Defining and Evaluating Patient-Empowered Approaches to Improving Record Matching

Area of Science:

• Health Informatics
• Patient Identity Management
• Health Information Exchange

Background:

• Widespread adoption of electronic health records (EHRs) and health information technology (HIT) has been hindered by challenges in reliably matching patients to their medical records.
• The inability to accurately link patient data across different healthcare providers limits the benefits of interoperability and HIT.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate patient-empowered approaches for improving patient record matching.
• To identify and select a promising solution for further development and pilot testing.

Main Methods:

• Extensive consultation with diverse experts in health informatics and patient identity.
• Development of a multi-stage strategy focusing on data quality, smartphone application functionality, and advanced data exchange features.
• Consideration of a governance mechanism for coordinating diverse stakeholders and pilot testing.

Main Results:

• No single "silver bullet" solution for patient record matching was identified.
• A three-stage approach is recommended: improving identity information quality, implementing smartphone app functionality for bidirectional data exchange, and developing advanced features.
• The proposed solution involves multiple components and diverse stakeholders, necessitating a governance structure.

Conclusions:

• A multi-faceted, patient-empowered strategy is recommended to overcome current limitations in patient record matching.
• Smartphone applications can facilitate improved patient identity management and health information exchange.
• Effective implementation requires a coordinated governance mechanism to manage diverse stakeholders and ensure successful pilot testing and evaluation.