Five hospitals throughout West Virginia have joined the state's health information network, bringing the total number of hospitals connected to nine. 

Monongalia General Hospital, Preston Memorial Hospital, Thomas Memorial Hospital, Grafton City Hospital, and St. Mary’s Medical Center are now live on the West Virginia Health Information Network’s (WVHIN) query-based health information exchange (HIE).

 WVHIN’s HIE allows participating hospitals to electronically share patient health information with each other in a secure manner for treatment and public health reporting purposes. Providers benefit from receiving the latest patient health information in near real time, at the point of care, in an organized view, according to WVHIN officials. Some of the benefits for patients, they say, will be a reduction in duplicate tests, improved quality of care due to doctors having a patient’s most current medical information, and access to critical life-saving information during emergencies.

Additionally, sending required information to the West Virginia Bureau for Public Health for public health reporting purposes and accessing advance directives online through the WV e-Directive Registry can all be done through the WVHIN’s HIE.

 “We are very excited to have these new hospitals join our network; the WVHIN now has partners in many areas of the state,” Phil Weikle, WVHIN Chief Operations Officer, said in a statement. “In an effort to provide the best healthcare to patients across the state, participation of healthcare organizations in the HIE is crucial so we continue moving forward in connecting providers in all corners of West Virginia.”