Dean Riggott Photography
Surescripts
Healthcare interoperability is one of those terms that can mean many things to many people. But for clinicians like doctors and pharmacists, it means only one thing: the ability for information to flow efficiently across systems so they can access the right patient information, when they need it most.
Surescripts has transformed healthcare interoperability in the two decades since first enabling electronic prescribing across the country. Today, we exchange 57 million messages daily with patient-specific clinical and benefit information -- encompassing much more than electronic prescribing.
We are empowering care teams, including physicians and pharmacists, with seamless communication and access to comprehensive patient histories. This information supports better care decisions between providers and their patients, leading to improved outcomes and more cost-effective care.
Together, Surescripts Network Alliance participants, including health systems, pharmacies, technology vendors, pharmacy benefit managers and health plans from across the industry, continue to simplify health intelligence sharing – making interoperability an everyday reality.
Paving the Path to Better Informed Patient Care
I recently attended an event hosted by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra to formally recognize the first group of organizations who have been approved to become Qualified Health Information Networks (QHINs) under the Trusted Exchange Framework & Common Agreement (TEFCA).
Surescripts has long supported HHS’ Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC) and served as a founding member and implementer of Carequality and DirectTrust, and we applaud the organizations who have committed to becoming the initial QHINs.
No matter where the patient is on their care journey, healthcare providers should always have access to a comprehensive view of the patient’s care history.
This is an important milestone that will improve healthcare interoperability, further facilitating the exchange and access to comprehensive patient intelligence to close gaps in care across the country.
Reaching the Top Together
This announcement emphasizes why we believe Surescripts’ commitment to advancing interoperability remains a truly worthwhile effort and is reflected in our ongoing work with ONC and Carequality and through board-level engagement with The Sequoia Project.
While we haven’t quite reached the peak, we are ready to continue the journey, supporting advancements in interoperability through our partnerships across the industry.
Making sure providers are well-equipped to provide quality care for their patients is well worth the climb.
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