An HIE is an organization with agreed-upon operational and business rules that provides services to enable the electronic and secure sharing of health-related information. Electronic exchange of clinical information allows doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and other healthcare providers improve the speed, quality, safety, coordination, and cost of patient care.
HIE adoption is associated with various benefits, including reduced hospital emergency department length of stays and positive effects on quality improvement of patient care. Like the other 50 states that have implemented an HIE, healthEconnect Alaska works to ensure that providers and care teams have the vital tools and clinical data resources they need to improve patient outcomes and reduce costs of care.