Getting the best from your best of breed; Interoperability in healthcare

I am an audiophile. I love music. I am very particular about the quality of sound produced by audio equipment when listening to music or watching a movie or TV. Anyone who has done their research or compared audio systems knows that an electronics manufacturer typically specializes in one or two things. You don’t often get a high end stereo from the same manufacturer that you get your TV. If you want to have medium grade or better, you have to buy components from different manufacturers.

It’s no different with business systems, and it’s not a new idea. I recall systems in manufacturing and distribution in the 90’s. Many system vendors had built ancillary applications but the market eventually went to “best of breed.” Customers could then integrate the “best of breed” applications with their primary system to fill their needs.

Several EHR vendors have decided to build their own version of patient portals, kiosks, population health, mobile, and charge capture applications among others. Not only has this development taken away from their core expertise of building EHR solutions, but they have also taken the approach of “if it’s not our application, you can’t integrate it.”

This leaves the hospital or practice with an EHR’s ancillary application that is less than the best. There are companies that focus on specific types of applications: patient portals, referral networks, kiosks, etc. These companies make the best, most feature rich and user friendly products. But you can’t use them.

EHR companies have developed these ancillary applications to try to capture more of the client’s mindshare. It’s the right business move, but only when you don’t lose focus on why clients come to you in the first place. Developing a fiefdom is not what INTEROPERABILITY is about. It’s about sharing data, working with others and making patient care the best it can be. The ideas of a single company are not always the best for every practice.

The Healthcare software industry needs to get to the “best of breed” model. It is much more prevalent at the in-patient level, but the ambulatory space EHR vendors have not caught on yet. They tend to hold that integration hostage and limit the ability to do the integration necessary to make these “best of breed” applications work for the client.

I’m not saying that there won’t be some cost involved. There is work to be done and integration is not standardized enough to drive costs down at this point. But there is no reason to put the pricing beyond reach of a practice to deter them from implementing a “best of breed” application.

The practice needs to determine their needs and not let the EHR vendor determine their path. It is the practice’s business, their relationship with the patient, their money, and their data.

Take control of your systems and your data! You work with them every day and they can either aid you or hinder you!