Washington

Health Information Collaborative

WHIC SPONSORS

Click on each logo for more information about the organizations listed above.

The Washington Health Information Collaborative (WHIC) is a public-private partnership providing funding to medical clinics and small hospitals for the acquisition, implementation and expansion of health information technology.

First Choice Health was the first to provide funding for this important work, donating $200,000 in 2005 to be used for grants. The program expanded in 2006, with funding for the Collaborative coming in at $500,000 from First Choice Health and $500,000 from the Washington State Health Care Authority. An additional amount of more than $2.5 million was provided from 2007 through 2009 for the program from these organizations. Qualis Health and the Puget Sound Health Alliance joined the effort to help operate the program and provide technical assistance to clinics and hospitals.

The WHIC Grant Awards program has funded providers all across the Pacific Northwest and Alaska. View all grant awardees > In 2009, award recipients responded to a survey sharing their thoughts about the program. A total of 53 practices responded. The survey revealed the following:

Over 62 percent of survey respondents used the grant money for acquisition and installation of an initial electronic medical record (EMR) system. Other respondents noted funds were used for enhancing existing EMR systems, E-Prescribing, registry implementation, data extraction and input into registry or EMR, connectivity with other medical providers, workflow redesign, and secure email with patients.
Respondents strongly agreed or agreed that the impact of the funding supported their ability to improve:
- Sharing of records among health care team members
- Efficiencies in medical record access
- Connectivity to hospitals, labs and/or specialists
- Care of patients with chronic disease
- Population health management through use of disease registries
- Ability to reduce medical errors
Major challenges reported by the respondents included:
- Time to devote to the project
- Staffing
- Vendor support
- Funding
The most commonly cited response to the question regarding what comes after successful electronic medical record implementation was "increased connectivity to other practices, hospitals and ancillary services".

Health Information Technology and the Future of the WHIC

The organizations involved in the WHIC are interested in improving value in health care — through higher quality and greater efficiency. The focus of this grant program over the years was to make investments in building a stronger health IT infrastructure, promoting public awareness of the importance of health information technology, and providing training and expertise to providers to ensure successful implementation of their health information technology initiatives supporting quality and efficiency gains.

Today there is significant national attention on the adoption of health information technology. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH) is providing support for this effort through Regional Extension Centers, workforce training, and advancement of statewide health information exchange infrastructure. Initiatives beginning in 2011 such as the Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive Program sponsored by Medicare and state Medicaid agencies is aimed at supporting the adoption and use of electronic health record systems by providing a funding stream for eligible providers.

In fact, the collaborative partners are very actively engaged in these initiatives and efforts to improve health care quality and efficiency in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska. Qualis Health is the Washington and Idaho Regional Extension Center (WIREC), providing health information technology support and training to practices with ten or less providers. The Washington State Health Care Authority is coordinating HITECH activities statewide including advancement of health information exchange and partnering with Medicaid to implement the EHR Incentive Program. First Choice Health and the Puget Sound Health Alliance are continuing to focus their efforts on supporting quality initiatives that help providers improve the quality and cost of care delivery.

With this expanded focus and infusion of funding support from the Federal Government, the WHIC has decided that the work started five years ago — to promote and support the adoption of health information technology — is now being addressed through means that reach a much broader audience and provide a greater amount of support. Because of this, the WHIC grant program will go on temporary hiatus while resources from these participating organizations focus on these and other endeavors that improve health care quality, capabilities in health information technology, and efficiency in the health care delivery system.

The program will be evaluated annually for opportunities to continue work to support the acquisition, implementation and expansion of health information technology for medical clinics and small hospitals. Program information and announcements will be posted to this website as it becomes available.