Carequality, a nationwide interoperability framework that makes possible the exchange of healthcare data between and among networks, reports that more than 1,000 hospitals, 25,000 clinics, and 580,000 healthcare providers are connected.

The numbers represent more than 50 percent of all healthcare providers in the country.

[Also: Cerner, Epic shops begin electronic exchange of patient records]

Mariann Yeager, president of The Sequoia Project, which is the parent of Carequality, revealed the numbers during The Sequoia Project’s Annual Meeting, which is taking place this week.

“When we first kicked off planning efforts for Carequality in 2014, we knew it was going to be big,” Yeager said in a statement. “We had many of the biggest names in healthcare – including healthcare providers, technology vendors, pharmacies and others – committing to making Carequality work and implementing the framework.”

[Also: Tiger Institute joins Sequoia Project, linking EHRs with SSM Health]

According to Sequoia numbers, in October 2017 alone, more than 1.7 million documents were shared among healthcare organizations through the Carequality Interoperability Framework.

The rate of exchange is accelerating each month. Two million documents were exchanged for the first 12 months, and nearly as many are exchanged now monthly, Yeager noted, adding that she expects growth to continue over the next year as existing implementers continue to onboard clients, and more than a half dozen implementers are expected to go live in the first quarter of 2018.

[Also: CareQuality, Commonwell to collaborate on health data exchange, interoperability]

The CommonWell Health Alliance, founded by six EHR companies, and Carequality are collaborating. To understand the collaboration, it helps to think of CommonWell as a network – much like a telephone service provider, and to think of CareQuality as providing the framework – the rules of the road. Both are critical for data sharing.

“Carequality’s success stems from the core principles of inclusivity and openness we laid out during early planning meetings,” Dave Cassel, vice president of Carequality, said in a statement. “We brought together competing vendors, providers large and small, HIEs, government agencies, pharmacies, and other types of healthcare organizations, allowing everyone to be heard.”

Cassel credits Carequality’s success to date to open conversation and debate, transparency and openness in all processes.

“Stay tuned, because the document exchange and participation numbers are going to get a lot bigger,” he added. “Carequality was born out of industry demand, shaped by industry and government collaboration – and now it is succeeding through industry support and participation.”

Twitter: @Bernie_HITN
Email the writer: bernie.monegain@himssmedia.com