ONC, research network collaborate on consent form pilot

The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology is collaborating with the Research Action for Health Network on a pilot program to develop an electronically exchangeable patient consent form.

ONC and New Orleans-based REACHnet, a clinical data research network, say they are planning to develop the form based on the Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR) specification, which is a standard for exchanging healthcare information electronically developed by Health Level Seven.

The pilot, which will be called Standardizing Consent for REACHnet’s Pediatric Research Registry, will test the exchange of patient consent based on use cases developed by The Patient Choice Technical Project, which is researching approaches for the trusted exchange of health information for research.



Also See: Carequality working on consent plan for record exchange

Automating the exchange of information between providers and researchers would bring efficiencies to more easily link patients with appropriate research projects. This pilot program will study whether FHIR can facilitate consent forms, one of the initial steps in determining whether a patient will be a good fit for a clinical research program.

REACHnet is one of 13 clinical data research networks funded by the Patient Centered Outcomes Institute (PCORI).

REACHnet provides a unique infrastructure for engagement of patients and providers for patient centered research—it provides access to longitudinal clinical data for more than 3 million patients across Louisiana and Texas, and offers other capabilities to inform research and create collaborative opportunities with multi-stakeholder groups to drive research agendas and project development.