Infrastructure: Overview

The goal of the Indiana IAIMS Initiative (I3) is to create an integrated, Indianapolis MSA (Metropolitan Statistical Area) wide clinical data and knowledge information management system that serves the needs of patient care, public health, education, policy generation and research.  The information management system will be used by patients, health care providers, public health officials, educators, policy makers and researchers.

This project has four specific aims:

• To expand and enhance the existing Indiana Network for Patient Care (INPC) by adding community identified context appropriate resources including additional clinical data, knowledge resources and functionality
• To promote use of these data and knowledge resources by patients, providers, researchers, educators and policy makers
• To evaluate the project through on-going data analysis and periodic qualitative research such as structured interviews or focus groups to assess usability, usefulness and perceived impact on patient care
• To create a sustainable, self funding model for the system

The NLM IAIMS grant provides critical operational funds that will allow us to begin the transition from a research funded initiative to a robust, operational, truly community based and managed clinical information exchange. Because of the scale of this undertaking, the NLM IAIMS award will be highly leveraged by funds from other federal and private sources, industry, and the participants themselves. 

Central Indiana shares a common vision for sharing clinical information.  We are all committed and have already been working together since Regenstrief Institute began to advance this vision through the creation of both an organizationally, and technically, sound infrastructure. The funding from the National Library of Medicine is important to achieving our shared vision and the development of a sustainable business model that can support our clinical data sharing vision long term (i.e., after IAIMS grant funds run out).

IAIMS operations funding alone is not sufficient to achieve our ambitious goal.  Many of the participants are contributing in-kind resources including personnel time, equipment, software and space.  In addition, we expect to obtain other external funding from sources including local and national foundations and local industry to support this effort, and we expect the business model designed for payments from the participants to help support the information management system. 

Successful completion of this project and widespread adoption of this network within the Indianapolis MSA will firmly establish Indianapolis as the first wide area implementation of an Integrated Advanced Information Management System, create a signature resource for economic development for the region and provide a model that could be replicated in other communities.

Dr. J. Marc Overhage is the Principle Investigator of the I3 project working in partnership with the leadership of the participants as well as Dr. Clement McDonald, Director of the Regenstrief Institute, and Dr. Julie McGowan, Director of the Ruth Lilly Medical Library.  Dr. Overhage will continue to play a significant role in the entire set of central Indiana clinical information exchange activities including the INPC and IHIE (a Biocrossroads start-up venture backed by the unique collaboration of several healthcare institutions and the Regenstrief Institute).  Success of the I3 is highly dependent on participation by all of the participants in a complex matrix framework.