Think Tank | Foothold Webinar Explains Interoperability, HIE

On Thursday, 10/31, Foothold CEO Marlowe Greenberg moderated a webinar about interoperability called “From Black & White to Color: Interoperability as the New Norm.” He was joined by Dr. Peter Beitchman, ED of The Bridge, a nonprofit multi-service agency; Irene Koch, ED of BHIX, a health information exchange organization; and Paul Grabscheid, VP of Strategic Partnerships for InterSystems, a global leader in software for connected care.

The purpose of the event was to provide a big-picture overview of how a Health Information Exchange works to create a patient-centric view of healthcare, and to demystify the idea of interoperability for providers and other involved organizations. The panelists took turns describing the roles their organizations play in the process of data exchange and their motivations for participating. Then they went into some detail about how the process actually plays out within the active exchanges being done today. Greenberg and Grabscheid described how Foothold’s partnership with InterSystems is making the most sophisticated technology available to a new world of Behavioral Healthcare providers that could not afford this on their own.

The conversation acknowledged the rapidly changing requirements providers are facing under Health Care Reform, and provided reassurance that much of the complexity of this work is happening behind the scenes. Koch pointed out how the environment of healthcare is changing to be more appreciative of the usefulness of data to providing care. Grabscheid likened an interoperable EHR to a building’s plumbing to illustrate how revolutionary–yet invisible–the benefits will be for providers. All presenters ended on the note that HIEs should not be too scary for providers to embrace as long as they choose the right partners and tools that will grow and adapt with them.

Attendees were asked to complete an evaluation of the webinar.
–92% said the webinar increased their knowledge about the topic
–80% said they understand better the changes their organizations are facing
–80% said the webinar helped them to identify clear, actionable goals for their organization.

Many thanks go out to our panelists and attendees for taking the time to participate in this webinar. We will continue working to provide more topics of interest to our community.