Path to Production: Advancing Interoperability for Emergency Medicine Services
August 22, 2022
IHE USA and NEMSIS (powered by NHTSA’s Office of EMS) are partnering via IHE USA's Path to Production to advance real-world interoperability for EMS Systems to better support First Responders, Emergency Medicine Services, and Disaster Response in the United States. IHE USA and NEMSIS will work with the EMS community to accelerate interoperability and connectivity by leveraging industry interoperability standards and integration profiles, regulatory building blocks and incentives, and existing health IT infrastructure to support the modernization of EMS systems and improved interoperability to inform analytics, business intelligence and improved patient health outcomes.
IHE USA has hosted the North American Connectathon, one of the largest industry interoperability testing events, for over a decade. IHE USA's Standards Acceleration Programs explore emerging standards and implementation guidance in global, local, and personal health testing and education tracks. And in January 2022, IHE USA launched the Path to Production - a series of digital events for interoperability stakeholders at all maturity and engagement levels to have the opportunity to marshal resources and help accelerate the development and deployment of standards in critical, under-resourced areas to support better population health outcomes.
Interoperability for healthcare faces so many different challenges. Implementers tasked with deploying interoperable solutions need more resources, better specifications, improved tools, and more collaborative, open and engaging forums to advance their work. In keeping with IHE USA's mission to improve health IT interoperability, the Path to Production was designed to convene industry experts, share real-world experiences and challenges, and arrive at practical, consensus and open solutions that benefit the entire community.
Interoperability in the US is fragmented. IHE USA is focusing on tackling some of the most complex issues and addressing the gaps in our national interoperability fabric. Path to Production is a forum for all interoperability enthusiasts to get engaged so that we as an industry can contribute more diverse and extended perspectives and include the broader ecosystem in healthcare redesign, modernization, and transformation based on secure, and interoperable standards based solutions.
January sessions kicked off a series of programs supporting awareness of the myriad challenges affecting maternal and child health interoperability. Starting in August, IHE USA and NEMSIS will kick off a series for Path to Production focused on EMS and eOutcomes interoperability.
Next Steps:
- Project Launch:
- August 22, 2022: NEMSIS TAC Annual Meeting in Park City, Utah
- https://nemsis.org/2022-nemsis-annual-meeting-and-boot-camp/
- Developer Prep Sessions for EMS: Queries 101
- August 26, September 2, September 9, 2022
- Contact: iheusa@himss.org for an invitation
- Industry SMEs on hand to support interoperability education and help prepare for the Connectathon
- Learn how to query an Epic inpatient system for a discharge summary (CCDA) and query for FHIR resources
- Path to Production
- August 30/31, 2022: NEMSIS Project Kickoff
- Registration closed
- November 16/17, 2022: EMS: The State of EMS Interoperability (State perspectives, challenges, and successes with EMS interoperability)
- Register here
- IHE Joint Global Connectathon (Atlanta, GA)
- September 13, 2022: IHE Experience Day
- September 14-15, 2022: Standards Acceleration Programming
- Program
- Registration Closed
