New Horizons for Consumer-Mediated Health Information Exchange.

Area of Science:

• Health Informatics
• Digital Health
• Healthcare Policy

Background:

• Consumer-mediated health information exchange (HIE) is evolving, with increasing focus on patient control over their health data.
• The landscape of HIE is influenced by policy, technological advancements, and data standards.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review current trends in consumer-mediated HIE in the U.S. and globally.
• To identify new approaches, supporting standards, and challenges in patient-centered data exchange.
• To explore future directions for consumer-mediated HIE.

Main Methods:

• A narrative review of peer-reviewed and gray literature was conducted.
• Searches focused on policy, initiatives, standards, and the technology landscape of consumer-mediated HIE.
• Literature was analyzed to characterize the HIE landscape concerning patient-centered data.

Main Results:

• Current trends in consumer-mediated HIE are discussed, covering the U.S. and global contexts.
• Policies, standards, and technologies facilitating patient-centered information exchange are highlighted.
• Remaining challenges and potential future directions for HIE are outlined.

Conclusions:

• The global HIE landscape increasingly supports a patient-centered care model.
• Advances in technology and data standards enable consumers to electronically exchange health information.
• Empowering patients in data sharing holds promise for more patient-centered care, necessitating further research and policy development.