Last week, the Executive Healthcare Innovation Forum brought together numerous health system leaders and industry evangelists to discuss innovative processes and disruptive technologies being used to better manage unstructured patient data.
Hosted at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Center City, Philadelphia, the day featured a series of impactful case studies that educated the audience on the next generation of clinically relevant data and the workflows needed to manage them.
As physicians begin to recognize the importance of having all their data available promptly and the impact this information has to enable clinicians to make decisions regarding patient care is becoming more critical. What’s fascinating is the types of patient data being used are constantly changing. The patient chart is expanding to include data and factors well beyond what was considered standard only 5, 10, or 15 years ago.
The Future of Healthcare Data Management – 5 Takeaways that Show Patient Chart Transformation
1. Paper is STILL getting in the way of high-quality healthcare.
Did you know that over 90% of healthcare organizations struggle with creating a paperless environment? That’s because there is so much of it for providers to deal with effectively. Organizations that aim to create a nearly paperless environment (or those striving to accomplish/have achieved HIMSS Stage 7) are doing so because they understand the need for functionality and interoperability within the organization. Paperless environments in healthcare enable clinicians to deliver the patient priority care that their patients not only deserve but are expecting. Physicians need to have the right data, for the right patient, at the right time.
2. Proper health data governance can create better alignment within various interdepartmental groups.
It’s all about the data. Utilizing data analytics resources enables healthcare organizations to streamline their operational needs. By identifying individual groups (or steering committees) that define, monitor, and drive patient data objectives to their individual areas of responsibility, health systems can operate more efficiently and supply key insights to drive significant clinical and financial improvements.
3. RPA is here and the new “digital workforce” is changing the healthcare game.
When patient health and care is on the line, caretakers must be at the bedside and not stuck performing repetitive operational tasks. RPA (Robotic Process Automation) is the use of robots “bots” to perform routine, rule-based work. These bots can work 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and often execute tasks with far greater speed and precision than a human employee. The use of bots in the healthcare environment allows for the human workforce to focus on high-value activities that require communication, empathy, and judgment-based problem-solving.
4. Population management and patient-reported data are transforming health data and the complete patient chart.
As value-based care and patients move to healthcare outside of the traditional 4-walls of the hospital or doctor’s office, the use of patient-reported data has become critical to aiding in the prediction, management, and early detection of patient health. With the availability of mobile health and care technologies in the home and at the patient’s fingertips via mobile technologies (smartphone, tablets, etc.), this new influx of self-reported data is showing a more complete picture of population health, and enabling a more personalized form of care and condition management.
5. What is classified as clinically-relevant data is quickly expanding.
The days are gone when the only type of patient data available are lab tests, prescription drug lists, and diagnosed conditions. The next frontier of precision health and clinical testing is all about genomic research and genetic data. This type of data is enabling physicians to better predict disease, how their patients will respond to pharmaceuticals, and to generally improve overall population health.
To learn more about unstructured patient data and how breaking down data silos can enable your healthcare organization to provide better, more personalized care, view the Unstructured Patient Data webinar recording!
