At the Becker's Hospital Review 5th Annual Meeting in Chicago on May 15, Michael Hunt, MD, CMO and CMIO at St. Vincent's Health Partners discussed using health IT to improve clinical integration.
The key to clinical integration is to provide care for a patient through every step of treatment and through every care setting transfer, said Dr. Hunt. "Quality should be afforded to a patient, no matter the care environment," he added.
To improve quality of care through clinical integration, Dr. Scott provided the following tips:
1. Share data. Data should be shared between healthcare professionals, hospitals and patients, said Dr. Scott. Sharing data helps physicians identify gaps in care that need to be addressed. It also allows a physician to see the whole picture concerning a particular patient. "If a patient sees a specialist, their primary care physician needs to know," added Dr. Scott.
2. Utilize the right technology. Healthcare providers need to utilize technology that is convenient for them and helps them meet their individualized goals. All healthcare organizations do not need the same technology. It is important for each organization to figure out what technology works for them because "IT is the backbone of integration," said Dr. Scott.
3. Present data to physicians. Dr. Scott recommends using a quality dashboard to show physicians who their sickest patients are. Payer data, practice management data and EHR data help a physician identify which patients have gaps in care. Data has to be presented to physicians in a way that allows them to use their staffs effectively, said Dr. Scott.
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