Although President Barack Obama has been pushing for health care reforms, which include implementing electronic patient records for Americans nationwide, Maryland has already been looking at a similar type of database.
The Chesapeake Regional Information System for our Patients (CRISP) serves as Maryland's statewide health information exchange, which enables clinical information to be networked within a common database.
This $10 million start-up state funded endeavor enables hospitals, insurance providers and health care professionals to securely share information about patients.
One potential benefit of this database is that it will facilitate communication between health care providers and hospitals.
The easily accessible records will eliminate the need for many time-wasting processes such as the duplication of costly diagnostic tests.
Cost and security are two overwhelming hurdles that this type of database presents, though. Finding investors for the project is difficult, and patients are likely to feel concerned about the protection and privacy of their health documents.
Maryland's three largest hospitals, which include Johns Hopkins Hospital, MedStar Health and the University of Maryland Medical System, as well as Erickson Retirement Communities, are participating on the board of CRISP.
The board is comprised of administrators from these institutions, and includes Patty Brown, the president of Johns Hopkins Healthcare, and Stephanie Reel, the CIO and Vice Provost for Information Technology at Hopkins Medicine.
According to the CRISP Web site, "The goal of health information exchange is to deliver the right health information to the right place at the right time - anywhere in Maryland - providing safer, more timely, efficient, effective, equitable, patient-centered care."
Although the database is currently being used for research studies, publishing information about specific physicians is strictly prohibited. CRISP officials recognize the security concerns that this sort of database may pose.
According to an article posted on the CRISP Web site, economists say that CRISP could increase efficiency and reduce costs, two potentials that Obama recognized and pushed for when supporting a patient database similar to CRISP.
With the national health care debate ongoing, Maryland is developing its own model of electronic health care reform. CRISP could serve as an example for similar databases, and its efficacy can be studied.
