CommonWell Health Alliance, and organization that focuses on health systems interoperability — including in post-acute care and DME — says that its members will give patients access to their health data for the first time.
CommonWell services will let a person self-enroll in CommonWell, self-link their health records wherever they receive care, and self-query and view their health data available on the CommonWell network. Eight CommonWell members have already committed to deploying these services.
With the ability to self-enroll in CommonWell and self-link their health records, patients will be able to give their providers across the care continuum more secure, near instant access to their important health data, which could help improve care and coordination. In addition, the “self-query” and “view” capabilities will help patients more quickly retrieve their health information provider by provider.
Moreover, this is a capability that a recent study says patients want. While 53 percent of patients can’t access their data online, nearly 74 percent of healthcare consumers surveyed say easy electronic access to health data would improve their knowledge of their health and improve communication with their physicians, according to a survey from HealthMine.
“Far too often individuals and the people who care for them are stymied by the onerous task of accessing their health data,” said Jitin Asnaani, Executive Director of CommonWell Health Alliance. “CommonWell and its members are dedicated to helping break down the barriers that make it difficult for patients to access that information. By enabling these services, our CommonWell members will empower people to be more engaged in managing their health and the health of their loved ones.”
CommonWell made its cross-vendor interoperability services available to the post-acute market earlier this year. Key CommonWell members Brightree, Cerner and McKesson were among the first that committed to deploying these services nationwide in 2016.