Sustainably increase efficiency and quality in clinical processes through interoperability

The problems described above in the area of data transfer are caused by insufficient or non-existent interoperability between the workflow-supporting IT systems. This applies in particular when different wards or functional units and their IT systems are involved in processes. Processes with maximum efficiency, effectiveness, quality and safety for patients and staff can only be guaranteed on the basis of complete patient data.

One option is the use of an interoperability platform (IOP), which uses a communication server and data repository (e.g. HL7 FHIR) to integrate data from different source systems in near real time, making it exchangeable and usable for clinical workflows. Such a platform facilitates the use of data from different areas (wards, functional areas) of a hospital in an integrated clinical workflow.

Even without an interoperability platform, targeted use of data from different source systems is possible for specific applications and workflows.

Data flow problems often occur between wards or functional units. These can have a negative impact in the form of delays in information, duplication of work, stress and, in rare cases, patient safety:
 

Typical problems for improving clinical workflows based on data and interoperability:
 

• Transfer of patients between wards, especially if the wards are operated with different systems, e.g. emergency department, intensive care unit, normal ward
• Comprehensive diagnostic overview of a person to be treated along the entire patient pathway in the clinic to date
• Longitudinal overview of all diagnoses and analyses of multiple case IDs (inpatient and outpatient stays) of patients

Example of an application that can interoperably access data from different wards. On the screens of the application, data from the ICU system, including medication, is integrated with data from the normal ward to which a patient was recently transferred from the ICU. In addition, the entire bed occupancy of the normal ward and the individual ward pathway for each patient are shown. The overview provides doctors and nurses with a compact, quick, summarized and informative overview of critical and important information on a newly transferred patient - this significantly increases the efficiency of information gathering and, thanks to the more complete picture of the patient, also the quality of therapeutic and nursing decisions.

We support your clinic in improving clinical workflows based on innovative data utilization through interoperability between clinical systems - with or without an interoperability platform. Through the targeted design and implementation of data-based clinical workflows, we integrate data from the systems relevant to the respective process and make it usable. This can significantly improve efficiency, quality and patient safety in clinical workflows.

The typical process of such projects consists of various targeted steps. The exact process is always tailored to the situation.