John Andrews

All the pressure being exerted on the healthcare industry during this period of unprecedented change is giving strategists a lot to consider as the model of care evolves. One of the biggest challenges is how providers can offer a high level of personalized care in a cost-effective manner using the IT tools that are currently available.

The growth and maturity of clinical informatics over the past decade has been a prime catalyst in positioning the healthcare industry for the changes posed by reform measures. By understanding the process of analytics, healthcare providers have the insight necessary to make process adjustments in the future.

Although the telehealth concept has been around for decades, the changing healthcare business model combined with the proliferation of wireless communications may finally give it the spark it needs to really catch fire, market observers say.

In looking at the impact clinical decision support systems have had on the healthcare provider community, it is tempting to refer to the old adage "Be careful what you wish for." Because in the healthcare context, it means "You wanted more data, now you've got it. What are you going to do with it?"

Described by one participant as "the greatest assembly of engineering talent in one room," the IHE North American Connectathon strove hard to advance healthcare interoperability to new levels during demonstrations held in January.

Healthcare's clinical community should view population health as a frontier for deepening understanding about the nature of disease, providing incisive clues about patient demographics, behavior patterns and physiological makeup. Large group samples hold the potential to unlock mysteries that physicians may not even realize exist, says Jonathan Teich, MD, chief medical information officer for Amsterdam-based Elsevier.

Once considered the leading edge of information technology, computerized physician order entry is now simmering on the back burner of healthcare priorities. While it is not forgotten, attention toward CPOE has been deflected in favor of other concerns, such as meaningful use, interoperability, RAC audits and ICD-10 coding projects. Yet it is a critical piece of meaningful use.

There are many elements of business intelligence in play within the healthcare IT continuum, but without a specific focus, the initiative is stuck in neutral. In fact, that is where many healthcare providers find themselves with their BI programs, system specialists say - wondering how to proceed and in which direction to move.

With its ease of installment, functional versatility, cost effectiveness and seemingly limitless capacity, cloud computing is taking the healthcare IT landscape by storm.

Whether it's within their own practices or the healthcare continuum within their community, physicians need to set up well-defined pathways of information for patient care, system vendors say.