How Do You Change HIE Software Platforms? Very Carefully!

HealtheConnections RHIO execs detail lessons learned about changing horses in midstream

With the flick of a switch in May, the HealtheConnections (HeC) regional health information organization (RHIO) in central New York State changed over from the health information exchange platform from Axolotl it had been using for three years to a new one provided by Mirth Corp. of Costa Mesa, Calif.

The transition required a lot of planning and forethought, a close working relationship with the new vendor on data migration and project management, and the RHIO team’s confidence that it could manage the transition without upsetting data providers or users.

I recently interviewed Rob Hack, HeC’s executive director, and Dennis Sherba, its director of HIE integration, about their experience.