NE OHIO HOSPITALS L
Band Together to Share Patient Information
EADERS FROM THE Community Health Collaborative, LLC (CHC), and theOhio Health Information Partnership (The
Partnership) signed an agreement in November to participate in CliniSync, Ohio's statewide health information exchange created by The Partnership. Hospitals and other healthcare pro-
viders connected to CliniSync will have secure access to their patients' clinical results in real time. This will enhance the continuum of care as providers electronically share critical health information to facilitate optimum care and treatment for their patients. The CHC hospitals (Southwest
General, Parma Community General Hospital, and EMH Healthcare) are the first collaborative independent hospitals to join the CliniSync health information exchange from Northeast Ohio. Hospitals that are part of the Sisters of Charity Health System also signed an agreement to join the health information exchange as did a consortium of hospitals in west central Ohio in the Lima area. "If a patient is traveling anywhere
in the state of Ohio and is in need of health care and the hospital is con- nected to this exchange, patients will be able to receive improved treatment by having their medical information electronically available to other provid- ers," said Thomas A. Selden, president and CEO of Southwest General, and chair of the CHC technology subcom- mittee. "The electronic flow of medical information can make a difference in how a patient is treated, and in the outcome of that treatment." Through the new Cl iniSync exchange, updated and cur rent
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information such as lab tests, will be immediately accessible by healthcare professionals who are caring for an
individual. Eventually, the network will allow the sharing of a patient's medical history and medication lists. ■