Today, we at CommonWell are excited to share a milestone achievement along the path to solving for nationwide health IT interoperability: we announced the rollout of our connection to the Carequality Framework, which is now Generally Available to CommonWell members and will increase health IT connectivity nationwide.
Not only do we anticipate that this increased connectivity will contribute to improvements in patient care coordination, delivery and outcomes, but we are already seeing it in action as our members and their initial pilot clients have taken the connection live and have since regularly exchanged health data.
As we knock down yet another barrier to true nationwide interoperability, we consider the value this will bring to both providers and patients and recognize that this is in large part thanks to the dogged efforts of our CommonWell Members and Service Provider.
While we had a goal to drive us, much of the groundwork involved in making this connection a reality had been previously unprecedented in our industry. With no prior benchmark or roadmap to follow for this kind of collaboration, the real pioneers of this connectivity are the Members that subscribed to pilot the connection with their clients. Cerner took the connection live with a handful of provider clients, including Lafayette General Health and Winona Health, while Greenway Health did the same with a few of their clients, including Carolina Family Health Centers and Urological Surgeons of Northern California.
Since taking the connection live, these providers have already bilaterally exchanged more than 200,000 documents and have tied that to their ability to provide more accurate and up-to-date information, improve communication with patients and ultimately provide better care and outcomes.
With the connection now Generally Available to CommonWell members, Brightree, Cerner, Evident, Greenway Health and MEDITECH are already in the process of subscribing and making the connection available to their provider clients. This member engagement will further extend the reach of our network and the value it can offer to providers as they work to improve health care for their patients, which is an important part of our collective vision as an Alliance.
Additionally, this could not have been possible without the technological infrastructure built and supported by our Service Provider, Change Healthcare.
As I’ve said in the past, and still firmly believe, the work done by CommonWell is borne of the power of many. While I am the only employee of the Alliance, I am proud to say I’m certainly not its only leader, nor the only driver of its direction. By fostering innovation through collaboration, this effort is yet another example of how we’re better equipped to rise to a challenge if we do so together, and we’re hopeful that the health care industry will continue to be better for it.