About Us
The SunCoast RHIO is owned and operated by SunCoast RHIO, Inc., a Florida Corporation. We are a state chartered corporation.
The RHIO is a Regional Health Information Organization that offers technology services, products, advice, and education to healthcare providers and consumers in our geographic service area of Southwest Florida. We also have an affiliated office in New York.
The SunCoast RHIO offers Health Information Exchange services to doctors and hospitals and other caregivers through an information clearinghouse approach. The RHIO performs HIE processing in a number of ways including utilizing a Syntranet software platform with our partner, Thrasys, Inc., www.Thrasys.com . We also utilize open source NHIN Direct and Connect services on our servers. (See "What is a RHIO" button on main web site)
Additionally, The SunCoast RHIO evaluates and recommends various products on behalf of providers. We offer support, maintenance, and installation assistance for various healthcare technology products for private practices as well as clinics and hospitals. This includes Electronic Health Records (EHR). We train and give seminars and presentations to community groups. We perform compliance management and audit services . We act as a conduit and information channel when government or public oriented information needs to be quickly dispersed.
Some of our Hospital participants have developed their own HIE, EHR and PHR functionality, or have achieved (or are achieving) "meaningful use" of technology as the term is defined by the Federal Government. We support these efforts and do not impose external or inappropriate solutions as a condition of membership on these organizations. By going across the technology platforms of our members, we can leverage purchasing, customer service, disaster recovery, security, and a host of other services that would not be possible without a common platform based on integration, not solution.
On the consumer side, we perform equivalent services in the form of support for Personal Health Records or (PHR) which not only include a patient managed record but can include other information such as proxy, will, insurance information, power of attorney, living will and directives, and other legal and financial information.
The RHIO supports the concept of the Medical Home. This concept views the various providers and the patient as a team approach to achieving desired health outcomes and healthy living. We are looking forward to providing services to and being integrated with upcoming Accountable Care Organization or ACO's.
Governance and Staff
The RHIO was established in 2008 to serve the community. At this time, board elections and committee establishment is in progress for the upcoming fiscal year.
Some of the significant individuals on our management team include:
Founder: Lou Galterio, MBA, HIMSS Fellow, CPHIMS, CHIME CIO
Chief Financial and Ethics Officer: Mark Klingel, CPA, MBA
Chief Technology Officer: Stephen Weiss
Special thanks to Fran Ross, whose expertise and knowledge in privacy, HIPAA, compliance, medical records, and hospital operations, helped make the RHIO possible and to all of our supporters without whom our organization would not exist.
This site is dedicated to all people who needlessly fell ill or passed on when help was available. And to all those and their loved ones who suffered because they didn't know where to turn to find that help.
Rest in Peace - John Galterio August 31, 2009