Although HIEs are becoming more common in the U.S. healthcare market, their benefits for cost and quality are still uncertain.
The government has invested approximately $2 billion to incentive healthcare organizations to use HIEs, and now approximately two-thirds of hospitals and almost half of physician practices are now using some variety of one. HIEs are frequently touted as a method to reduce costs, improve care quality and boost efficiency, but these assertions are still somewhat theoretical, according to a survey published in Health Affairs. The survey examined 27 studies tracking the effects of HIEs on healthcare quality measures, including costs, patient outcomes and efficiency.
Approximately 57 percent of studies reported some sort of benefit, according to the report. However, upon closer examination, the researchers found that the studies that had strong internal validity — studies including randomized controlled trials or quasi-experiments to test the results without bias — were less likely to find benefits.
"Overall, little generalizable evidence currently exists regarding benefits attributable to HIE," the report said.