With the growing amount of data, the healthcare industry is dependent on its ability to successfully and seamlessly share patient information across multiple platforms. Digital transformation necessitated digital interoperability in numerous areas and healthcare is just another industry affected.
Interoperability refers to a software’s or system’s ability to exchange data with another software or system. Healthcare Interoperability refers to the ability to connect the protected health information of various organizations which potentially utilize different EHR systems. Due to the sensitivity of information, clinical interoperability must be achieved and developed in accordance with standards which regulate how this data is to be stored and shared. However, implementation of said standards is not an easy task. That is why we at Vicert spent decades perfecting our technical skills in order to be able to perfectly execute EHR integration per the client’s needs.
On the technical side, the development of interoperability in healthcare is dependent on your team’s ability to successfully achieve the following four levels of interoperability
Foundational
Interoperability
Structural
Interoperability
Semantic
Interoperability
Organizational
Interoperability
Knowing how to achieve interoperability also means knowing how to preserve data. At Vicert, we place a great emphasis on data quality management – understanding how to maintain the fitness of data during the integration. Having a healthy data set means having a better insight into the data analysis and quicker decision-making. Successful data management greatly improves your organization’s capacity to evolve and leave the legacy systems behind, while staying up-to-date with the industry’s growing technological implementation.
Benefits
Achieving complete interoperability in healthcare will bring about numerous benefits to your organization. At Vicert, our goal is to make sure that your organization runs perfectly: not only to improve your overall operations, but also to ensure that your patients receive the highest quality of care available. To that end, here are our thoughts on the main advantages of interoperability.
- For patients – with easy access to all of the information available, the speed of care delivery and quality of care will be significantly improved
- For clinicians and hospitals – easily transferable health and administrative data within interoperability in healthcare allows providers to focus on what matters most
- For developers – since standards and regulations are provided by the standards developing organizations and legislations, developers can focus on delivering the health app that will truly make a difference in the world
Standards
The most widely-spread standard is that of HL7 – FHIR (pronounced “fire”). It defines how healthcare data can be shared across computer systems in a safe and secured manner. Additionally, it defines who has access to data in question, as access to protected health information can often be required instantly to ensure the best quality of patient care.
Healthcare interoperability means managing the data road trip from one system to another. It also means allowing the data stored in EHRs to be launched and presented in third-party apps. While FHIR defines how that data is stored and exchanged, it was also necessary to implement a way for said data to be launched in iPhone-like apps.
Smart Health IT was developed with such an idea: proposing a universal API to transform the information stored in an EHR. With FHIR’s widespread implementation, SMART transitioned into the formalization of the process of data exchange: how the SMART FHIR apps will be launched and defining the security protocols of the data exchange.
Our Expertise
If you are looking for someone with expert knowledge in the development of healthcare software – you’ve come to the right place. At Vicert, we don’t specialize only in interoperability services in any industry: we are focused on the health and improvement of operations of health organizations. Inspect viable options and take a closer look at some of our case studies and see for yourself.
FAQ
What is Interoperability?
A software’s or system’s ability to exchange data with another software or system
What is Interoperability in Healthcare?
Healthcare Interoperability refers to the ability to connect the protected health information of various organizations which potentially utilize different EHR systems.
What is Data Quality?
Data health: accuracy, precision, usability, and how much your data is up-to-date.
How to Ensure Data Quality?
By utilizing Vicert services.