Georgia Department of Community Health HomeTown Health Lunch & Learn Georgia Health IT Update August 21, 2012

Georgia Department of Community Health

HomeTown Health Lunch & Learn

Georgia Health IT UpdateAugust 21, 2012

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Georgia statewide HIE network is being developed to offer statewide health information exchange services hospitals and other providers

can use for more efficient and coordinated care of their patients.

Georgia Health Information Exchange Network

Georgia HIE Network

What it does…• Enables providers the opportunity to

securely and efficiently exchange patient health information.

• Presents providers with the right information, at the right time to offer their patients the right care.

• Gives consumers tools to know their health information so they can improve health.

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Georgia HIE Network Services

GeorgiaDirect

Rome Challenge Grant

In pilot phase

Available in 2013

Demonstration project planned for late 2012

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Patient Search

GeorgiaDirect Secure Messaging

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Provides a secure way for health care providers to send authenticated, encrypted health information directly to known,

trusted recipients over the Internet.

[email protected] [email protected]

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Secure communication mechanism• Direct is a secure point-to-point communication

service that allows registered providers to send structured or unstructured information to each other.

• A provider directory is included to help providers find the Direct Secure Messaging address(es) for an organization or provider.

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GeorgiaDirectReferral to Specialist Example

Patient visits primary care provider; provider needs to refer patient to a specialist

1. Provider uses EHR to initiate referral message and locate specialists

Provider’s EHR system looks up specialist practices in GA’S HIE provider directory

3. GA HIE Network documents access to system in audit log

4. Specialist receives referral request and sends response to referring physician through the GA HIE Network

5. Specialist sees patient

2. Referring provider sends referral and reference clinical documents to the specialist system

Provider DirectoryProvider DirectorySecurity Services &

Authorization Framework

Security Services & Authorization Framework

Secure Message Exchange

via Direct Project

Secure Message Exchange

via Direct Project

Transaction Audit Log & Reporting


Georgia Statewide Health Information Exchange Network

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Benefits of GeorgiaDirect – rely less on FAX, telephone, & mail• Referral

– A General Practitioner sends an email with a referral along with any necessary patient information and lab results to a Specialist

• Transition of care– A Family Physician sends an email with a Treatment Summary of a patient to a

Hospital or Long-Term care facility when the patient is admitted.

• Response to a Request from another Provider– A Cardiologist is seeing a patient and needs a more detailed history than the

patient can provide–in response to the request from the Cardiologist, the Family Physician can send the history via a secure email instead of via several pages of a FAX.

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GeorgiaDirect Supports Meeting Meaningful Use• Send patient referral via Direct Secure Messaging to an

authorized recipient.

• Forward CCDs with referrals or at transition of care.

• Transmit required reports to Public Health (when available).

• Satisfy patient-focused MU measures.

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Patient Search Services

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Patient Search Service

Features• Allows clinicians to query and retrieve clinical records from participating

sources for patient care and perform public health reporting.

• Enables retrieval of records from multiple data sources. – The patient matching is based on patient demographics. – All patient data is kept locally within the provider's local system rather than in a

centralized database.– All transactions involving the Georgia HIE network are logged in the Georgia HIE

audit log.

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Query-Based ExchangePatient Search Example

At the Point of Care

A patient visits their primary care provider. The provider needs to locate patient’s health information.

1. Provider uses their EHR (or GHIE web portal) to locate patient records. The provider’s system queries the Georgia HIE network.

4. Provider conducts patient examination. 5. Aggregated patient health information is returned to provider and information is incorporated into the provider’s EHR.

2. Georgia HIE uses RLS to locate and retrieve information on identified patient and returns available clinical documents from within the network.

Security Services & Authorization Framework

Record Locator Service


3. Georgia HIE documents access to Network in audit log.

Master Patient Index

Provider Directory Terminology Services NwHIN Gateway

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Georgia Statewide HIE Network


Benefits of Patient Search• Presents providers with accurate, timely and reliable patient

data at the point of care.

• Provides connectivity to services within and outside of Georgia through the Nationwide Health Information Network.

• Leverage existing IT investments to connect to the statewide HIE network.

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Patient Search Supports Meeting Meaningful Use• Continuity of Care Documents (CCDs) available via Patient

Search feature.

• Allows for public health reporting.

• Possible access to state data sources (as available).

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Getting Connected: Georgia HIE Network

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Network of Networks Strategy

The Georgia HIE network connects local/regional HIEs and other Qualified Entities

•Qualified Entities– Have permission to access, consume and make available HIE services on the

statewide health information exchange network.

– Must meet a set of established criteria, successfully completed the approval process, and signed agreements to abide by HIE Statewide Privacy & Security Policy Framework.

– Must ensure that participants and vendors with which they have contracts meet the requirements to carry out statewide policies.

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•Role of Qualified Entities– Help organize and manage HIE Participants in the Georgia healthcare ecosystem.

– Participants can be hospitals, physician practices, long-term care centers, laboratories, public health entities, and/or many other diverse members of the healthcare industry.

– Participants have authorization to access the Georgia HIE network services through a Qualified Entity.

– In addition to providing a conduit for the Georgia HIE services, a QE organization may choose to provide unique services to the members of their community as well.

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•Strategic Benefits– Leverages health information networks in existence and provides a means of

making set of core and value-added services available to benefit the entirety of the Georgia healthcare ecosystem.

– Operations are manageable and costs remain low.

– Supports Georgia HIE and stakeholder sustainability models. GHIE supports local/regional HIEs and other QEs – it does not compete with them.

– Allows the State to provide guidance on complex issues and leverage federal funding to strengthen and advance the exchange.

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Be part of the Georgia HIE Network

HIE On-Boarding Information Guide (in development)

• Help organizations better understand the requirements and choices available to them when electing to participate in the Georgia HIE network.

• The guide will be a high level planning tool – Defines characteristics and responsibilities of Qualified Entities:

community, business model, governance, and technology.– Overview of legal and technical requirements; minimum standards

for each organization participating in the Georgia HIE network.

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Get Engaged and Stay Informed

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Georgia HITREC, HP, and technology vendor act as the team executing marketing campaign and driving HIE/HIT awareness throughout all of Georgia.

Get Engaged & Stay Informed

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insertKelly Gonzalez

Director, Division of Health ITState Health IT Coordinator

Department of Community [email protected]

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