Personal Health Information

Personal Health Record and Health Information Technology

The future of health care lies in the growth of individually contributed Personal Health Information combined with the expansion of a Health Information Network. 

The rising cost of health care has created a rise in consumerism and the need for individuals to become more involved with their own health care.  This is evidenced by the rising popularity of FSAs (Flexible Spending Accounts), and high-deductible HSAs (Health Savings Accounts), pretax dollar accounts, funded by the individual to be used for certain (government-approved) medical expenses. A 2008 survey by Watson Wyatt of 453 large U.S. employers indicated that nearly half (47 percent) currently offer a Consumer Directed Health Plan, (CDHP,) an increase from 39 percent in 2007 and 33 percent in 2006. By 2009, 54 percent of companies plan to offer a CDHP. 

To help manage these funds, and other personal health information, many people keep some sort of personal health record.  In 2008, to do so electronically is the logical next step.  A Personal Health Record (PHR) is an electronic file which is owned by the enrollee, is editable, can be stored, transported, and shared to reduce costs and improve care.  Individuals can record medications taken, allergies, family history, treatments, and behavior to create a picture of personal health. 

Historically, hospitals have led the way in Health Information Technology.  They have invested in information systems, creating a Health Information Network (HIN), linking affiliated institutions, physicians, home care agencies, and pharmacies.  The benefits of creating this network are to save time by sharing records, reduce costs by eliminated duplicate tests, and provide better care for patients.  As patients are treated, Electronic Health Records (EHR) are generated.  This information is HIPAA-protected, confined to the network, and shared only as needed.

There are obvious benefits to merging these two separate information sources, the PHR (from the patient), and the EHR (from the health care provider).  By compiling the information collected from the many different providers whose claims pass through a health plan’s data management system, and adding member-contributed PHR, health plans can create a more powerful information hub.  Enrollees have immediate secure access to this information on demand.  Because of our interaction with the different providers and with the patient, health plans are the natural keeper of this more complete EHR. 

According to the U.S. Dept of Health and Human Services, the future of health care lies with the creation of a Nationwide Health Information Network (NHIN).  “The Nationwide Health Information Network (NHIN) is the critical portion of the health IT agenda intended to provide a secure, nationwide, interoperable health information infrastructure that will connect providers, consumers, and others involved in supporting health and healthcare.”2 This new network will enable health information to follow the consumer, and also be available for clinical decision making on a more global scale, so as to improve general health.  For this to be achieved, a common set of standards must be developed, with a goal of interoperability between systems; first on the local level, then on a regional level, and finally, on a national level, linking all systems together.

The days of taking good health and good health care for granted are behind us.  Consumers can no longer afford to sit back and let others make all their health-related decisions.  Today, with the developments in health information technology and the creation of a personal health record, individuals are empowered to take more control of their own health care.  Health plans are working with employers, providers, and consumers to achieve a better health care future.

2 Nationwide Health Information Network (NHIN): Background, Retrieved May 27, 2008 from http://www.hhs.gov/healthit/healthnetwork/background/

David Merritt ed., Paper Kills: Transforming Health and Healthcare with Information TechnologyU (Washington, D.C.: CHT Press)