Ohio system to share records through state's health info exchange

University Hospitals Health System in Cleveland is about to start sharing health records with other hospitals.

UH is the first major hospital system in Cleveland that has agreed to share records through the state of Ohio's health information exchange. The agreement is a big win for the CliniSync exchange, which is trying to get hospitals all over Ohio to share electronic medical records.

Not only will UH's 10 major hospitals and its 100 physician practices join the exchange — which now has received commitments from 71 hospitals and hundreds of private practices — but the agreement also shows CliniSync can win over big hospital systems.

“We see University Hospitals as a major catalyst for comprehensive, community sharing of health records in Cleveland and northeastern Ohio,” said Dan Paoletti, CEO of the Ohio Health Information Partnership, which manages CliniSync.

The Cleveland Clinic, the MetroHealth System and Summa Health System have yet to sign up to join the exchange, according to a previous Crain's story Some of the local hospitals that have signed up include Akron General Medical Center, Southwest General Health Center and Parma Community General Hospital.

The goal of the exchange is to help doctors get quick access to information on patients who have received care at other hospitals. That capability should help them make better decisions, especially in emergency situations when they don't have time to run tests or get results from another hospital. The exchange also is intended to help providers avoid filling out duplicate forms and running duplicate tests.

The Ohio Health Information Partnership created the technology behind CliniSync and financed its initial implementation with the help of $14.8 million in federal stimulus money and $2 million in matching state dollars.