Health system CIOs told Becker's they are taking a wait-and-see approach before declaring whether Oracle's new EHR will transform the hospital IT landscape but are pleased with the increased competition.
The software giant previewed what it's calling the "completely reimagined" Oracle Health EHR at its Oracle Health Summit on Oct. 29 in Nashville, Tenn. The new system will operate independently of Cerner, the EHR company acquired by Oracle in 2022, and lean heavily on voice commands and artificial intelligence.
"I'm encouraged by Oracle Health's efforts," said Scott MacLean, senior vice president and CIO of Columbia, Md.-based MedStar Health. "At the summit, I implored them to put as much focus on integrated revenue cycle as the new EHR. I look forward to seeing Oracle developing a true integrated EHR platform. We need good competition in the international EHR market."
Health system CIOs have previously commented that not having a robust revenue cycle management platform has prevented Oracle Health from overtaking Epic, its nearest competitor in the EHR business. The two companies hold 23.4% and 39.1% of U.S. acute care hospital EHR market share, respectively, according to health IT researcher KLAS.
Oracle Health said the new EHR will be available to early adopters in 2025 and be voice-activated rather than rely on menus or drop-down screens. The system is also said to include a clinical AI agent that automates documentation, orders and coding, as well as an analytics solution that combs clinical, claims, social determinants and pharmacy data for real-time insights.
"Although progress appears advanced, it is uncertain how much of the new user interface aligns with the publicized timeline," said Gerald Kelly, DO, CIO of Stony Brook (N.Y.) Medicine. "This depends on how many key modules and provider types are modernized within the initial releases. Overall, the changes in design philosophy have been acknowledged and are anticipated."
While the new EHR will be hosted in Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, which the company says features "military-grade security," Dr. Kelly wonders how legacy Cerner customers migrating to Oracle's cloud will be affected.
Joyce Oh, chief information and digital transformation officer of Cincinnati-based Christ Hospital Health Network, said she doesn't believe the new EHR will have an "immediate effect" on the hospital IT business.
"Everyone knows that EHR migration is extremely costly, both from a dollars and resource standpoint, so there would have to be a very strong benefits realization by moving to the new Oracle EHR, which has yet to be proven," she said. "We have to wait and see what kind of integrations the new platform will offer."
An integrated approach, where applications are either built into or compatible with the EHR, has been another reason for Epic's dominance in the market, CIOs have told Becker's.
And while Oracle Health has touted the AI capabilities of the new EHR, Ms. Oh said the technology can be a liability in some cases. "Integration of AI in the clinical use setting can be challenging with just a single use case, given the testing, monitoring, validation, and change management that needs to occur," she said. "I can't imagine how a health system could confidently run their operations on an AI-heavy EHR without taking on a new level of risk."
Whatever happens with the new EHR, health system CIOs will be keeping an eye on how it shapes an industry beset with a lack of competition in recent years.
"While I admire Oracle's commitment to innovation and congratulate them on the launch of the EHR and I hope they succeed, I believe there will be some hurdles and challenges to overcome along the way," Ms. Oh said. "I'm sure I will be one of many who will be curiously watching and waiting to see what comes next."