ATLANTA, Feb. 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- NDCHealth Corporation , a leading provider of healthcare technology and information solutions, today announced that it was among the companies to partner with Health Level Seven (HL7) in a groundbreaking interactive demonstration project showcasing the very latest advancements in interoperability at the HIMSS 2005 Annual Conference and Exhibition, held Feb. 13 through 15 in Dallas, Texas.
The HL7 exhibit, entitled “Interoperability for the 21st Century Healthcare System,” demonstrated how interoperability could support clinical information exchange, including e-prescribing, electronic health records (EHR), clinical trials, context management and more. In its role, the NDCHealth Intelligent Network and its pharmacy management system, NDC PharmacyRx(TM), demonstrated how interoperability can promote widespread adoption of e-prescribing by enabling physician messaging of the prescription to pharmacies.
“Completing the puzzle of compatible technology standards to further the goals of improving healthcare delivery in the United States is one of the most important goals among healthcare information technology suppliers today,” said Walter Hoff, chairman and chief executive officer, NDCHealth. “We are proud to be working alongside industry leaders in demonstrating interoperability and how it can make these goals a reality, especially in terms of accelerating market adoption of e-prescribing.”
“This project was an opportunity for us to demonstrate our ability to support the wired healthcare system, as outlined in the “Framework for Strategic Action” a report released by Dr. David Brailer, the national coordinator for Health Information Technology,” Hoff added. “The NDCHealth Intelligent Network is integral to the interoperability needed to support the four goals Dr. Brailer identified - informing clinical practice, interconnecting clinicians, personalizing care and improving population health - and will serve as a building block for the U.S. healthcare system as we move forward in the 21st Century.”
Electronic Prescribing
Electronic prescribing is rapidly emerging as a key component of health information systems, helping to reduce medication errors, improve patient safety and satisfaction and improve operational efficiencies in both the physician office and at the retail pharmacy. The National Council for Prescription Drug Programs (NCPDP) SCRIPT is the primary messaging standard used for communicating prescriptions and related information electronically between prescribers and community pharmacies. HL7 medication orders are widely used within healthcare organizations for both inpatients and outpatients. To bridge this gap, HL7 and NCPDP have embarked on a multi-phase standards coordination project so that enterprise-based physicians and pharmacies can communicate with community-based prescribers and pharmacies. Using the mapping guidelines created by an NCPDP-HL7 stakeholder workgroup, NDCHealth and the other participants demonstrated multiple, real-life scenarios involving the use of e-prescribing in the healthcare enterprise, retail pharmacy, mail-order pharmacy, ambulatory care, and physician office environments.
About NDCHealth
NDCHealth is a leading information solutions company serving all sectors of healthcare. Its network solutions have long been among the nation’s leading, automating the exchange of information among pharmacies, payers, hospitals and physicians. Its systems and information management solutions help improve operational efficiencies and business decision making for providers, retail pharmacy and pharmaceutical manufacturers. Headquartered at Atlanta, Ga., the company provides information vital to the delivery of healthcare every day. For more information, visit http://www.ndchealth.com/ .
About HL7
Founded in 1987, Health Level Seven, Inc. ( http://www.hl7.org/ /) is a not-for-profit, ANSI-accredited standards developing organization dedicated to providing a comprehensive framework and related standards for the exchange, integration, sharing, and retrieval of electronic health information that supports clinical practice and the management, delivery and evaluation of health services. HL7’s more than 2,000 members represent approximately 500 corporate members, including 90 percent of the largest information systems vendors serving healthcare.
About NCPDP
Founded in 1977, NCPDP is a not-for-profit, ANSI-accredited, Standards Development Organization with approximately 1400 members representing virtually every sector of the pharmacy services industry. Its diverse membership provides leadership and healthcare business solutions through education and standards, created using the consensus building process. NCPDP has been named in federal legislation, including HIPAA and the MMA. NCPDP members have created standards such as the Telecommunication Standard and Batch Standard, the SCRIPT Standard for e-Prescribing, the Manufacturers Rebate Standard and more to improve communication within the pharmacy industry. Its data services include the NCPDP Provider Identification Number, a unique identifier of over 68,000 pharmacies and HCIdea, “The Prescriber Identity Solution.” For more information about NCPDP Standards, Educational Programs and Work Group meetings, go online at http://www.ncpdp.org/ .
NDCHealth is a trademark of NDCHealth Corporation. All other company and product names mentioned may be trademarks of the company.
NDCHealth Corporation
CONTACT: Robin Wrinn of NDCHealth Corporation, +1-404-728-2214, orrobin.wrinn@ndchealth.com