Integration of Direct Messaging Functionality for Interoperability

SAN DIEGO, Aug. 19, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- EMR Direct, a leading developer of software for the secure exchange of Protected Health Information (PHI) over the Internet, today announced the integration of its phiMail Direct messaging platform with the latest production release of OpenEMR, enabling users of the open source electronic health record software to send and receive Direct messages through their EHR system. OpenEMR 4.1.2, released on August 17, is focused on enhanced interoperability, and the Direct messaging capabilities powered by phiMail are key to seamlessly exchanging clinical information with other healthcare providers for referrals and other transitions of care. The functionality can be activated through hosted service or customer deployment of the phiMail Direct messaging software developed by EMR Direct.

phiMail implements the Direct Project secure encrypted email protocol, a standard required to meet three of the 2014 Meaningful Use EHR Certification criteria, and useful in many other aspects of MU2 and for electronic healthcare communications in general. "Direct messaging is a preferred standard for electronic data transport in the healthcare industry, and support for this technology must be included in EHR systems seeking Stage 2 Meaningful Use certifications for Transitions of Care, Referral, and patient-initiated data transfer use cases," said Julie Maas, CEO of EMR Direct. "Our platform provides best-in-class options for solution providers, including rapid integration capability with our Direct messaging API and straightforward multi-platform connector libraries, ongoing active enhancement of this product offering based on customer requests, extensive documentation, responsive customer integration support, and industry-leading features such as built-in support for separate signing and encryption keys and two factor authentication."

EMR Direct's versatile software architecture allows customers to quickly stand up their own Direct Messaging gateway, or leverage EMR Direct's hosted HISP service, to immediately begin exchanging messages using the phiMail platform according to their preferred deployment model and integration framework. The popular "no config" deployment consists of hosted Direct messaging service and a library of connector classes, so developers can easily add Direct messaging functionality to EHRs and other healthcare applications. phiMail can be used with or without an EMR, and is marketed to independent practitioners, large and small clinical practices, hospitals, other healthcare-related companies, and healthcare IT companies such as EHR vendors and other application developers. As a DirectTrust accreditation candidate, EMR Direct was an early participant in the DirectTrust Network, the national scalable governance and interoperability framework for Direct messaging, enabling broad interoperability for EMR Direct's HISP customers. phiMail can also be easily configured to interoperate with other Direct Project compliant services. Healthcare providers and IT professionals may request evaluation software by visiting http://www.emrdirect.com.

About EMR Direct
EMR Direct, a privately held healthcare IT company and health information service provider (HISP), is headquartered in San Diego, California, and provides Direct messaging products, Direct addresses, and, through its phiCert™ Certification Authority, the supporting public key infrastructure (PKI). With the goal of simplifying interoperability, EMR Direct delivers products that can be tailored to workflow and easily deployed by those who need to communicate, without requiring expensive, custom, peer-to-peer interfaces. EMR Direct is committed to developing technologies that protect patient privacy, improve the quality and coordination of care, increase productivity, and reduce costs. As part of this commitment, EMR Direct actively volunteers in open source initiatives and numerous government-sponsored and industry workgroups to help refine, expand, and govern the use of Direct messaging. More information can be found at http://www.emrdirect.com.

About OpenEMR
OpenEMR is a Free and open source electronic health records and medical practice management application that can run on Windows, Linux, Mac OS X, and many other platforms. OpenEMR is ONC Complete Ambulatory EHR certified and is one of the most popular open source electronic medical records in use today. OpenEMR is supported by a strong community of volunteers and professionals all with the common goal of making OpenEMR a superior alternative to its proprietary counterparts. The OpenEMR community is dedicated to guarding OpenEMR's status as a free, open source software solution for medical practices and is dedicated to maintaining a spirit of openness, kindness and cooperation. More information can be found at: http://www.open-emr.org.

Trademark Notice: phiMail and phiCert are trademarks of EMR Direct.