Rochester RHIO

About

The Rochester RHIO is a nonprofit organization chartered in 2006(2). It is charged with creating a health information exchange that allows hospitals, labs and radiology groups to access and share patient information in a secure environment (1). As of April 2010, there are over 800 physicians and 3000 total users, which includes midlevel providers and support staff.(1) It serves the area between Buffalo and Syracuse, including Rochester and the surrounding counties.

Governance

The RHIO is governed by a board of directors from the Greater Rochester community, representing area physicians, public health, businesses, health insurers and hospitals. (2) Funding comes from a combination of state funds and matching grants from community organizations. (2) Also, RHIO is supported by regional health plans and data providers. (4)

Technology

Patient information is organized with a hybrid model. The master Patient Index (MPI) is its only centralized data base, while the data from hospitals, labs, etc. is federated on a series of edge servers. (3)

As of April 2010, the Rochester RHIO receives about 1.5 million reports per month.(1) In addition to information exchange, Rochester RHIO offers EHR integration. This allows information collected by the RHIO integrate directly with the physician's EHR.(1) The state of New York has about 9 different RHIOs. There is a plan to combine them into a SHINY (Statewide Health Information Network of New York).(1)

Future projects include:

CCS - Continuity of Care Summary - Bundles social services informations. Home evaluations by social workers, Dietary information for nutritionists.

EPCR for EMS: An online EHR for emergency medical personnel.

Privacy considerations

Access is only granted to healthcare providers, not to insurance companies, employer groups. Providers are met in person before they are given access to the RHIO.(1) Patients can access their own health information through a linked electronic Personal Health Record. (4) Patients must grant access to every practice or medical organization before their information can be accessed.(1)

External links http://www.grrhio.org/about/default.aspx

Sources: 1) (J. Neri, Manager of Community HIE Services, Rochester RHIO, interview, April 15, 2010). 2) http://www.grrhio.org/about/default.aspx 3) (J. Neri, Manager of Community HIE Services, Rochester RHIO, e-mail interview, September 22, 2010). 4) (J. Eisenstein, Associate Director, Rochester RHIO, e-mail interview, September 23, 2010).