Western N.Y. HIE Joins Forces with Population Health Collaborative
To enhance its focus on population health, Buffalo-based health information exchange HEALTHeLINK is joining forces with the Population Health Collaborative (PHC), which administers an evidence-based collective impact model with a network of more than 300 community-based organizations across Western New York.
Since 2002 the Population Health Collaborative, initially known as P2, has connected, and aligned existing resources in ways that improve the health and wellbeing for people living in Western New York.
“The mission of Population Health Collaborative will be brought into HEALTHeLINK and it will expand our mission beyond the HIE that we are currently functioning as,” said Dan Porreca, executive director of HEALTHeLINK.
The two organizations said the alignment will further expand the use of data through a regional network of community-based organizations and community health champions to inform, support, and promote strategies to improve the health status of Western New Yorkers, increase access to care, and reduce health disparities.
Porreca noted that the two organizations have partnered for over a decade on initiatives related to diabetes care, population health, and practice transformation, and after many discussions they thought it made sense for a more formal relationship as their respective organizations are both working towards similar goals of improving health in Western New York. “The clinical data alone doesn’t create value; it is what’s done with the data to improve health while recognizing and working on social determinants of health in support of community-based organizations’ efforts. That’s what this transaction with PHC and more direct work with community-based organizations will enable us to do.”
To further address health inequities, clinical data will be used to identify areas of the community in need and create a baseline to determine the success of programs focused on improving health over time. It will also enhance the delivery of health care services among providers in the region.
“About five years ago, we merged our physician advisory committees, so there was one committee serving both organizations,” Porreca said. “The collaboration goes back a long way. I'm really excited about the potential now of leveraging the clinical data that we have, with the programs and the focus on health equity and regional health improvement here in Western New York, and working with community- based organizations.”
“This combination of HEALTHeLINK and PHC is a real opportunity to create a powerful, and data-driven organization for this community that will support lots of community stakeholders from community-based organizations to businesses to doctors’ offices with the data and supports they need to make real improvement in the health of WNY,” said Thomas Schenk, M.D., interim executive director and past chair, Population Health Collaborative board of directors, in a statement.
HEALTHeLINK offers users access to a population health tool that brings together claims and clinical data and helps providers identify gaps in care. In addition, HEALTHeLINK was among the first HIEs in the country to participate in the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) Data Aggregator Validation program. It gives the HIE the ability to simplify and automate what is predominately a manual process for health plans to gather clinical data to conduct their HEDIS (Healthcare Effectiveness Data Information Set) reporting.
