Table 4.
Suggested Social-Health Information Exchange (S-HIE) Functionalities
| Category | Functionality | Description | Votes, n (%)* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Background information | Demographic information † | Ability to view and update current patient/client demographic information (i.e., full name, address, race/ethnicity, age, income, contact/household information, and education) | 20 (7) |
| Standard documents† | Ability to view and update standard patient/client documentation required by agencies to initiate service, such as social security card, identification, proof of residence and proof of income | 18 (7) | |
| Insurance coverage/assistance† | Ability to view and update current patient/client insurance coverage or insurance assistance enrollment such as Medicare, Medicaid, social security disability insurance | 16 (6) | |
| Service eligibility | Functional assessments | Ability to view and update functional assessment information collected by health or social service providers, such as mobility, literacy and activities of daily living assessments to inform appropriate service recommendations | 8 (3) |
| Service requirements | View-only access to documentation and eligibility requirements to access services from health system and social service agencies | 10 (4) | |
| Service identification† | Ability to search for and identify available coverage/assistance programs for which patient/client is eligible, in order to inform inter-agency referrals | 24 (9) | |
| Service history | Social services referrals† | View-only access to past and current referrals and resources (e.g., home care, shelter, etc.) arranged by health system or social service provider on behalf of patient/client | 22 (8) |
| Social services enrollment | Ability to view and update all current/active social service program enrollments across multiple community organizations and social service agencies | 10 (4) | |
| Medical history† | Ability to view and update current or relevant medical history from health system or social service agency, such as medical conditions, social history, and allergies | 20 (7) | |
| Medication prescription | Ability to view and update current medical prescriptions | 14 (5) | |
| Provider assignments | View-only access to health system or social service provider name who has worked with or is working with a patient/client | 13 (5) | |
| Service planning, coordination, and delivery | Patient discharge | View-only access to health system discharge plan information, such as planned discharge date, patient instructions, prescriptions, follow-up appointments, and post-discharge medical procedures and/or equipment or other special needs | 14 (5) |
| Service request/referral | Ability to request appointment or referral services from health system or social service agencies on behalf of the patient/client | 11 (4) | |
| Appointments | Ability to view and/or receive notifications regarding patient/client’s current and upcoming medical and/or social services appointments | 10 (4) | |
| Client tracking† | Ability to view and/or receive notifications regarding patient/client intake and/or encounter data from health system or social service settings | 27 (10) | |
| Surveillance/quarantine | Ability to receive notifications if a patient/client needs to be placed under surveillance and/or quarantine for a serious medical condition | 3 (1) | |
| Dietary requirements | Ability to view and receive notification of patient/client’s medical condition requiring dietary restrictions and view suggested dietary plans | 7 (3) | |
| Research and reporting | Research study participation | Enable participation in inter-agency and cross-sector longitudinal service impact and outcomes studies | 5 (2) |
| Research data | Enable access to de-identified aggregated community-level data for use in general research or community needs assessments | 8 (3) | |
| Reporting assistance | Enable access and aggregation of data to meet third-party reporting requirements | 11 (4) |
* Total number of potential votes = 273 (seven votes each × 39 participants). Two votes were not accounted for.
† One of seven top functionalities as determined by forced rank vote at town hall meeting