NEW ORLEANS – The sharing of data is creating more uses for healthcare information, such as research that drives both lower costs and better care.
But before data can be used for esoteric purposes such as personalized medicine, the industry has to take care of some basic issues, such as moving beyond discussions of interoperability to tackle standardization.
IT executives detailed higher overall costs, work levels and frustration related to the current IT environment at a round-table discussion sponsored by the IBM Corp. at February’s annual conference and exhibit of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society in New Orleans.
There are various new uses for data on the horizon, but the industry needs to address problems that halt the exchange of data, said Daniel S. Pelino, general manager of the global healthcare and life sciences industry for IBM.
Asif Ahmad, CIO and vice president of the Duke University Health System, pointed out that interoperability is meaningless without agreement on standards.
“There are different interpretations of the industry standards,” he said. “Other countries are doing this. We are talking about it, but I’m afraid we’re not doing anything about it in the U.S.”
Terminology differences represent a huge stumbling block, said Frank Richards, senior vice president and CIO for Geisinger Health System, based in central Pennsylvania.