Texas Health Services Authority Selects InterSystems To Provide Secure Infrastructure For Statewide Health Information Exchange And Patient Consent Management

Local HIEs to Share Electronic Health Records Across Texas Using InterSystems HealthShare Platform

InterSystems Corporation, a global leader in software for connected care, announced that the Texas Health Services Authority (THSA), a public-private partnership formed to improve the Texas healthcare system, has selected InterSystems to develop and implement a secure technology infrastructure for health information exchange (HIE), based on the InterSystems HealthShare strategic informatics platform.

Texas supports a “network of networks” HIE model that empowers local communities to develop HIE networks that meet the technology needs of local hospitals and physician practices. By coordinating how these communities engage one another within their own network as well as with other HIEs, they will be able to address specific challenges. An emerging HIE network in Houston, for example, is focused on addressing overuse of emergency rooms.  The Austin-based HIE is using information exchange and analytics to improve coordination of care for high-cost, at-risk patients. Other HIEs in Texas are focused on addressing population health and chronic disease management.

With InterSystems HealthShare, these local HIE networks will be able to ensure patient privacy, support secure data exchange and messaging, and provide connections to HIEs in other states through the eHealth Exchange, formerly known as the Nationwide Health Information Network.

“InterSystems brings to Texas a wealth of experience from their work with statewide HIEs in Illinois, Missouri, New York, and Rhode Island as well as regional and national health systems outside of the United States. The HealthShare platform is fully developed and can be implemented now,” said Tony Gilman, CEO, Texas Health Services Authority.  “Texas is a large and culturally diverse state. In partnership with InterSystems, we will provide every healthcare provider – through a local HIE – the opportunity to collaborate and share electronic health records in a private, secure manner, enabling better and more patient-centric care.”

Texas is supporting the expansion and development of 12 community-based HIE networks, which received grants from the Texas Health and Human Services Commission in 2011 to cover all of the major urban areas in Texas and have committed to connect 85% of the 52,000 physicians and 600 hospitals in Texas. In addition, Texas is working to provide a simple and low-cost HIE connectivity option to serve counties that are not supported by a local HIE network through five qualified Health Information Service Providers.  As a result of these programs, all Texas physicians and hospitals have at least one option to achieve the HIE elements of federal Meaningful Use requirements.

“InterSystems is proud to partner with the THSA and to support its mission to improve the quality and efficiency of Texas healthcare through a community-based HIE infrastructure,” said Paul Grabscheid, InterSystems Vice President of Strategic Planning. “With InterSystems HealthShare providing the connectivity among these diverse HIEs, healthcare providers will have more timely access to complete patient records and achieve the promise of connected care.”

About InterSystems HealthShare
InterSystems HealthShare is a strategic platform for healthcare informatics. It enables organizations to capture and share all patient data, and provides real-time active analytics that drive informed action across a hospital network, community, region, or nation. HealthShare facilitates strategic interoperability, coordination of care, population health management, and community engagement.

About InterSystems
InterSystems Corporation is a global leader in software for connected care, with headquarters in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and offices in 25 countries. InterSystems HealthShare is a strategic platform for healthcare informatics, enabling information exchange and active analytics across a hospital network, community, region or nation. InterSystems CACHÉ is the world’s most widely used database system in healthcare applications. InterSystems Ensemble is a platform for rapid integration and the development of connectable applications. InterSystems’ products are used by thousands of hospitals and laboratories worldwide, including all of the top ten hospitals on the Honor Roll of America's Best Hospitals as rated by U.S. News and World Report.  For more information, visit InterSystems.com.

About the THSA
The Texas Health Services Authority, under contract with the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, is responsible for coordinating the implementation of health information exchange (HIE) strategic and operational plans for the State of Texas. The THSA was created by the Texas Legislature in 2007 as a public private partnership, legally structured as a nonprofit corporation, to support the improvement of the Texas healthcare system by promoting and coordinating HIE and health information technology (HIT) throughout the state to ensure that the right information is available to the right healthcare providers at the right times. For more information, visit http://hietexas.org/about-thsa/overview.

A video on the “Texas Approach to HIE” is available at: http://www.hietexas.org/.