SAN FRANCISCO – A statewide system to provide physicians with electronic access to patient information is set to launch in 23 Orange County emergency departments.

The health information exchange initiative is a collaboration between the statewide California Regional Health Information Organization (CalRHIO) and the Orange County Partnership Regional Health Information Organization (OCPRHIO).

The HIE will initially provide emergency department physicians with medical record information on 360,000 patients enrolled in CalOptima, which provides coverage for people in Medi-Cal, Medicare and Healthy Kids.

"This initiative is the first step in making comprehensive information available electronically for all Californians," said Molly Coye, MD, CalRHIO's board chairman. "It demonstrates the benefits that can be achieved when state-level and local efforts work together. The Orange County community, in supporting OCPRHIO, is leading the way. Together we will improve patient care and safety and expedite the timeline for electronic exchange of health information."

The new system augments information currently available to Orange County emergency department physicians who care for the county's indigent population. The information is part of the Medical Services Initiative Program, a county-funded safety net program.

"Our hospitals and physicians continue to demand electronic access to health information that this collaboration makes possible," said Nova Stewart, OCPRHIO's chairman and chief information officer of Integrated Healthcare Holdings, Inc. "Having medical record information available is especially critical in an emergency when seconds count and a patient may not be able to tell the physician the vital facts about his or her health, such as medications or a chronic condition."

The system will eventually provide Orange County physicians with the ability to communicate with other doctors and hospitals across the state as well as with the national network, when it is available.

By early 2010, the CalRHIO system will also provide additional data to emergency physicians including medical history, laboratory data and clinical claims data for patients with commercial insurance.

"Collaboration in facilitating HIE is essential for success," said Katherine Johnson, director of program development for Public Health Foundation Enterprises, the fiscal sponsor for the OCPRHIO project. "When organizations and individuals are able to put aside their differences and work collectively for the common good of improved healthcare for a community, profound changes are possible. The Orange County healthcare community continues to illustrate its ability to work together for the good of its citizens, making organizations like OCPRHIO an exciting success. We are proud to be a part of it."

The system is slated to go live by July 2009.