Dr. James S. McIlwain, President of Information & Quality Healthcare, co-chairs the Mississippi Health Information Technology Infrastructure Task Force. After Hurricane Katrina destroyed the medical records of thousands of evacuees, the state of Mississippi
decided to create networked electronic records. The Mississippi Coastal Health Information Exchange (MSCHIE) was established to restore the medical information system within the area of our state most devastated by Hurricane Katrina. Because of this restoration effort, medical records will now be stored and exchanged between providers electronically as opposed to using an out-dated paper-based system which is vulnerable to natural disasters such as hurricanes. The six coastal counties of Pearl River, Stone, George, Hancock, Harrison, and Jackson that were devastated by Hurricane Katrina are the focus of the health information exchange.
