ONC Approves HIE Plan for Mississippi

Hielix, a leader in creating operationally sustainable, open solutions to seamlessly exchange health information, today announced the Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) for Health IT has approved the Strategic and Operational Plan (SOP) for a Health Information Exchange (HIE) for the State of Mississippi. The SOP developed by Hielix (Tampa, Fl.), along with partners ApeniMED and PCG, describes the strategies and activities necessary to expand the Mississippi Coastal Health Information Exchange (MSCHIE) to the include the entire state and advance adoption of electronic health records (EHR) through the creation of a statewide health information network. Hielix is currently working with the state on a plan for making the HIE self-sustainable within four years.

While Mississippi awarded a three-company SOP contract in May 2010, it has been working toward a statewide electronic health exchange since the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. In 2007, the state created MSCHIE as a “proof-of-concept” project to restore the medical information system across the six coastal counties most devastated by Katrina. As a result, medical records are now stored and exchanged between providers electronically as opposed to using an outdated paper-based system which is vulnerable to natural disasters.

In addition to better patient care, adoption of a statewide HIE will improve safety and efficiency by ensuring health information is available to healthcare providers at the point of care, while reducing medical errors and avoiding duplicative procedures. It also will improve coordination of care between hospitals, physicians, and other healthcare professionals and not only provide consumers access to quality care and cost information, but to their own health information, in an effort to encourage greater participation in their healthcare decisions.