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To say that hospitals and health systems have had to do more with less in the past 18 months is the understatement of a lifetime. These organizations have faced more than their fair share of unexpected challenges – from spiking patient demand, increasing costs and lost revenue, to overworked staff, a downturn in elective procedures and the need to quickly add virtual care services – all resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time, they have been navigating the move to value-based care, which is a cataclysmic shift in the way hospitals historically operate.
Contributing to these challenges has been a systemic lack of interoperability between systems and data. To reduce costs, drive greater efficiency that enables providers to focus more on delivering care, and improve patient outcomes, hospitals need to be able to break down the information silos that have developed amongst their various departments.
Emphasis now must be put on technology strategies that ensure greater integration and interoperability of solutions, such as electronic health records (EHRs), imaging platforms and clinical diagnostic decision-making support tools, so that hospitals can effectively meet value-based care objectives while improving their own financial health.