In previous generations, it was the goal of many medical organizations to simplify its processes by minimizing the amount of data produced by the practice. However, with major advances in medical technology such as electronic medical, electronic billing and esprescribing software, facility managers today are in the unique position to utilize huge, awkward data sets being generated across an organization for competitive edge.
Called "Big Data," this process involves using technology to harvest digestible nuggets of information parsed from employee histories, patient billing transactions, orders and progress reports that would have been virtually impossible to manipulate with hands-on database management tools.
Corroborating this claim, healthcare solutions expert Dr. Russ Richmond, explained to Healthcare IT News how leveraging Big Data could improve patient care and increase revenues for facilities that harness its power properly.
"We think it's going to separate winners from losers in many markets over the next five years," said Richmond. "The institutions that are capable of first understanding where the market is going … are going to have tremendous advantages over the ones who can't or won't do this. We believe that over time, it's going to become a core competency for hospitals, and it won't be something seen as extra or nice to have – it's going to become a core part of how they operate going forward."
However, Richmond stresses the necessity of a good partner to run these analytics to their full potential. Consequently, it would be wise for facility managers looking to deploy the best Big Data practices to partner with a medical technology consulting company that can provide the software and training to do so.
These professionals can provide the resources to integrate billing information from every health insurance provider, combine patient data from visits to multiple facilities into one document and much more so that a facility is optimally prepared to use Big Data for big benefits.
Microwize Technology is a leading healthcare IT consultant offering products such as electronic medical records software and medical billing software from top providers like Allscripts and McKesson, including McKesson's Medisoft, Lytec and Practice Choice products.
