In the context of the pandemic, healthcare consumer preferences and expectations have changed significantly over the past two years. One of the most profound changes taking place is that patients now prioritize convenience and access to care. As a result, health systems are investing heavily in digital transformation initiatives that allow them to streamline operations and become more consumer-friendly.According to Precedence Research, the North American healthcare digital transformation market is expected to exceed $151.8 billion by 2027at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 17.29% from 2021 to 2027.
Telemedicine, IoT-enabled medical devices, modern electronic health records (EHR), and artificial intelligence (AI) are just a few examples of digital technologies that are completely reshaping the way patients interact with healthcare professionals. However, despite these innovative technologies, there is still one key factor hindering the full digital transformation of healthcare. This is how patient data is shared among healthcare providers, which affects how care is coordinated and how medical decisions are made.
Patient-first care depends on better collaboration
“The digital transformation of healthcare has the potential to make healthcare more collaborative than ever before,” said Tabitha Lieberman, President of EHR and Healthcare Applications at Brightwork Health IT. “This is important because better coordination between primary care physicians, hospitals, specialists and the patients themselves equals better overall care. But unfortunately, the sharing of information and services between hospitals and external practitioners and specialists has not Simplify as much as possible.”
Brightwork, Health IT is an IT consulting firm that helps healthcare organizations with large-scale IT implementations, digital transformation initiatives and technology resources. Lieberman, who recently joined the company, knows a thing or two about the inner workings of healthcare. In 2021, the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) honored Lieberman with the Most Powerful Women in Health IT Award.
Lieberman believes that the future of healthcare depends on better collaboration.
“Without a collaborative effort, the industry will remain too fragmented to successfully transform itself into one that needs to be patient-first,” she said. “When I was at Providence St. Joseph Health, that was our number one priority. We have had great success using technology to bring together previously siloed hospitals, clinics and specialists into one network.”
EHR providers hold the key to better information sharing
Before joining Brightwork, Lieberman worked at Providence St. Joseph Health (PSJH), the third largest health system in the United States, serving all 118,000 employees, 70 hospitals and more than 1,800 clinics, as well as numerous other health care services. She also supports one of the largest community connection projects in the United States. A big part of this work is implementing systems that make patient information more accessible and enable effective collaboration between healthcare workers, hospitals and practices, no matter where they are located. One of the key technologies driving this, she shared, is Epic’s Electronic Health Record (EHR) system. Epic aims to provide the entire care experience for patients, clinics, hospitals, and all the core services needed to support care and operations, she said. Epic’s capabilities enhance the day-to-day operations of the clinic, including the management and sharing of patient medical records.
According to KLAS Research, 72% of U.S. hospitals have deployed an EHR system from one of the three leaders in the field: Epic, Cerner, and Meditech.for its U.S. hospital market share in 2021 The organization found that Epic captured 31 percent of the hospital EHR market and 42 percent of hospital beds, the report said. Cerner came in second, controlling 25% of the hospital EHR market and 27% of hospital beds. Meditech accounts for 16% of the hospital EHR market and 15% of hospital beds.
Although it’s the market leader, Epic’s way of operating among care providers hasn’t always been smooth sailing. Information sharing is often easy if the care provider is within the Epic software licensee’s system. However, suppose you are an independent specialist referring patients to area hospitals for outside care. Collaborating and sharing patient information may not be as streamlined as possible unless the independent provider also has an Epic license.
The transformation of electronic medical records
“One of the downsides of Epic in the past was that it was prohibitively expensive for small hospitals and independent specialists,” Lieberman added. “It can cost millions of dollars to implement, which is out of reach for many healthcare practices. For years this basically created a gap between the health system and external providers. But then Epic launched Community Connect .”
Epic’s Community Connect is designed to break down barriers, enabling large healthcare systems and small providers to communicate in real-time and share electronic records from one medical entity to another, while being easier and less expensive to install. This helps to power collaborative healthcare by integrating clinical records, thereby breaking down operational silos between multiple health systems and independent care providers.
“Community Connect is a cost-effective program that allows small hospitals and independent practitioners to connect to larger health systems or hospitals through the Epic EHR network,” Lieberman said. “This enhanced interoperability among care providers can help increase referrals and help reduce the cost of EHR implementation.”
One benefit of the health system as the host of the Epic Community Connect network appears to be that the move makes it easier to increase or maintain referral levels. Referral from one healthcare facility to another is as easy as pressing a button thanks to a shared technology platform. This helps increase revenue and reduce costs. Additionally, in-network patients are more likely to stay because they have easier access to the care they need.
Community Connect is a step in the right direction
“In addition to commercial benefits, patient care improves when others outside the health system can connect to the EHR,” Lieberman said. “When a patient arrives after being referred from one facility to another within the network, the new provider will already have access to all the patient information and recent medical history they need. This reduces the time it takes to care for them and also improves the The reliability of the medical history.”
Platforms like Community Connect are designed to enable smooth and efficient patient transfer between organizations. They also help large organizations expand their healthcare operations to smaller organizations in local and regional communities. They help small organizations reduce costs while still enjoying the benefits of an EHR.
Photo: Pixtum, Getty Images
