Ontario to unite five health integration networks

eHealth Ontario, a health IT organization, is beginning work to ensure healthcare providers will be able to share electronic health information for Greater Toronto Area (GTA) residents, who represent 47 percent of the province’s population.

The ConnectingGTA project is a framework that will allow 700 service providers to securely share patient health information across the five GTA local health integration networks (LHINs), the organization stated.

Patients will receive better, faster and more coordinated healthcare from their providers, and providers will be able to share information more effectively among LHINs, eHealth Ontario stated. Patients and providers will also benefit from improved productivity and more timely treatment, according to the organization.

During the project’s first months, priority patient data such as clinical reports, diagnostic images, drug information and lab test results will be shared. Major technology pieces will also be put in place in the coming months to help providers access and exchange information, eHealth Ontario added.

The first phase of ConnectingGTA will be completed in 2013, the organization stated.

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