Application Service Provider (ASP) – A business that provides access to one or more software applications, typically from a hosted environment over a network to its customers.

Broadband – The ability of a user to view content across the Internet to include large files, such as video, audio and three dimensional. A user’s broadband capability is typically governed by the connection between the internet service provider (ISP) and the user.

Certification Commission for Healthcare Informaiton Technology (CCHIT) - An organization dedicated to accelerating the adoption of interoperable health information technology throughout the U.S. healthcare system by certifying HIT products.

Clinical Document Architecture (CDA) – Provides an exchange model for clinical documents and brings the industry closer to the realization of an electronic medical record. The CDA is expected to be published by the end of 2006 as a nationally accepted standard.

Electronic Health Record (EHR) - A real-time patient health record with decision support capabilities that can be used to aid clinical decision making. The EHR can also support the collection of data for uses other than clinical care, to include billing, quality management, outcome reporting and public health surveillance and reporting.

Electronic Medical Record (EMR) – Electronic record with the ability to operate together with other applications within health enterprise (hospital, clinic, physician practice).

ePrescribing – Computer technology in which physicians use handheld or personal computer devices to review drug and formulary coverage and transmit prescriptions to a printer, EMR or pharmacy.  ePrescribing software can be integrated with existing clinical information systems to allow access to patient specific information to screen for drug interactions and allergies.

Health Information Exchange (HIE) – The movement of healthcare information electronically across organizations within a region or community.  HIE provides The capability to electronically move clinical information between disparate healthcare information systems while maintaining the meaning of the information being exchanged.  The goal of HIE is to facilitate access to and retrieval of clinical data to provide safe, timely, efficient, effective, equitable, patient centered care.

Health Information Technology (HIT) – The use of computer software and hardware to process healthcare information electronically, thereby allowing for the storage, retrieval, sharing and use of the information, data and knowledge for communication and decision making related to patient care delivery.

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) – A law enacted in 1996 to first protect health insurance coverage for workers and their families when they change or lose their jobs and secondly requires the establishment of national standards for electronic healthcare transactions and national identifiers for providers, health insurance plans and employers.

Health Level Seven (HL7) – One of several accredited standards (specifications or protocols) established by ANSI (American National Standards Institute) for clinical and administrative data.  Systems which are HL7 ‘compliant’ improve the ability for interoperability and exchange of electronic data.

ICD-9 (International Classification of Disease, 9th revision) - International disease classification system developed by the World Health Organization (WHO) which provides a detailed description of known diseases and injuries. The classification system is used worldwide for morbidity and mortality statistics, reimbursement systems and automated decision support in medicine.

Integrating, Integrated - To make into a whole by brining all parts together; to join with something else [Integrating/integrated can also be usesd interchangeably with consolidating/consolidated.]

Market Place - A geographic area where the majority of health care services (primary, hospital, and specialty services) for a defined population are located.  This geographic area is usually considerably broader than the current service area of an individual CAH_HIT network provider and includes an expanded patient population, as well as a broader range of payers and providers.

Master Patient Index (MPI) – A software database program that collects a patient’s identification numbers (from lab, radiology, admitting, etc..) and keeps them under a single, enterprise-wide identification number.

 Medical Trading Area (MTA) – A geographically defined area where a population receives medical services.  The area typically includes groups of physicians, hospitals, laboratories, and other providers offering healthcare services.

Network - A group of safety net providers (a minimum of three collaborators/members) collaborating horizontally or vertically to improve access to care, enhance quality of care, and achieve cost efficiencies through the redesign of practices to integrate services, optimize patient outcomes, or negotiate managed care contracts on behalf of the participating members.

Normalization - The process of redefining clinical data based on predefined rules.  The values are redefined based on a specific formula or technique.

Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONCHIT) – The US Department of Health and Human Services office, established in 2004,  to provide leadership for the development and nationwide implementation of an interoperable health information infrastructure.

Outcomes - Outcomes describe the benefits or changes for individuals or populations as a result of network activities. They may relate to behavior, skills, knowledge, attitudes, conditions or other attributes. For example, an outcome would be a 20 percent increase in the number of low-income parents getting their children immunized after receiving information through a network sponsored public awareness campaign.

Patient Record Locator – The electronic means by which patient files are located to assist patients and clinicians find test results, medical history, prescription data and other health information.  A record locator would act as a secure health information search tool.

Personal Health Record (PHR) – A software application which individuals can use to maintain and manage their health information (and that of others if authorized) in a private, secure and confidential environment.

Practice Management System (PMR) – That portion of the medical office record which contains financial, demographic and non-medical information about patients.

Provider - A provider is the individual who assumes primary responsibility for assessing the patient and documenting services in the patient's record. 

Results Delivery Service – A service which delivers clinical results from labs to the ordering clinician in the formats they require.  Examples of results include blood tests, pathology reports, radiology results and reports.

Regional Health Information Organization (RHIO) – A multi-stakeholder organization responsible for motivating and causing integration and information exchange.  Overall, RHIOs intend to improve the safety, quality and efficiency of healthcare as well as access to healthcare as a result of health information technology.