E-health group releases exchange tools

Toolkits from eHealth Initiative

The eHealth Initiative has released an experimental set of toolkits for building statewide, local or regional health information exchanges.

The toolkits deliver how-to information derived from the nonprofit organization’s work with more than 200 health information technology initiatives, most of them involving the exchange of information about patients and their treatments.

The toolkits are organized into seven modules that cover the stages of development and important issues that arise in creating health information exchanges, also known as regional health information organizations. The modules are titled:

“While there is still no single ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach” for establishing an exchange, “common themes and principles are beginning to emerge,” said Janet Marchibroda, chief executive officer of the eHealth Initiative, in a news release.

Francois de Brantes, head of General Electric’s health care initiatives program and president of the eHealth Initiative board, said he could have saved months working on an exchange effort if he had any of the new toolkits.

The series of toolkits are available online from the eHealth Initiative for $500 to $1,500. Prices will increase after March 31, when the testing period ends, according to the organization’s Web site. The initiative will add materials to the toolkits in the coming months.

“As the health care system evolves, so will the toolkit,” Marchibroda said.