KLAS Summit: Interoperability Doing the Work to Move HealthIT Forward

I had the privilege of attending the KLAS research event with leaders in patient data interoperability. From the ONC to EHR vendors- executives from EHR vendors and hospital systems made their way to a summit about standards for measurement and improvement. These meetings are convened with the mutual goal of contributing to advancement in Health IT and improvement of patient outcomes. I’m a big fan of collaborative efforts that produce measurable results. KLAS research is successfully convening meetings everyone in the HealthIT industry has said are necessary for progress.

The theme of Interoperability lately is: Things are not moving fast enough.

The long history of data in health records and variety in standards across records have created a system that is reluctant to change. Some EMR vendors seem to think the next step is a single patient record- their record.

Watching interactions between EHR vendors and the ONC was interesting. Vendors are frustrated that progress and years of financial investment might be overturned by an unstable political atmosphere and lack of funding. Additionally, device innovation and creation is changing the medical device landscape at a rapid rate. We aren’t on the same page with new data and we are creating more and more data from disparate sources.

Informatics experts in healthcare require a huge knowledge base to organize data sharing and create a needs based strategy for data sharing. They have such a unique perspective across the organization. Few of the other executives have the optics into the business sense of the organization. They have to understand clinical workflows and strategy., as well as financial reimbursement. Informatics management is a major burden and responsibility- they are in charge of improving care and making workflows easier for clinicians and patients. EMR use has frequently been cited as a contributor to physician burnout and early retirement. Data moving from one system can have a huge impact on care delivery costs and patient outcomes. Duplicated tests and records can mean delayed diagnosis for surgeons and specialists. Participants of the summit discussed that patients can be part of improving data sharing.

We have made great progress in terms of interoperability but there is still much to be done. Some of the discussion was interesting, such as the monumental task the VA has in patient data with troop deployment and care. There was also frank discussion about business interests and data blocking ranging from government reluctance to create a single patient identifier to a lack of resources to clean duplicated records.

Stakeholders want to know what the next steps are- how do we innovate and how do we improve from this point forward? Do we create it internally or partner with outside vendors for scale? They are tired of the confusion and lack of progress. Participants want more. I asked a few participants what they think will help things move forward more quickly. Not everyone really knows how to make things move forward faster.

Keith Fraidenburg of CHIME praised systems for coming together and sharing patient data- to improve patient outcomes. I spoke with him about the Summit itself and his work with informatics in healthcare. He discussed how the people involved in this effort are some of the hardest working people in healthcare. Their expertise in terms of clinical knowledge and data science is highly specialized and has huge implications in patient outcomes.

“To get agreement on standards would be an important big step forward. It wouldn’t solve everything but to get industry wide standards to move things forward the industry needs a single set of standards or a playbook.”

We might have different interests, but the people involved in interoperability care about interoperability advancement. Klas research formed a collaborative of over 31 organizations that are dedicated to giving great feedback and data about end users. The formation of THE EMR Improvement Collaborative can help measure the success of data interoperability. Current satisfaction measures are helpful, but might not give health IT experts and CMIOs and CIOs the data they need to formulate an interoperability strategy.

The gaps in transitions of care is a significant oversight in the existing interoperability marketplace. Post acute organizations have a huge need for better data sharing and interorganizational trust is a factor. Government mandates about data blocking and regulating sharing has a huge impact on data coordination. Don Rucker, MD, John Fleming, MD, Genevieve Morris and Steve Posnack participated in a listening session about interoperability.  Some EMR vendors mentioned this listening session and ability to have a face to face meeting were the most valuable part of the Summit.

Conversations and meetings about interoperability help bridge the gaps in progress. Convening the key conversations between stakeholders helps healthcare interoperability move faster. There is still work to be done and many opportunities for innovation and improvement. Slow progress is still progress. Sharing data from these efforts by the KLAS research team shows a dedication to driving interoperability advancement. We will need better business communication between stakeholders and better data sharing to meet the needs of an increasingly complex and data rich world.

What do you think the next steps are in interoperability?

   

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