269157 Integrating health information exchange with disaster preparedness and response

Wednesday, October 31, 2012 : 9:30 AM - 9:50 AM

Alison Banger , Center for the Advancement of Health IT, RTI International, Atlanta, GA
Stephanie Rizk , Center for the Advancement of Health IT, RTI International, Chicago, IL
Robert Bailey , Center for the Advancement of Health IT, RTI International, Chicago, IL
     
Background: Through the State Health Policy Consortium (SHPC) project, funded by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC), RTI is providing support services to states to conduct multistate projects to resolve barriers to interstate health information exchange (HIE). One of these projects is the Southeast Regional HIT-HIE Collaboration (SERCH) Health Information Exchange (HIE) Disaster Planning Project. Objective/Purpose: The need for data exchange between states is increasingly evident, particularly in natural disasters and other acute situations that reach far beyond convenient geographic boundaries. The primary goal of the SERCH project is to define a set of strategies for sharing health information data among the Southeast and Gulf States, including Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas, during and following a declared disaster. Methods: The SERCH project is using lessons from disasters such as Hurricane Katrina and more recently the tornadoes in Joplin, Missouri and Tuscaloosa, Alabama, to develop a strategic plan to allow physicians and patients to access medical records for health care treatment during and after a disaster. Results: The SERCH team has prepared a White Paper that provides guidance and recommendations to States who wish to understand how to integrate HIE and emergency preparedness activities to improve patient care during a disaster. The White Paper addresses both legal and technical issues pertaining to cross-border exchange of medical records in the context of a disaster. It also proposes new functions for the ESF 8 agencies to engage HIEs and other health care data sources. Discussion/Conclusions: State level HIE capabilities must be incorporated into emergency management and disaster preparedness planning. Taking a phased approach that outlines policies and procedures which leverage the technology and data available now will support disaster victims in months rather than years, and will lay the groundwork for a fully-integrated solution in the future.

Learning Areas:
Communication and informatics
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs
Provision of health care to the public

Learning Objectives:
Describe the general Health Information Exchange (HIE) framework and environment and how it applies to disaster preparedness and response activities. List Emergency Support Function (ESF) 8 approaches to seamless interstate response before, during, and in the aftermath of a declared disaster, and how these practices can facilitate HIE. Identify potential overlap between ESF 8 response and HIE activities, and how this can be leveraged to improve patient care.

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I served as the coordinator for this project, overseeing the work performed by each of the states, serving as the facilitator for all discussions, with responsibility for the completion of all work products.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 5060.0: Are We Ready? The Use of HIIT in Emergency Preparedness