert County Hospital is the second hospital in the state to "go live" on the new statewide health information exchange, CliniSync.
The Ohio Health Information Partnership announced today that patient information such as lab reports and test results are electronically moving from the
hospital to doctors this week.
The CliniSync exchange electronically delivers medical records to physicians and other healthcare providers who treat a patient, allowing information to
move quickly and securely to assist in diagnosis and treatment.
Mike Holliday, Vice President of Financial and Administrative Services at Van Wert, says, "Van Wert County Hospital is excited to be a part of this initiative
with other regional healthcare providers. The new information exchange will allow us to improve health care through better coordination of care by
ensuring that patient information is in the right place at the right time."
A 99-bed hospital established in 1905, Van Wert has a long history of serving the needs of patients and works closely with other facilities for more complex
cases, which is why electronic exchange of information will help physicians and clinicians get the right information on a patient when they need it,
Holliday says.
St. Rita's Medical Center in Lima jump-started the process in Ohio last December when it went live on the statewide health information exchange after mutual
agreement of the leadership of the West Central Ohio Health Information Exchange (WCOHIE), a regional consortium of hospitals and healthcare providers
that want to exchange patient health information electronically. Health Partners of Western Ohio, the Orthopaedic Institute of Ohio, Dr. James Bowlus
and OB/GYN Specialists of Lima were some of the first to receive results and reports, now reaching a total of 12 different practices and entities.
This summer, Lima Memorial Health System, Joint Township District Memorial Hospital in St. Marys, and Mercer County Community Hospital in Coldwater will
connect to the CliniSync network. Hospitals will be sending discrete lab results, pathology and microbiology reports, radiology reports and additional
clinical and textual documents, such as histories and physicals as well as discharge summaries.
Dr. Herbert Schumm, Regional Vice President of Medical Affairs at St. Vincent's Medical Center and Chair of WCOHIE, played a major role in the use
of HIT within the medical community.
"It is great to have additional members of WCOHIE come online," Dr. Schumm says. "As more physician office systems interface, we are seeing our dream
become a reality."
Dan Paoletti, CEO of the Ohio Health Information Partnership, says the entire region will be the first to exchange information with one another, a
courageous and progressive step for west central Ohio.
"I look at the West Central Ohio HIE as trailblazers who are transforming health care in our state. Through the collaboration of these hospitals, physicians
and other regional healthcare providers, doctors will receive accurate and timely information, allowing patients to receive care more quickly,"
Paoletti says.
Eventually, as many hospitals join CliniSync, a physician will be able to search for a patient's records and bring disparate records to one place so the
physician will have medications, test results and history to review before treatment, Paoletti says.
Lima Memorial will go live after Van Wert. Cheryl Homan, Administrative Director for the Lima Memorial Health System in Information Systems and Biomed,
says she looks forward to the reality of exchanging health records both within Ohio as well as across bordering states.
"With many providers in the region implementing an EMR in their practices, the need for an infrastructure to support electronic exchange of patient information
among all care providers regardless of location and/or hospital affiliation has become a reality," Homan says.
"CliniSync provides the infrastructure for this electronic exchange within Ohio as well as across state lines, giving the provider quick access to needed
individual patient information in one location," she says. "Lima Memorial is looking forward to being able to participate in this electronic exchange
to improve patient care in the communities we serve."
Joint Township Memorial Hospital, part of the Grand Lake Health System, will be connected at the same time as Mercer County this summer.
"The CliniSync health information exchange will be a great benefit to the delivery of healthcare services in the Grand Lake Health System's region," says
Jeff Vossler, Chief Financial Officer of the Grand Lake Health System in St. Marys. "This central source for patient information improves the coordination
of care between physicians, hospitals and other providers. It is a vital step in our ongoing program of a comprehensive medical record for all our
patients."
Mercer County Joint Township Community Hospital plans to connect to the health information exchange later this summer.
"Mercer Health is anxiously awaiting to be connected to the CliniSync health information exchange," says George C. Boyles, Vice President of Finance and
Chief Financial Officer.
"Utilizing this patient record information database will allow our clinical staff, physicians and patients to interact very efficiently regarding the medical
care of each patient being served by the hospital."
A total of 55 hospitals in Ohio have committed to CliniSync through contractual agreements. In addition, 353 physicians, two national labs and various
facilities that care for patients have contracted to join.
Paoletti says that in Ohio, there are healthcare providers who started sharing records electronically within the past decade and they have led the way
using technology to improve care and outcomes. However, these existing systems are closed networks within a health system or in specific regions. CliniSync
is the first infrastructure that will allow information to flow throughout the state.
The CliniSync infrastructure –created by Medicity, a national vendor with experience in HIE in other states – is technologically secure among authorized
healthcare users who sign agreements with the Ohio Health Information Partnership.
About the Ohio Health Information Partnership
The Ohio Health Information Partnership is a nonprofit, state-designated entity responsible for establishing regional extension centers to assist physicians
and hospitals with information technology and for creating the infrastructure for a health information exchange in the state. Ohio has received $44,146,199
in federal funding including $14,872,199 for the health information exchange (CliniSync), $28.5 million for regional extension centers and $774,000
for critical access hospitals. The State of Ohio contributed $8 million when The Partnership first formed. The Partnership includes the Ohio State
Medical Association, Ohio Osteopathic Association, Ohio Hospital Association, BioOhio and the State of Ohio. The partnership is funded through the
Office of the National Coordinator, U.S. Dept. of Health & Human Services, grant numbers 90RC0012 and 90HT0024. Visit the Ohio Health Information
Partnership at www.clinisync.org.
About the Van Wert County Hospital
For more than 100 years, Van Wert Hospital has been delivering superior patient care and advancing new treatments. As an independent nonprofit community
health system, Van Wert County Hospital remains committed to the region's healthcare needs for generations to come. Van Wert County Hospital is committed
to today, focused on tomorrow. Visit www.vanwerthospital.org for more information.
