Related Guides on this Topic
You may also want to see these guides on related topics: Patient Privacy, Technology, Telehealth
Introduction
Health information technology (HIT) is using computers to store, protect, retrieve, and transfer information electronically within health care settings. The potentials of HIT are to reduce medication errors; increase sharing of health information between providers, laboratories, pharmacies, and patients; ensure safer patient transitions between health care settings; and reduce duplicative and unnecessary testing. Using HIT to drive improvements in healthcare will require the support of many diverse stakeholders in the healthcare system including practicing clinicians, hospitals, payers and HIT suppliers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Tools
AHRQ National Resource Center Evaluation Toolkit
Web site
Helps with the process of creating a plan to evaluate a health information technology project.
AHRQ National Resource Center for Health Information Technology
Web site
Provides information meant assist health care providers adopt and use health information technology. Includes documents, Web links, funded HIT project outcomes, and funding opportunity announcements.
Broadband Opportunities for Rural America
Web site
Provides a clearinghouse of information and resources on broadband opportunities for rural America.
CMS Health Information Technology
Web site
Provides information about Health IT incentives and support for adoption, establishment of health IT standards and infrastructure, and privacy & security pertaining to Health IT.
Department of Health & Human Services: Health Information Technology
Web site
Contains resources on health information technology.
eHealth Initiative Connecting Communities Toolkit
Web site
Tools designed to equip states, regions and local communities with the information and expertise to begin or advance local health information exchange initiatives and organizations. Free, but registration is required.
EHR Selection Toolkit for Community Health Centers
Web site
Provides a list of criteria to review with vendors of EHR systems to insure the unique needs of community health centers (CHCs) are met.
FCC Rural Health Care Pilot Program
Web site
Strives to create a nationwide broadband network that connects public and private non-profit health care providers in rural and urban locations.
Great Plains Telehealth Resource and Assistance Center
Web site
Assists rural health care providers, facilities, and organizations to better utilize and implement telehealth technology. Provides sample documents in clinical applications, education, IT operational and administrative manuals, and technical and individual consulting.
Health Information Security and Privacy Collaboration Toolkit
Web site
Provides guidance for conducting organization-level assessments of business practices, policies, and State laws that govern the privacy and security of health information exchange (HIE).
Health Information Technology and Health Data Standards at NLM
Web site
Contains resources regarding health information technology. NLM is the central coordinating body for clinical terminology standards within the Department of Health and Human Services.
Health Information Technology Costs & Benefits Database Project
Web site
Designed to find reported outcomes from the published literature (from 1995 to 2003) on the costs and benefits (i.e., return on investment) of HIT. Searchable interface allows easy look up, and articles are abstracted in case users do not have access to the journals' full content.
Health Information Technology Toolkit for Home Health Agencies
Web site
Designed for use in implementing or overhauling a home health agency Health Information Technology (HIT) or Electronic Health Record system and to evaluate system effectiveness.
Health Information Technology Toolkit for Nursing Homes
Web site
Designed for use in implementing Health Information Technology or Electronic Health Record system in a nursing home and to evaluate system effectiveness.
Health IT Implementation Stories
Web site
Stories and lessons learned from AHRQ-funded health information technology (HIT) projects. Includes rural projects.
Health IT in Small and Rural Communities
Web site
Provides background information, current activities, emerging lessons, and projects funded by AHRQ.
Health IT Tools
Web site
A collection of tools that describe and recommend strategies for addressing some of the common challenges organizations encounter when working with health IT systems.
Regional and National Telehealth Resource Centers
Web site
Describes the five regional Telehealth Resource Centers which serve as a focal point for advancing effective use of telehealth technologies in their respective communities and regions of the nation.
Rural Health IT Adoption Toolbox
Web site
Developed by the Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP) and the Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA) to assist rural health providers seeking to implement health IT (information technology) to improve the overall effectiveness of their institutions.
Rural Health IT: What "Meaningful Use" Means to Rural
Web site
A blog that is a collaboration between the Wisconsin Office of Rural Health and the Rural Wisconsin Health Cooperative, with much of the content produced by Louis Wenzlow. Provides resources, opinions and the opportunity to discuss issues relating to the HIT provisions and requirements of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, specifically relevant to rural healthcare.
Rural Health Research: Health information technology
Web site
Provides summaries of current and completed rural health research projects and related publications addressing the topic of health information technology (HIT), produced by the Office of Rural Health Policy's funded rural health research centers.
Rural Health Resource Center HIT Tools and Resources
Web site
Provides tools, documents, state profiles, funding, legislation and organizations that focus on Health Information Technology for rural healthcare communities.
Rural Health Resource Center: Health Information Technology
Web site
A search engine to access rural health information technology (HIT) resources including news, legislation, events, an HIT dictionary, funding, and state profiles.
Rural HIT Coalition
Web site
A network of rural and health information technology leaders from regional, state, national and federal organizations, working together to advance the implementation of health information technologies (HIT) across rural America.
Rural Hospitals: Enough Stimulus for IT?
Web site
Website offers access to a recording of a webcast that originally aired in May 2009 along with the associated presentation files. Presenters discuss differences in stimulus package IT incentives in relation to critical access hospitals (CAHs).
Regulations, Forms & Other Useful Documents
A Success Story in American Health Care: Using Health Information Technology to Improve Patient Care in a Community Health Center in Washington
Author(s): Kurt Herzer; Meena Seshamani
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Reports on how health information technology can improve health care for Americans living in rural communities.
Date: 09 / 2009
Continued Progress: Hospital Use of Information Technology, 2007
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
Results of a survey to gauge the extent of health IT use among U.S. hospitals, including rural, and better understand the barriers to further adoption.
Date: 2007
Current Status of Health Information Technology Use in CAHs
Author(s): Michelle Casey, Jill Klingner, Walt Gregg, Ira Moscovice, Emily Nicholson, Tami Lichtenberg, Terry Hill
Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team
Examines the use of Health Information Technology (HIT) in Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs). Includes information on HIT infrastructure and the computerization of different functions within CAHs.
Date: 05 / 2006
Electronic Health Record Incentives: RHC Technical Assistance Conference Call Transcript, 05/26/2009
Sponsoring organization: Office of Rural Health Policy
Transcript of the May 26, 2009 technical assistance call discussing electronic health records.
Date: 05 / 2009
Electronic Health Records Adoption: Rural Providers’ Decision-Making Process
Author(s): Li-Wu Chen, Anne Skinner
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
Examines the decision-making process that small rural physician clinics and hospitals use as they investigate and select an electronic health record (EHR) system.
Date: 10 / 2008
Ethics Conflicts in Rural Communities: Health Information Technology
Author(s): David A. Fleming
Sponsoring organization: Board of Trustees of Dartmouth College
This fourteenth chapter of "Handbook for Rural Health Care Ethics", addresses health information technology (HIT) in the areas of: telehealth, electronic medical records, electronic clinical support, and online prescribing services and the security issues involved.
Date: 2009
Health Information Technology Evaluation Toolkit
Author(s): Caitlin M. Cusack, Colene M. Byrne, Julie M. Hook, Julie McGowan, Eric Poon, Atif Zafar
Sponsoring organization: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
Provides a workbook to help health care organizations develop a plan to measure and report on the impact of health information technology systems.
Date: 06 / 2009
Health Information Technology in Rural Areas
Sponsoring organization: National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services
Chapter from the 2006 Report to the Secretary: Rural Health and Human Service Issues. Discusses rural health information technology (HIT), with a focus on the electronic health record (EHR). Includes discussion of specific rural HIT concerns and advantages compared to urban/suburban providers.
Date: 01 / 2006
Health Information Technology Policy and Rural Hospitals (Policy Brief)
Author(s): Jeffrey McCullough, Michelle Casey, Ira Moscovice
Sponsoring organization: Upper Midwest Rural Health Research Center
Summarizes the implementation status of key Health Information Technology (HIT) applications in Critical Access Hospitals and other rural hospitals, and discusses policies for encouraging HIT adoption in rural hospitals.
Date: 06 / 2009
Health Information Technology: A "HIT" in Rural Areas
Author(s): Hope Hanson
Sponsoring organization: Rural Assistance Center
Discusses the growing use of technology in rural health care, and the importance of HIT and electronic health records. Describes the CareSpark Model. Examines how technology is opening up a world of powerful possibilities in advancing health care, both urban and rural.
Journal citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 08 / 2006
HIT Incentives and State Grant Opportunities: American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Resource Center
Describes the Health Information Technology (HIT) Incentives and State Grant Opportunities from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 HITECH Act.
Date: 2009
HIT: Issues and Opportunities for Rural Hospitals
Author(s): Tami Lichtenberg
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Resource Center
Discusses the barriers to implementing health information technology (HIT) and the electronic health record (EHR) for rural hospitals.
Date: 10 / 2007
Lessons Learned from Electronic Health Record Implementation at Three North Dakota Critical Access Hospitals
Sponsoring organization: JSI Research and Training Institute
Highlights common successes and challenges experienced during an electronic health
record (EHR) implementation project involving three Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) in North Dakota. Offers recommendations for future Health Information Technology implementation processes.
Date: 03 / 2009
Marshfield Clinic: Health Information Technology Paves the Way for Population Health Management
Author(s): Douglas McCarthy, Kimberly Mueller, Sarah Klein
Sponsoring organization: Commonwealth Fund
Illustrates how Marshfield Clinic serving rural Wisconsin can improve patient outcomes and
reduce costs by undertaking a population-based approach to ambulatory care management
supported by information technology.
Date: 08 / 2009
Migrating Toward Meaningful Use: The State of Health Information Exchange
Sponsoring organization: eHealth Initiative
A report based on eHI’s Sixth Annual Survey of Health Information Exchange, includes responses from 150 community-based initiatives and shows a nearly 40 percent increase in the number of advanced or operational initiatives exchanging information. Includes examples and other references to rural.
Date: 2009
National Rural Health Information Technology Workforce Summit Summary
Sponsoring organization: National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health
Information contained in this document was compiled from the Summit held in Washington, D.C. on September 22, 2009. The topics for the recommendations include: Data Development; Workforce Resources; and Policy.
Date: 09 / 2009
National Survey of Health Information Technology (HIT) Adoption in Federally Qualified Health Centers
Author(s): Michael R. Lardiere
Sponsoring organization: National Association of Community Health Centers
The purpose of this survey was to determine the extent to which health centers have adopted health information technology, identify the major vendors utilized by health centers, determine the extent to which health centers have integrated behavioral health and/or oral health electronic records with medical health records, and health centers’ use of telemedicine.
Date: 05 / 2009
Privacy and Security Solutions for Interoperable Health Information Exchange
Author(s): Linda L. Dimitropoulos
Sponsoring organization: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
Documents and summarizes the Assessment of Variations and Analysis of Solutions reports that were submitted 33 states and 1 territory to identify barriers to the electronic exchange of health information, suggest possible solutions and plans to implement these solutions.
Date: 07 / 2007
Profiles of Progress: State Health IT Initiatives
Sponsoring organization: National Association of State Chief Information Officers
Offers a compendium of Health Information Technology (HIT) efforts that focuses on measures state governments have initiated or endorsed through legislation, executive order, or by engaging in public/private or non-profit partnerships with outside organizations.
Date: 11 / 2006
Public Health and Information Technology at the United States-Mexico Border: Examples Show Potential
Sponsoring organization: Office of Rural Health Policy
Examines the use of health information technology (HIT) in public health programs at the United States-Mexico border, with an emphasis on frontier and rural health. Includes examples of successful projects addressing tuberculosis, immunizations, and diabetes.
Date: 02 / 2007
Roadmap for the Adoption of Health Information Technology in Rural Communities
Author(s): Julie A. Schoenman, Joy Keeler, Adil Moiduddin, Benjamin N. Hamlin
Sponsoring organization: NORC Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis
Assists rural providers who are just beginning their investigation of using health IT, and its applicability to their organization.
Date: 08 / 2006
Rural Health Information Technology
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
Issue paper discussing health information technology (HIT) and its implications for rural health care. Issues discussed include HIT standards, privacy, skills, and finance.
Date: 02 / 2006
Small, Stand-Alone, and Struggling: The Adoption of Health Information Technology by Rural Hospitals: Policy Analysis Brief
Author(s): Julie A. Schoenman
Sponsoring organization: NORC Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis
Reports findings from a national survey of rural hospitals designed to investigate how differences among the hospitals affect their implementation of health IT.
Date: 04 / 2007
Taking the Pulse of Rural Health Care
Author(s): Carol Adaire Jones, Timothy S. Parker, Mary Ahearn
Summarizes a report entitled, Health Status and Health Care Access of Farm and Rural Populations, and describes how new health information technologies can improve health care in remote areas. Article page contains multimedia links to an author interview.
Date: 08 / 2009
Telehealth: AHRQ's Health IT Portfolio
Author(s): Brian E. Dixon, Julie M. Hook, Julie J. McGowan
Sponsoring organization: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
An analysis of grants in AHRQ’s health IT portfolio that are focused on implementing or evaluating telehealth in order to improve care for patients, increase efficiency, and contain costs.
Date: 12 / 2008
Organizations
AAFP Center for Health Information Technology (CHIT)
National organization
Works to promote use of health information technology by American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) members and other office-based clinicians, for the purposes of improving the quality and safety of medical care, and to increasing the efficiency of medical practice.
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
Federal government
Sponsors and conducts research that provides evidence-based information on health care outcomes; quality; and cost, use, and access. The information helps health care decisionmakers - patients and clinicians, health system leaders, purchasers, and policymakers - make more informed decisions and improve the quality of health care services.
American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA)
National organization
A community of professionals engaged in health information management, providing support to members and strengthening the industry and profession.
American Medical Informatics Association (AMIA)
National organization
Dedicated to developing and using information technologies to improve health care.
Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology (CCHIT)
National organization
A recognized certification body (RCB) for electronic health records and their networks, and an independent, voluntary, private-sector initiative. Mission is to accelerate the adoption of health information technology by creating an efficient, credible and sustainable product certification program.
eHealth Initiative (EHI)
National organization
Membership organization seeking to drive improvement in the quality, safety and efficiency of healthcare through information and information technology.
Health IT Certification
Commercial
Provides professional training and certification for those responsible for planning, selecting, implementing, and managing electronic health records (EHR) and other health information technology (HIT).
Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)
Federal government
Works to improve and expand access to quality health care for all. Part of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.
Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS)
National organization
HIMSS frames and leads healthcare public policy and industry practices through its advocacy, educational and professional development initiatives designed to promote information and management systems' contributions to ensuring quality patient care.
Institute for e-Health Policy
National organization
Provides research and educational opportunities for public- and private-sector stakeholders who make and are directly impacted by e-health policy decisions. These stakeholders include the underserved, rural communities and minorities experiencing HIT disparities.
National Library of Medicine (NLM)
Federal government
The world's largest medical library. Producer of MEDLINE, PubMed and MEDLINEplus.
Office for the Advancement of Telehealth (OAT)
Federal government
Promotes wider adoption of advanced technologies in the provision of health care services and education. Part of the Health Resources and Services Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Rural Health Resource Center (RHRC)
National organization
Provides technical support for the State Offices of Rural Health and their flex coordinators for the Rural Hospital Flexibility Program, focuses on rural practice opportunities for healthcare providers in Minnesota and the surrounding region, does performance improvement with hospitals across the country, and develops the Rural Health Resource Directory of rural consultants and speakers found throughout the United States.
Rural Telecommunications Congress (RTC)
National organization
Dedicated to assuring that rural areas in the United States have access to the information and support they need to obtain and use advanced telecommunications services and technology for social and economic development.
Terms & Acronyms
Computerized Provider Order Entry (CPOE) A system that includes both inpatient orders and the electronic ordering of outpatient prescriptions often referred to as e-prescribing. The CPOE allows physicians and other caregivers to input orders directly into a computer, thereby eliminating problems with handwriting legibility and order transcription.
Electronic Medical Record (EMR) A generic term used to describe a computer-based patient medical record that includes patient information regarding diagnoses, test/procedure results and other relevant medical information such as medical appointments and correspondence.
Electronic Prescribing (eRx) The component of CPOE systems which can increase medication safety by checking drug doses, routes of administration, frequency of administration, patient allergies, and drug-to-drug interactions before a prescription is issued, and by alerting clinicians when patients are at risk because of a potential prescription.
Health Information Exchange (HIE) Refers to the sharing of clinical and administrative data across the boundaries of health care institutions and other health data repositories.
Medical Informatics Deals with promoting the effective organization, analysis, management, and use of information in health care.
Regional Health Information Organization (RHIO) A cooperative organization which can enable the regional constituents to securely and reliably exchange patient healthcare information. Their purpose is to improve patient health services and care through information sharing, advocacy, collaboration, technical innovations, and community affiliations.
Telehealth The use of telecommunication technologies for clinical care (telemedicine), patient teaching and home health, health professional education (distance learning), administrative and program planning, and other diverse aspects of a health care delivery system.
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