Parkview Health aims to enhance efficiency with archiving solutions
The ability to pull data together is essential for a system undergoing growth and facing an increasing number of reasons to share data.
It’s not as easy as trading in a car, as most information executives know. If systems are going to be switched, that opens a Pandora’s Box of challenges, particularly when it comes to moving data from old systems to their replacements.
Those kinds of issues also arise when healthcare organizations merge with others or get involved in acquisitions. Bringing data of combining organizations together safely and completely is crucial, especially as organizations aim to create efficiencies in operations, which is increasingly important in managing populations in value-based care arrangements.
Managing data and reducing the number of systems operated by healthcare organizations is challenging, particularly in streamlining access to patient information in care settings. Increasingly, information executives are looking for ways to manage data with technology that does not involve significant human intervention or other complexity.
Managing transitions
That was the struggle facing Parkview Health, based in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The organization went through several acquisitions, and data subsequently resided on multiple platforms.
System executives knew that our organization needed to find a solution for efficient data management. After the acquisitions, plus EMR sharing agreements with independent hospitals and clinics, the team was trying to manage multiple information systems platforms that came as a result of the growth.
All the data could have been migrated from every platform over to Epic, However, instead, Parkview faced a major decision – did we really need all that data converted to Epic? Was that the optimal way to retain and manage it all? What would be the risks of moving bad data into an environment where it’s then fed into new and complex data lake analysis tools? And what about the cost?
Parkview Health's approach to archiving
The strategy was to find a solution to archive old data and yet find a solution that would enable streamlined access to information across the organization.
We adopted HealthData Archiver developed by Harmony Healthcare IT. Since its implementation in 2012, the archive has become integral to Parkview Health's operations, managing 86 archives at present, with more in the pipeline.
There are several benefits to using an archive solution. First, archives play a key role in consolidating disparate systems into a single, accessible platform, which improve information retrieval speed. Second, this approach enhances user experience for providers, and it ensures compliance with regulatory standards and mitigates security risks associated with data storage.
The improved access to data has offered benefits outside of the walls of Parkview Health and other organizations that are sharing the patient medical record.
For example, Parkview had an active Community Connect Program, aimed at sharing Epic with smaller independent clinics and hospital institutions. In this initiative, we were able to leverage archiving to facilitate decommissioning of legacy systems replaced by the new EMR. This not only ensured continuity of records and care, but it also reduced operational costs by streamlining maintenance contracts and hardware costs for smaller hospitals seeking to cut expenses and lower the costs of care.
Measuring results
The archive program provided many benefits that support care delivery.
It showed that hospitals can archive their old medical records in a central location that can still be accessed through an electronic health records system.
In addition, the archive enabled Parkview to condense the number of systems it operated and is required to support. The archive can handle the wind-down accounts receivable capabilities from old systems, enabling hospitals to phase out their old billing systems and still collect accounts receivables. This saves money from running two systems at the same time or risking forfeiture of revenues earned but lost through a transition.
This archiving approach overall is beneficial for independent hospitals, patients and certainly for Parkview. Our experience underscores the economic benefits and operational efficiency gained through the use of archiving technology, particularly in the context of community healthcare initiatives.
The delivery system’s experience showed us that integrating archiving solutions with EMR systems can result in cost savings, enhance patient care and streamline operations, ultimately leading to a more efficient and sustainable healthcare ecosystem.
David Winn is vice president of information services for Parkview Health.