AHA Leadership Scan: A Series of Virtual Panel Discussions

AHA Leadership Scan: A Series of Virtual Panel Discussions 

Unlocking EMR Interoperability: A Guide for Hospital and EMS Teams 

Thursday, February 19, 2026 
1 - 2 p.m. Eastern; noon - 1 p.m. Central; 10 - 11 a.m. Pacific   

Hospitals and emergency medical services (EMS) teams share a mission of delivering seamless, lifesaving care—but too often, disconnected systems stand in the way. While interoperability promises real-time data exchange from the field to the ED and beyond, achieving it in practice requires more than just technology. It takes aligned people, processes, and standards that make data truly usable when and where it matters most.  

In this AHA Leadership Scan, hospital and EMS leaders will share how they are closing the data gap between prehospital and in-hospital care to improve documentation, clinical decision-making, and outcomes. Panelists will discuss how they are:

• Clarifying EMR, EHR, and ePCR roles—and why EMS–hospital data exchange matters for care continuity, documentation integrity, and faster decisions.
• Implementing interoperability in practice: aligning people and workflows, using open standards like HL7/CDA, and improving data quality for real-time clinical use.
• Building end-to-end connected care models that send EMS data directly to the ED and flow outcomes back to EMS for quality improvement—reducing duplicate documentation and strengthening collaboration.

Attendees will gain practical insights and field-tested strategies for advancing data sharing between EMS and hospitals, reducing communication delays, and driving safer, faster, and more coordinated care delivery.

Attendees Will Learn:

• How to define EMR, EHR, and ePCR systems and understand their roles in care continuity and compliance.
• Steps to implement interoperability that improves both data integrity and real-time usability.
• How connected care models enhance patient outcomes, reduce redundancy, and support performance improvement for EMS and hospital teams. 

Speakers: 

Joe Graw 
Chief Growth Officer 
ImageTrend

By attending the AHA Leadership virtual panel discussion "Unlocking EMR Interoperability: A Guide for Hospital and EMS Teams" offered by the AHA, participants may earn up to 1 ACHE Qualified Education Hour toward initial certification or recertification of the Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives (FACHE) designation.