HIMSS Electronic Health Record Vendors Association Supports Single Standard for Interoperability

HIMSS EHRVA clarifies standards position to accelerate interoperability, electronic health record (EHR) certification and EHR adoption.

CHICAGO – (April 29, 2005) – The HIMSS Electronic Health Record VendorsAssociation (EHRVA), the landmarkcoalition of electronic health record (EHR) vendors, today published its position statement in support of the adoption of a single standard for the exchange of patient information during transitions of care. The implementation of a universal standard, said the EHRVA, would help ensure rapid deployment of electronic health records in the most efficient and effective way possible.

“EHRVA’s efforts to encourage the unification of these standards initiatives are to be applauded,” said H. Stephen Lieber, President/CEO of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS). “The industry must make the strategic decisions necessary to move forward and accomplish the ambitious objectives laid out by Dr. David Brailer, the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, in the Strategic Framework. Adopting a single standard for the exchange of patient data represents one of those decisions.”

In its white paper on interoperability, available on the HIMSS EHRVA Web site at www.himssehrva.org, the vendor group states its support for convergence of competing standards for the transfer of medical summary information among caregivers. Based on extensive experience in developing and implementing standards, and representing their collective customer base – the majority of provider organizations in the US – HIMSS EHRVA strongly urges standards development organizations and other stakeholders to work together toward this goal.

In addition, the HIMSS EHR Vendors Association, joined with HIMSS and Integrating the Healthcare Enterprise (IHE) to sponsor a two-day conference on April 21-22 in Chicago to gather input to the standards and support the work of HL7 and IHE on implementation guides and related profiles.

“The HIMSS EHR Vendors Association wants to be facilitators in this process,” said Charlene Underwood, HIMSS EHRVA chairperson and Director, Government and Industry Relations for Siemens Medical Solutions. “Our members provide software and services to the vast majority of healthcare providers in the US, and we believe that we can reduce costs and achieve interoperability much more quickly with a single standard.”

About HIMSS EHRVA

HIMSS EHRVA is a trade association of Electronic Health Record (EHR) vendors who have joined together to lead the HIT industry in the accelerated adoption of electronic health records in hospital and ambulatory care settings in the US. The association provides a forum for the EHR vendor community to speak with a unified voice relative to standards development, the EHR certification process, interoperability, performance and quality measures, and other EHR issues as they become subject to increasing government, insurance and provider driven initiatives and requests. Membership is open to HIMSS corporate members with legally formed companies designing, developing and marketing their own commercially available EHRs with installations in the USA.

The association, comprised of 33 member companies, is a partner of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) and operates as an organizational unit within HIMSS. For more information, visit http://www.himssehrva.org