As we enter 2021, we have a year of unprecedented uncertainty ahead of us. COVID-19 will continue to affect people’s lives and the economy. It will continue to create opportunities for health information networks (HINs) to demonstrate the value and utility we offer to providers, patients and public health agencies alike.
In supporting the state’s efforts over the last year, we made tremendous strides, accomplishing a lot that we had on our agenda and a lot that we didn’t. As we have in years before, we spent time creating the building blocks that we need to be able to accelerate the development of our services to improve provider workflow and patient engagement, and to convert data into useful information.
We know that the coming year will bring enforcement of rule changes limiting information blocking and requiring expanded information sharing. We expect that the pandemic’s vaccination and booster phases will require additional tracking for providers and government agencies. And we know that methods of care delivery, such as telehealth, are here to stay.
Our plan is to maintain momentum, focusing on workflow. At the same time, we’ll remain flexible and play a role in helping our healthcare community lower costs, while improving quality of care and patient satisfaction.