June 20, 2007
(615) 532-1921 OFFICE
HEALTH-CARE INFORMATION HIGHWAY IN KNOXVILLE
“In addition to improving access to health insurance through Cover Tennessee, we’re also focusing on increasing the quality of care available to all Tennesseans through the eHealth initiative,” Bredesen said. “Once we determine how much of this information highway is already constructed, we can build out the remainder of the network so any health-care provider will have access to a patient’s medical history at the point of care.”
IVhin will team with hospitals, medical professionals and health information management groups to conduct an extensive county-by-county survey to identify the scope of technologies currently in use, or under development among health-care providers.
“The Innovation Valley Health Information Network is excited to contribute to the state’s initiatives in facilitating the use of electronic medical records,” said Mike Ward, president and chair of IVhin and health senior vice president and chief information officer for Covenant Health. “The data from our study will go a long way toward helping Knoxville-area health-care providers access technological resources to improve the quality of care available to patients.”
Joining IVhin in conducting the survey will be the Knoxville Academy of Medicine, the Tennessee Medical Association, the Knox Area Medical Group Management Association, Tennessee Health Information Management Association, and Tennessee Health Information Systems Society.
“This brings us closer to the day when Tennessee patients will be able to count on health-care professionals having quick access to medical histories,” said Antoine Agassi, chair of the Governor’s eHealth Council. “For providers, this means having a full understanding of the patient’s condition that is easily accessible and does not require expending time and resources.”
Bredesen formed the eHealth Council in 2006 to coordinate initiatives across the state for creating electronic medical records. The Governor’s leadership in the arena of eHealth lead to the National Governors Association (NGA) appointing him co-chair of NGA’s State Alliance for eHealth with Vermont Governor Jim Douglas.
A baseline report is expected to be available by mid-summer.
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