The Department of Human Services through the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has laid out a vision for a national Electronic Health Record (EHR). When completed, the EHR will bring together patient information stored on the information systems of multiple providers. The project is ambitious, but the establishment of such a national health information network will improve patient outcomes and safety by providing caregivers with a more complete view of a patient’s health.

To achieve the realization of this vision will require the establishment of information technology interoperability standards and the cooperation of healthcare information technology vendors in the implementation of the finalized standards. CPSI is committed to this process and is an active participant in the following organizations and events:

Health Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) /
HIMSS Electronic Health Record Association (EHRA):

CPSI is a Corporate Member of the HIMSS organization, an active participant in the EHRA and an annual participant in the HIMSS Interoperability Showcase. CPSI has a representative that is a voting member of the EHRA Government Relations Work Group.

For more information about HIMSS: http://www.himss.org/ASP/index.asp

For more information about EHRA: http://www.himssehra.org/ASP/index.asp

Integrating the Healthcare Enterprise (IHE):

IHE is an initiative within the healthcare industry to promote standards-based interoperability and improve the way computer systems share information. Systems developed in accordance with IHE communicate with one another better, are easier to implement, and enable care providers to use information more effectively.

CPSI participates in the annual IHE North America Connectathon and other IHE sponsored interoperability events. The IHE Connectathon is the only large-scale interoperability testing event in the healthcare IT industry and participating vendors are able to publish IHE Integration Statements for their products that successfully complete testing. The IHE Connectathon provides an unparalleled opportunity to verifiably demonstrate interoperability in collaboration with other healthcare IT systems.

For CPSIs IHE Integration Statement: CPSI System Integration Statement

For more information about IHE: http://www.ihe.net/index.cfm

Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology (CCHIT):

CPSI has representation on the CCHIT Inpatient Functionality Work Group which has been tasked with determining certification standards for electronic medical record inpatient functionality. The work group consists of thirteen members; all of which, including CPSI’s representative, were chosen through a national search that included a formal application and qualification review process.

For more information about CCHIT: http://www.cchit.org/