Recently, HIMSS reinstated its State HIT Dashboard, an online tool for information on state legislation, health information exchanges (HIEs), regional extension centers (RECs), and more. Pam Matthews, senior director, regional affairs, HIMSS, walked HCI Associate Editor Jennifer Prestigiacomo through the tool’s treasure trove of health IT information. Below are some of the highlights:
HIEs: Discover the major HIEs around the country. HIMSS uses an online self-reporting survey tool, which collects 10 data points that include the HIE’s contact info, government oversight entity, revenue stream, type of structure, first date of technical exchange, consent model, core vendors, major stakeholders, and more.State Resources: Click on any state to get general information on what they’re doing in HIT. This section indicates when the legislation is in session, who the state HIT coordinator is, what is the state-designated HIE, Medicaid organization and director, and more.RECs: Find out where all the federally-designated regional extension centers are across the country.State Legislative Tracker: Identify all pending HIT legislation, as well as check out all executive orders on HIT on a state-by-state basis with this section.HIMSS Chapters: Check out all 46 HIMSS chapters across the country.Davies Winners: Take a tour of the Davies Award winners, who exhibited excellence in using electronic health records. Winners are divided into four categories: public health, organizational, ambulatory, and community health organizations.“It’s a free public tool, and what we want it to be is the go-to place for health information technology information.”—Pam Matthews, senior director, regional affairs, HIMSS.
