According to a study conducted by Google Cloud, the majority of physicians surveyed stated accessing the correct data at the right time can save the lives of their patients. Physicians are in nearly complete agreement interoperability should be a priority for health systems and hospitals.

Nurse with Patient - Data Interoperability

Among more than 300 physicians participating in the poll, 96 percent believe patient safety can be improved and lives saved by the ability to access necessary clinical data. Approximately 95 percent believe a seamless data exchange will improve patient outcomes. Another 86 percent said interoperability makes certain the correct data is available for the correct person to ensure a quicker diagnosis.

Just over nine of every 10 participating physicians believe the efficient incorporation of patient data is crucial for care coordination, with 92 percent stating the delivery of quality care is negatively affected by electronic health records systems requiring manual data entry, pop-ups and excessive scrolling. The majority of physicians believe more personalized care is possible by decreasing the time necessary to update and review records by five percent.

The clinicians believe operational efficiency can be increased by providing more personalized patient care. EHR transcription can save time and money while increasing efficiency. Approximately 63 percent of the participating physicians stated their main issue is burdensome reporting systems. Improving interoperability can improve the experience of both the patients and providers.

Improving patient data access enables physicians to offer patients improved communications, identify high-risk patients quickly, make faster and more accurate diagnoses and recommend the most appropriate treatments. This is the reason 87 percent of the participating physicians stated healthcare organizations need to make data interoperability a priority immediately.

COVID-19 and Healthcare

The COVID pandemic has shown data in healthcare is critical. This became obvious as the world met the challenges to try to understand and fight COVID-19. Patient data has remained in silos for decades resulting in caregivers and physicians being forced to search through numerous sources to find the information required to understand the health of patients.

The unfortunate result is caregivers are slowed down. Their ability to offer patients the best care possible has been negatively impacted. The bottom line is lives can be saved and care improved simply by making an investment in medical transcription services and data interoperability.

Help Is Available

Physicians must cope with health records containing various folders and files on a regular basis as opposed to comprehensive and meaningful data. Healthcare organizations are trying to remain in compliance with patient access and interoperability rules from the National Coordinator for Health IT Office and Medicaid Services while promising help with understanding regulatory compliance and policies.

The new rules are still being questioned by certain providers, but help is available. Despite the fragmentation of the United States healthcare system, interoperability strategies and standards are continuing to improve. In the future, healthcare institutions may reach the ideal of learning the health system.