The Indiana Health Information Exchange is a venture backed by a unique collaboration of several Indiana healthcare institutions, including the Regenstrief Institute. Their vision is to use information technology and shared clinical information to improve the quality, safety, efficiency and confidentiality of healthcare in the state of Indiana, create unparalleled research capabilities for health researchers and exhibit a successful model of health information exchange for the rest of the country. In fact, IHIE is already regarded as a national leader in this area by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The strategy for achieving this vision is to "wire" healthcare by creating a common, secure, electronic infrastructure that expands communication and information-sharing among participating providers, hospitals, public health organizations and other healthcare entities.

Ultimately, the system will give providers better information for treatment purposes at the point-of-care, and it will give researchers a richer pool of data to guide more far-reaching treatment improvements.

For additional information on IHIE, visit www.ihie.org.