In the third installment of our build vs. buy in healthcare series, we’re diving into a critical part of the decision — features. Technology offers lots of bells and whistles, but which ones matter? And which ones will help healthcare organizations hit the quadruple aim (better care, better patient experience, better provider experience, and greater financial efficiency)?
It’s essential to stay up-to-date, especially in a field changing as rapidly as medicine. It’s also important to get clear on the tools you need, which will identify the ones you don’t. A pretty UI is great, but for products built on top of healthcare data, the underlying data foundation needs to be ironclad.
Here, we’ll explore the most common features that matter to a healthcare system’s leaders, from security to platform capabilities. To catch up on other pieces of this decision-making framework, read up on cost considerations and reaching consensus with multiple stakeholders.
Healthcare has changed dramatically in the last few decades, and that pace won’t slow down anytime soon. Technology helps an organization stay up to speed, but more importantly, it allows for future-proofing, the acceleration that can transform a system from meeting benchmarks to exceeding them.
Data analytics platforms allow healthcare networks to integrate and contextualize a sea of data from many sources. They also provide a holistic view of patients, so instead of floating data bytes, providers see a coherent history.
Great analytics are also a way to improve outreach (text messaging to a particular group in need of vaccines, for example), and it scales alongside a business. Growth is inevitable as healthcare networks expand to serve larger communities, and powerful technology will allow administrators and providers to share information easily and securely.
To stay competitive, there are five categories in healthcare data analytics that an organization should assess:
Before your technological journey can begin, you need a map. That starts with data orchestration. In this preliminary phase, the goal is matching the data sources at your disposal with the solutions you're browsing and your future goals. In pursuit of this trifecta, you’ll audit the data that’s coming from multiple locations, combine and organize it, and make it accessible for analytic use.
Consider:
Ask any CIO or IT team and you’ll quickly learn how much work goes into the management and upkeep of a healthcare network’s software and tech. From reams of tickets to ornery integrations, there’s a lot that can go wrong. So when you’re choosing a data analytics platform, maintenance should be predictable and security should be ironclad. In a field where personal data’s extremely sensitive, you can’t afford anything less.
Consider:
The data already exists — what you do with it matters. Even if you can move your data easily with interoperability and trust in its integrity, that hardly matters if you can’t use a data analytics platform to find meaning in the information. Capabilities like natural language processing (NLP) and analytic engines for factors like risk or quality monitoring are the difference between trailing and outpacing your competition. Functions like this are the most powerful levers to provide better care and trim unnecessary spending.
Consider:
Outcomes are one-quarter of the quadruple aim, a term coined by Thomas Bodenheimer, MD in 2014, and in any model, patients are priority #1. Tech that automates or accelerates internal processes is great, but that can’t come at the cost of improving outcomes. At its core, whatever decision an organization makes — be it internal build-out or an external vendor — needs to lead to the health of the population it serves.
Consider:
It may seem minor if a platform delivers a radical difference in outcomes, but don’t underestimate setup — it can consume a massive amount of time and resources, and it’s essential that you know who’ll be responsible for implementation at the outset. Will it be your in-house IT team? If so, prepare for other projects to take a back seat. Will it be an external vendor? Agree on a timeline at the outset, and calibrate expectations before work gets underway.
Consider:
Healthcare networks ask a lot of a population health or healthcare data analytics platform, and rightfully so — it’s not just a bottom line in the balance, but human lives. Though minor compromises might be necessary (no technology is perfect, after all), the right solution will map to each of these discrete categories, offering functionality that’s more than just bells and whistles.
Tune in to our build vs. buy webinar to learn how Scott Samways, VP of IT at Beth Israel Lahey Health, approached this conundrum as his team pulled together a data analytics platform that met their needs.