Describe the data/information that flows between health care organizations.

The Week 3 readings focus on data – data quality, data storage, and data records (EHRs). For your Stage 2 assignment, you will identify external organizations with which the Midtown Family Clinic needs to share data, identify what data elements will be shared, and whether the data is going to the external organization or is coming from the external organization. In this discussion, we will examine what interoperability (data sharing) is, why it is important, and why it is so difficult. First, you should conduct some research and find out what interoperability is and how it impacts or is used in health care systems. Then,to gain an understanding of the major challenges with sharing data go to: http://afiahealth.com/challenges-sharing-data-separate-ehrs/

GROUP 3: Using a rehabilitation facility as the organization,

  1. List three data elements (or items of information) that the rehab facility would need to receive with a patient referral [Review what others have posted and try to come up with some different data elements]
  2. List one unique (not previously listed by another respondent) data element that the rehab facility would need to provide to an external organization, and identify what type of organization that is and the purpose of the data sharing.
  3. Choose one aspect of interoperability that you found in your research and explain what an EHR system for the rehab facility would need to be able to do to exchange information with other organizations.