Appalachian Health Information Exchange links twenty health organizations
Regional health providers team up to reduce redundancies, improve continuity of care

By Anita Martin

Twenty health care organizations in Southeastern Ohio have formed the Appalachian Health Information Exchange (AHIE) to facilitate the coordination of health information technologies—such as electronic record keeping and the electronic exchange of medical information—among regional providers.

“Health care is an information intensive industry, and the AHIE’s goal is to make health care information available to providers and patients in a more secure and private way,” said Ed Romito, director and chief information officer of Genesis Healthcare System. “This will have a direct positive
impact on the delivery of high quality, safe and efficient patient care.”

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services encourages regional health information organizations such as the AHIE as a way to improve the efficiency and safety of health care while fostering regional collaborations that advance community health care priorities.

The AHIE, which elected its first board officers in April, was born out of a National Library of Medicine grant through the National Institutes of Health. To study medical information systems in the region, the grant established the Appalachian Regional Informatics Consortium (ARIC), which proposed
plans for a community health information system, and surveyed community opinion on electronic health records. Based on the positive community response, ARIC organized the AHIE.

“The sharing of readily available information among health providers can improve patient wellbeing and continuity of care for the region’s citizens,” said Brian Phillips, ARIC founder and chief information officer of the Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine (OU-COM).

The AHIE is currently developing strategic plans to coordinate the increased use of information technologies and infrastructure in Ohio’s rural communities. The AHIE board of directors is comprised of the following:

• Ed Romito, AHIE chair; director and chief information officer,
  Genesis Healthcare System
• Melinda Nugent, AHIE vice chair; administrator,
  Marietta Health Care  Physicians, Inc.
• Neal Allison, AHIE treasurer; controller, Fairfield Medical Center
• Brian Phillips, AHIE secretary; chief information officer, OU-COM
• Kristine Barr, chief information officer and vice president of       communication services, O'Bleness Health System
• Marcus Bost, chief information officer, Adena Health System
• Andy Eddy, M.D., vice president of medical affairs, Southeastern      Ohio Regional Medical Center
• Mark Harvey, chief information officer, Holzer Clinic
• Niki Hutzler, RHIA, regional health information administrator, Marietta   Health Care Physicians, Inc.
• Steve Swart, chief executive officer, Doctors Hospital Nelsonville
• Steve Trout, M.A., executive director, Southern Consortium for     Children

The full list of participating institutions includes:                                 Adena Health System, Barnesville Hospital, Berger Health System, Coolville Health Care Center, Doctors Hospital Nelsonville, Fairfield Medical Center, Genesis Healthcare System, Hocking Valley Community Hospital, Holzer Clinic, Holzer Health Systems, Marietta Health Care Physicians, Inc., Marietta Memorial Hospital, O’Bleness Health System, Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine, Selby General Hospital, Southern Consortium for Children, Southeastern Ohio Regional Medical Center, Southern Ohio Medical Center, University Medical Associates Endocrine/Diabetes Center, in consultation with the Mid-Ohio Valley Rural Health Alliance in West Virginia.

To learn more about statewide regional health information efforts, how the health care industry is adopting new technologies and the economic benefits of these technologies, interested individuals are invited to attend the “RHIOhio: Building Partnerships for Change” conference, hosted by        OU-COM at Baker University Center, Athens, Ohio, October 13-14, 2008.

For more information about the AHIE, visit www.rhiohio.org. Additional conference details can be found at www.oucom.ohiou.edu/rhiohio.