Project Details -
Completed
-
Grant NumberUC1 HS016160
-
AHRQ Funded Amount$1,476,200
-
Principal Investigator(s)
-
Organization
-
LocationHonoluluHawaii
-
Project Dates09/30/2005 - 09/29/2009
-
Technology
-
Care Setting
-
Medical Condition
-
Population
-
Type of Care
-
Health Care Theme
The Holomua Project piloted an endeavor to improve the flow of information between patients and families, community health centers (CHCs), and tertiary centers (TCs) by developing and implementing the Holomua Master Visit Registry (HMVR). The HMVR sought to improve coordination of care that patients receive when transitioning between CHCs and TCs. The specific aims of the project were to:
- Increase accuracy and timeliness of shared patient information during transitional care between primary and tertiary care facilities;
- Reduce incidence of medical errors that may occur due to linguistic and/or cultural barriers between patients and medical providers;
- Reduce occurrences of duplicated diagnostic procedures performed;
- Increase participation and involvement of patients and families in decisionmaking on health related matters; and
- Determine mechanisms by which information resources, information systems, and other information technology initiatives and/or networks in Hawaii can best support the Holomua Project.
The project consisted of both technological and non-technological solutions to the problem of transitional care. The technological solution involved developing and implementing the HMVR as a means of sharing health information between systems. It was chosen since it represents a scalable, interoperable solution that takes into account the disparate resources of all partner organizations. The non-technological solutions related to transitional care involved charting workflows, developing corresponding polices and procedures, and using dialogue and communication to facilitate the process. The non-technological methods were based on abundant research that illustrates the necessity of attending to the human side of information technology to ensure success of implementation efforts.
The collaborators successfully developed and implemented a live health information exchange involving approximately 250,000 patients, 150 clinician users, and 500,000 visits. In addition, the team trained over 100 HMVR end-users across three health care facilities, created policies and procedures for transitioning patients, and increased partners’ awareness of managing patients who visited multiple facilities.
More information on the project is available at http://www.hawaiipca.net.