All Northern Colo. Hospitals Connected to HIE

By connecting to CORHIO, Banner Health and University of Colorado Health are supporting patient-centered care and the information needs of community-based providers across the state.

With all six of northern Colorado’s hospitals “live” on the health information exchange (HIE), CORHIO’s efforts to connect office-based clinics in the area are intensifying. One family practice clinic in Fort Collins is already connected—St. Luke’s Medical Clinic—and an additional six practices in the region have committed to join CORHIO’s secure network.

The northern Colorado hospitals are operated by Banner Health and University of Colorado Health.* Through their connection to the CORHIO HIE, the hospitals are electronically sharing vital patient information with community-based providers across the region and the state.

“By joining CORHIO, we are demonstrating our commitment to improving the overall health care management of our community,” said Steve Rains, IT system director for Banner Health’s Western Region. “With all of the major hospitals in northern Colorado connected through the HIE, in the future we will be able to utilize the information to identify population health trends.”

CIO: HIE Is Especially Helpful for Northern Colorado’s Safety Net Community

“Also, HIE is particularly beneficial to the members of our ‘safety net’ community (uninsured and underinsured) who often move from provider to provider and receive care in multiple care settings,” Rains added. “By having a complete patient health record, it allows us to make timely, well-informed treatment decisions at the point of care.”

The CORHIO HIE gives physicians and other authorized medical care providers access to important health information about their patients including hospital discharge notifications, lab test results, X-ray, MRI and other imaging reports, physician transcription reports and referral information. Later, the network will be upgraded to include patient medication lists, allergies and immunizations.

The six hospitals in northern Colorado that have connected with CORHIO, include:

Four Banner Health Hospitals:

• East Morgan County Hospital
• McKee Medical Center
• North Colorado Medical Center
• Sterling Regional Medical Center

Two University of Colorado Health Hospitals:

• Poudre Valley Hospital
• Medical Center of the Rockies

Seven practices that have signed agreements with CORHIO and are in various stages of the implementation process include:

• Westlake Family Physician
• Dr. Daniel B. Jinich
• Front Range Center for Brain & Spine Surgery
• Miramont Family Medicine
• Northern Colorado Pain Management
• St. Luke’s Medical Clinic (now connected to the CORHIO HIE)
• Urology Center of the Rockies

“The working relationship between Banner Health and CORHIO has gone very well. We have been impressed with the backend stability of the technical team that helped to keep momentum moving forward during the implementation process,” Rains said.

*University of Colorado Health is the new health system formed from a partnership between Poudre Valley Health System and the University of Colorado Hospital.