The federal MyHealthEData initiative aims to interconnect data from several systems and could help agencies better capture data at the time of patient care, according to a former government health official.
The portal was a topic of discussion on a recent “Government Matters” episode with former Health and Human Services Department Chief Information Officer Melissa Chapman. She currently serves as vice president of health IT at Salient CRGT.
Jared Kushner, who heads the White House Office of American Innovation, seeks a “whole of government approach” to electronic health records, making access and interoperability the top priorities. Chapman agrees with these priorities, but said “we certainly want access as soon as possible even if it’s not yet ideally interoperable.”
According to Chapman, by using more common EHR systems, agencies will get a better stronghold and more reliable tools to capture data when a patient is seen. This collected data will then be used to bolster individual care, enhance research and improve how Americans pay for health care.
These steps of improvement rely entirely on interoperability because that “interoperability is going to allow researchers to aggregate massive amounts of data and discover a new knowledge buried in that data,” Chapman said.
To watch the full interview, click here.