Health Information Exchange or HIE is the movement of health care information electronically across organizations within a region or community. HIE provides the capability to electronically move clinical information between disparate health care information systems while maintaining the integrity of the information being exchanged. The goal of HIE is to facilitate access to and retrieval of clinical data to provide safe, timely, efficient, effective, equitable, patient-centered care.

The State HIE Toolkit is a compilation of resources provided under a program sponsored by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT. The Toolkit is designed to support State Health Information Exchange
with practical “how to” guidance on developing and implementing plans for achieving statewide exchange of health information between providers.

The Toolkit addresses the five essential HIE components: governance, finance, technical infrastructure, business operations, and legal/policy. In addition, the HIE Toolkit offers information related to general planning, grant management and other cross-cutting areas such as coordination with federal programs.

Toolkit Content Development

Contributors to the Toolkit content include a collaborative team of experts with experience in the field, led by staff from the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology.

The Toolkit is inherently a “work in progress”, designed to be regularly updated to reflect the ongoing experiences and needs of states as well as the growing body of lessons learned about what constitute “best practices” in statewide Health Information Exchange.

* Throughout the Toolkit are some examples from the field of state Health Information Exchange development as it has been evolving to date.
* As it becomes available, information and examples from ONC approved strategic and operational plans will be integrated into the Toolkit.
* The Toolkit will continue to link to relevant Program documents as information becomes available from the Office of the National Coordinator

Toolkit Organization & Updates

The number of Toolkit modules will be expanded and all of the modules will be updated on a regular basis as additional information becomes available.

Toolkit v1 – Planning Fundamentals – December 2009 Release

Includes Modules:

Planning Overview
Governance
Finance
Technical Infrastructure
Nationwide Health Information Network
Grants Management

Toolkit v2 – Additional Modules – Early 2010 Release

Includes Modules:

Business Operations
Technical Operations
Legal/Policy
Privacy and Security
Program Coordination and Leverage
Guidance on Meaningful Use

Module Content and Structure

Each module of the Toolkit contains a variety of information designed to foster learning on the topic and support states making design decisions and carrying out implementation approaches. Each Module is structured to include:

* Overview information about the topic
* Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ’s), updated regularly in response to states’ issues and inquiries
* Resources, including reference materials, tools and other decision supports
* Case Studies and Examples
* Links to Federal Program documents and guidance released by ONC

To learn more about the HIE Toolkit click here