RICHMOND, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

ConnectVirginia, the Commonwealths Statewide Health Information Exchange (HIE), is in the process of on boarding Inova, Northern Virginias largest health care system, as its first EXCHANGE partner. Making great strides towards electronically connecting health care providers and organizations throughout the Commonwealth, Inova is expected to be in production on ConnectVirginia EXCHANGE by the end of 2012.

Connect Virginias EXCHANGE service is key to our vision to promote the electronic exchange of health care information as a standard of care in the Commonwealth. We want to make available to authorized users timely, accurate, comprehensive and easily-accessible information which can be used for coordination of care, improvements in safety and quality, and advancements in the provision of healthcare, says Sandy McCleaf, Executive Director of ConnectVirginia. I am extremely pleased to have Inova as our first EXCHANGE participant.

A not-for-profit health care system serving more than two million people per year, consisting of five hospitals with more than 1,700 licensed beds and 16,000 employees, Inova realizes the value of being part of the EXCHANGE. Inova is extremely proud to be the first health system to participate in statewide health information exchange, says Dr. Marshall Ruffin, the Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of Inova. Having information available at the point of care for our patients and our physicians will lead to better care and better health outcomes for the population of patients we serve.

The ConnectVirginia Governing Body appreciates Inovas willingness to lead the way to improved health care for citizens of the Commonwealthby becoming the first to connect to the Statewide HIE, says William Hazel, M.D., Secretary of Health and Human Resources for the Commonwealth of Virginia and Chairman of the ConnectVirginia Governing Body. As Inova and others become participants of ConnectVirginia EXCHANGE, critical medical information will become more accessible to the proper health care providers across the Commonwealth as they provide patient treatment.

ConnectVirginia EXCHANGE is a collection of standards, policies and message-based services providing a secure method to query and retrieve patient data across all ConnectVirginia EXCHANGE Participants. ConnectVirginia EXCHANGE is based on the Nationwide Health Information Network specifications and standards supported and maintained by the Office of the National Coordinator of Health Information Technology (ONC) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

More information about ConnectVirginia EXCHANGE can be found at http://www.connectvirginia.org.

About ConnectVirginia

ConnectVirginia is the Statewide Health Information Exchange (HIE) for the Commonwealth of Virginia. It provides a safe, confidential, electronic system to support the exchange of patient medical records among healthcare providers, both here in Virginia and beyond. Community Health Alliance (CHA) is the Virginia based non-profit vendor selected by the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) to implement the statewide Health Information Exchange, ConnectVirginia. CHA, VDH and a governing bodyof health care professionals and executives from across the Commonwealth are planning and managing this implementation. For more information please visit http://www.connectvirginia.org.

About Inova

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ConnectVirginia Announces EXCHANGE Service with Inova