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Chatham County Jail Health Information Exchange

A Good Idea

Description

Chatham County Jail Health Information Exchange provides responsible health information exchange for the region. Although the program does not provide clinical care, the utilization of a Health Information Exchange (HIE) allows providers to better address the medical needs of a patient, regardless of their location. Through a HIE, Electronic Medical Records (EMR) data from the participating 27 organizations in the program can be aggregated and medical professionals can query a patient's information through the HIE in order to see the patient's diagnosis, medication, lab results, and have access to other medical information that is available at that point. Since there is a large incarcerated population in the community, the program negotiated to obtain licenses for a jail EMR. The program paid $300,000 and saved the county $2 million.

Goal / Mission

To have an EMR system that allows medical professionals to correctly diagnose and address the medical needs of incarcerated patients in the emergency room or in the prison system.

Impact

The program has allowed for greater accessibility and sharing of medical data.

About this Promising Practice

Organization(s)
Chatham County Safety Net Planning Council
Primary Contact
Lisa Hayes
400 Mall Boulevard, Suite G
Savannah, GA 31406
912-644-5219
lisahayes@chlink.org
http://www.chathamsafetynet.org/
Topics
Health / Mental Health & Mental Disorders
Health / Medications & Prescriptions
Community / Public Safety
Organization(s)
Chatham County Safety Net Planning Council
Date of implementation
Jan 2017
For more details
Healthy Marin