Article
Harnessing the power of an avalanche of healthcare data
As a lover of winter sports and an avid skier, I have spent many winter days searching for the perfect run. The feeling of flying through fresh powder can turn an average ski day into an extraordinary one. Of course, more snow increases the risk of danger—poor visibility, tree wells, or the dreaded avalanche. Thankfully, I’ve seen my fair share of avalanches only from a distance.
While the shift to electronic health records (EHRs) triggered the explosion in healthcare data, other factors, such as genomic sequencing, remote health monitoring, telehealth, consumer behavior and financial incentives have contributed to its velocity.
An avalanche generally starts with a build-up of different snowpack conditions. Similar to an avalanche, we are experiencing an explosion of healthcare data—beginning with the HITECH Act in 2009, continuing with the Affordable Care Act in 2010 and, most recently, the 21st Century Cures Act. According to research from IDC, healthcare data saw a compounding annual growth rate of 48% between 2010 and 2020. That growth is expected to continue, with the same report saying that healthcare data will continue to increase at an annual rate of 36% per year through 2025. While the shift to electronic health records (EHRs) triggered the explosion in healthcare data, other factors, such as genomic sequencing, remote health monitoring, telehealth, consumer behavior and financial incentives have contributed to its velocity. Amidst this avalanche of data, some key themes have emerged:
1. Data will power the next evolution in healthcare
Large data sets can give insights into patient care, treatment efficacy and quality outcomes. While this may seem obvious, more data is not always the solution if you cannot make productive use of it. Users must be supported by their technology to understand how to interpret and integrate data into their workflows across their organization.
2. Alternative reimbursement models will be the norm in the U.S.
Though elusive for many decades, this avalanche of data may finally phase out the U.S. quantity-over-quality paradigm and instead foster a model focusing on quality and efficiency. Having access to more data at the right time could drive expectations for clinicians to improve quality and potentially decrease the cost of care. Commercial payors are leading the charge, but CMS’ goal to get all ~13.2m Medicare beneficiaries and many Medicaid beneficiaries into an accountable care relationship by 2030 is a step in this direction.
3. Large Language Models (LLMs) can accelerate the transition from “sick care” to “well care”
LLMs can sift through large repositories of data—including unstructured data—to uncover valuable insights. From these insights, provider organizations can create personalized and proactive care, treating illnesses when they arise and further promoting preventive care to intervene before the onset of chronic conditions.
4. Unlocking and marrying disparate data silos is critical for effective “Whole Person Care”
Data silos provide significant challenges in delivering comprehensive care. Effective “Whole person care” requires an integrated approach that pulls data from clinical records—such as encounter data, claims data, social determinants of health and behavioral health information— all essential to a comprehensive care approach. Interoperability standards like Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR) can facilitate the merging of disparate data silos. This holistic view enables providers to offer customized care plans considering all facets of a patient’s life, ensuring more effective and efficient care delivery.
5. More data is not always better; smart data will differentiate
Data overload can accelerate the burnout of our already overburdened clinicians. When and where data is presented is key. “Smart data” that is actionable and contextually relevant will differentiate successful healthcare IT systems from the rest.
Again, like an avalanche, the explosion of healthcare data started with a large storm initiated by the HITECH Act. Layers and layers have been added, triggering the data avalanche, rapidly accumulating mass and spreading its impact widely. This rapid influx of data necessitates strategic management and innovative solutions to harness its potential. Challenges like data privacy, security and patient consent have arisen, and ethical data use remains paramount. However, this data avalanche and its technology have the potential to usher in a new era of aligned incentives and personalized care.
At Altera Digital Health, these trends are at the forefront of our vision for how we develop solutions to better interact with clinicians by aggregating, harmonizing and enabling the ease of use of data, when and where it is needed. The dbMotion™ Solution specifically helps users better understand the avalanche of data coming their way. If you would like to learn more about dbMotion, I encourage you to check out our webpage. Through understanding and interpreting these data trends, we’re bringing next-level healthcare within reach.