A growing number of doctors and hospitals nationwide are adopting health information technology systems, knowing that the technology will save time and money. Even more importantly, health information exchanges and electronic health record systems have saved lives. One example is the health information exchange that was implemented in Tennessee. A woman was rushed to the emergency room in Memphis, Tennessee with internal bleeding. The doctors in the emergency room were able to pull up her medical history and health records to see that she had received a scan a few days prior at another medical facility. The information provided by the system prompted doctors to rush the woman into surgery and ultimately save her life. If the doctors had not been aware of the original scan and wasted their time performing another, the woman would have died. As the doctor noted to a colleague after the surgery, "E-health saved a life tonight."

A recent study by Vanderbilt University examines the results of sharing patient data electronically between 12 hospital emergency rooms near Memphis and various other medical facilities across Tennessee. In addition to the life saving story, the study showed patients receive better treatment because they were not repetitive scans or procedures, allowing for less time spent in the waiting room and more direct care to the individual. This also benefitted medical facilities that reduced healthcare costs by two-million dollars over a 13 month period, according to the study.

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