M6 Interoperability Paper

In order for us to achieve the most value from big data, we will need to have interoperable health information systems. This will require standardization in our health information systems. The highest level of interoperability is semantic operability. The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) defines semantic operability as technology that—————–

“provides interoperability at the highest level, which is the ability of two or more systems or elements to exchange information and to use the information that has been exchanged. … Semantic interoperability takes advantage of both the structuring of the data exchange and the codification of the data, including vocabulary, so that the receiving information technology systems can interpret the data. This level of interoperability supports the electronic exchange of health-related financial data, patient-created wellness data, and patient summary information among caregivers and other authorized parties. This level of interoperability is possible via potentially disparate electronic health record (EHR) Systems, business-related information systems, medical devices, mobile technologies, and other systems to improve wellness, as well as the quality, safety, cost-effectiveness, and access to healthcare delivery” (HIMSS, 2015, para. 2).
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DIRECTIONS——————
Evaluate an application of interoperability in health care. What are the sources of data? How does the application benefit patient care? How does this application contribute to or detract from patient involvement in health care? How does the application benefit population health?——————-

Use at least two peer-reviewed or scholarly sources, in addition to your textbook, to support your assertions.

This paper should be 3-4 pages and follow current APA guidelines.

ANSWER 

M6 Interoperability Paper

Introduction

Interoperability entails using two or more systems to exchange healthcare data and information. The health information systems work together across and within organizational boundaries for effective healthcare delivery for communities (Cardoso et al., 2018). Interoperability within healthcare has addressed the need to increase the quality of care and improve healthcare efficiency. Over the past few years, most patients have received care from hospitals, healthcare professionals, and clinics. These interactions among different healthcare organizations and professionals have increased the need for a continuum of care. Continuum of care has been used to describe how healthcare professionals follow preventive care through increased healthcare information. This paper will focus on interoperability and its application within healthcare and how it benefits patient care.

Healthcare data exchange architectures, interface applications, and health information exchange standards allow data to be retrieved and suitably secured across the scale of care. The health information exchange has offered the capability of electronically moving and exchanging information within healthcare information systems. The objective of the health information exchange is to enable retrieval and access of clinical information, thus offering safe, effectual, equitable, and effective individualized care (Braunstein, 2019). The access and visibility of patient data for healthcare organizations and patients is the main benefit of interoperability. When a patient has their electronic health records in a local hospital visit a clinic, the clinician can access their medical history by clicking a button in the electronic health records system. This saves time on discussing previous medications and treatments of the patient.

There are different interoperability levels, including foundational, structural, and semantic interoperability. Foundational interoperability entails the ability of a single information system to exchange information with another. Foundational interoperability acts as a receiving system that does not interpret data. Structural interoperability defines the information structure being passed between the data. Structural interoperability allows the constant movement of healthcare information from one system to another. Semantic interoperability entails the capacity of health information systems to exchange data with unambiguous and mutual meaning (Braunstein, 2019). Semantic interoperability allows sharing data among systems and organizations and ensures that they interpret and understand data regardless of the patient records or clinical entries used to generate the data.

Healthcare data utilized for interoperability is obtained from different electronic healthcare systems, such as non-structured and structured textual data. Electronic health records cover an extensive part of patient information and medical histories. Most electronic health records include a range of data that entails medical history, allergies, medication, vital signs, laboratory test results, and demographics. These are the primary administrative healthcare data that healthcare providers maintain to boost their healthcare decision-making. Ideally, electronic health records can facilitate care-linked activities through different interfaces, such as quality management, outcomes reporting, and evidence-based decision. Interoperability of electronic health records allows transmission of health care data between systems making the right data accessible at the right time and to the appropriate persons.

Ideally, interoperability entails the capacity of health information systems to work together across and within different healthcare organizations to facilitate effective care delivery. There are many social and healthcare systems today. The bidirectional link between the healthcare systems in real-time is significant to support care and health professionals in delivering improved and safer patient care. Interoperability of health data improves access to real-time patient data from key health care agencies that aid in accurate treatments. Interoperability offers healthcare providers a clear picture of the social and medical history of the patients, which facilitates improved care. Interoperability facilitates accessibility and accuracy, thus reducing medication errors and improving the quality of care. Interoperability saves a lot of time since it fills the information gap required during care provision.

Engaging patients has become vital for healthcare professionals in the evolving healthcare delivery. Interoperability offers patients the capacity to manage their healthcare. This is because they can access and manage their health data, thus boosting the quality of care. Interoperability offers access to health information, thus increasing patient involvement through access to personal health data (Jaleel et al., 2020). Considerably, patients need access to their health information to be active in their care. Patients do not want to fill out paper forms every time while seeing the care provider.

Interoperability has improved access to patient data and important health information that can be used to improve population health. Ideally, interoperable data sets and technologies enhance the public data gathered and used for improved patient outcomes (Jaleel et al., 2020). The data sets are available for healthcare professionals and researchers who share and analyze data across organizations, thus improving the public health functions, population health management, and quality of care within the population. For instance, medical errors raise healthcare costs. A patient can encounter significant consequences from data entry issues and unmade updates. Therefore, interoperability reduces medical errors, thus lowering healthcare costs and improved patient satisfaction.

Conclusion

Interoperability refers to the ability of computer systems and software to communicate, connect, exchange and use information with one another. Being able to exchange information between health information systems is vital in healthcare settings. The electronic health records systems have played a significant role in applying interoperability since they collect and store health care information that can be exchanged between the systems. Interoperability has contributed to wellness, safety, quality, cost-effectiveness, and ease of healthcare delivery.

References

Braunstein, M. L. (2019). Healthcare in the Age of Interoperability: Part 3. IEEE Pulse, 10(1), 26-29.

Cardoso, L., Marins, F., Quintas, C., Portela, F., Santos, M., Abelha, A., & Machado, J. (2018). Interoperability in healthcare. In Health Care Delivery and Clinical Science: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications (pp. 689-714). IGI Global.

Jaleel, A., Mahmood, T., Hassan, M. A., Bano, G., & Khurshid, S. K. (2020). Towards medical data interoperability through collaboration of healthcare devices. IEEE Access, 8, 132302-132319.