Interoperability is a big word that is often used when discussing healthcare efficiencies and workflows, but what exactly is interoperability?  In the context of healthcare, interoperability refers to the ability of any tool to manage, access, and transfer data between different providers or health systems.

A great example of interoperability occurs when a clinician in an exam room needs to quickly pull data from an external system to see how their patient was treated or what medication was prescribed by another practice. This ability to view and exchange information is known as interoperability.

To help us learn more about this topic, Bharath Perugu, OP’s Vice President of Product Delivery, visited our podcast to discuss interoperability and how it can seamlessly facilitate the exchange of patient health information, resulting in simplified workflows for practices and better overall patient care.

The Importance of Interoperability

There are several reasons why interoperability has become so critical for healthcare providers.

We are surrounded by data, but if it is not managed and utilized correctly, it cannot make a meaningful difference in the care provided to your patients. Improving the interoperability in a tool like Office Practicum makes bringing in data from external sources easier and allows practitioners to quickly transfer their own data between healthcare providers and other health systems. It creates a smoother referral process and provides a clinician with essential information, right at their fingertips.

Interoperability is also essential to make it easier for clinicians to offer better care. By making data more accessible, providers can offer medical treatment and advice that is more personalized and tailored to the needs of their patients, because they have a more complete picture of their health history.

In the future, interoperability principles will be used to capture data from other devices like a smartwatch or Bluetooth scale and make it instantly accessible to clinicians. Healthcare providers will see medical care in a whole new light, with endless possibilities

Reaching Beyond the EHR to Other Applications

APIs allow us to capture data and bring it into the EHR. However, interoperability has gone beyond the EHR platform. Now, it’s easier to acquire and exchange data within certain standards so it can be integrated with telehealth solutions, patient dashboards, and other useful tools pediatricians use to make clinical decisions and provide better care. Capturing this data will also be essential as we move towards a patient-centered care model.

While there is no turnkey solution for connectivity among vendors right now, eventually, the goal is to better utilize the cloud to help make transferring large volumes of data faster and more accurate.

Why is Achieving Interoperability so Important?

Achieving a deep, encompassing state of interoperability is so important to EHR companies like OP, because we know that it’s an excellent way to help our end users. The ability to share data among healthcare providers and other healthcare entities ultimately leads to lowers costs for clinics and helps practitioners provide better care for better patient outcomes. 

During the pandemic, we saw just how well healthcare systems could exchange data. As we move forward, we need to bring these lessons to individual practices to help them share data more easily, simplifying the cumbersome workflows that are currently in place. The eventual goal? Click and submit!

To learn more about the best ways to facilitate the exchange of healthcare data in your practice, listen to the “Interoperability -Connections for Pediatric Success podcast to hear the conversation in full. 

EHRs are the key to streamlining operations, identifying efficiencies, and freeing up valuable time for clients. OPs EHR and Revenue Cycle Management solutions offer features designed to help keep your practice’s financial and clinical operations running smoothly, so you can focus on what you do best – taking care of your patients. To learn how Office Practicum can help your pediatric practice operate at its best, contact us today.