Health Data Interoperability Improves, But Lack of Increases Staff Burnout

From nurses to clinicians to executives, the nation’s healthcare workforce is facing some serious staff burnout issues. While much of this is attributed to lingering COVID-19 issues, a new challenge is contributing to the ability to retain talent: the lack of health data interoperability.

According to a new a KLAS whitepaper, provider organizations noted that data silos, a lack of interoperability and poor IT integration are key drivers for staff burnout.  

While many care organizations feel they are doing a good job at addressing clinical documentation issues, EHR usability, poor workflows and administrative issues are major challenges.

In a related news piece, the ONC recently issued a data brief, which showed that health data interoperability continues to improve with 88 percent of hospitals participating in electronic health data exchange as of 2021. The data brief also found that the number of hospitals engaged in integrating patient health data into EHRs has grown 40 percent since 2017.

This EHR Intelligence article points out how this rise in interoperability usage could be attributed to the implementation of health IT provisions from the ONC Cures Act Final Rule and the adoption of 2015 Edition certified technology.

Nearly 90 percent of hospitals have adopted 2015 Edition certified health IT.

While the ONC data brief points to an increased use of data interoperability, it is clear that more still needs to be done – especially when health data exchange is tied to healthcare employee satisfaction. 

As a reminder, the ONC offered these benefits of health data exchange back in 2009, and they still resonate today:

  • Improve patient safety by reducing medication and medical errors;

  • Increase efficiency by eliminating unnecessary paperwork and handling;

  • Provide caregivers with clinical decision support tools for more effective care and treatment;

  • Eliminate redundant or unnecessary testing;

  • Improve public health reporting and monitoring;

  • Engage healthcare consumers regarding their own personal health information;

  • Improve healthcare quality and outcomes; and

  • Reduce health related costs.

 RosettaHealth can assist with any health information challenges you might have, book a free consultation with one of our interoperability experts.


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