Interoperability Reduces Provider Burden and Improves Patient Care

When patient data is fragmented across many providers, it is challenging to coordinate effective care, from both a quality and a cost perspective. The advent of value based care systems has made information sharing a more important metric of success. However, it is true interoperability—the ability for large networks to communicate with one another—that will deliver on the promise of "interconnected intelligence." Fresenius Medical Care North America (FMCNA) is working with a consortium of other healthcare organizations to develop common standards and a practical framework for seamless data exchange.

With patient data coming from multiple venues of care, nephrologists are challenged with "connecting the dots" as well as coordinating across diverse providers to deliver quality patient care. There is a pressing need to advance interoperability and data sharing across information silos to reduce the provider burden. Acumen 2.0 powered by Epic Systems, in conjunction with FMCNA's broader interoperability program, is providing one version of "interconnected intelligence" to meet this need.

Timely and relevant access to patient data is a key requirement in providing quality care for chronic kidney disease (CKD) and end stage renal disease patients.1 Early CKD stage identification and progression management rely on accurate and relevant lab data. Empowering patients to make informed decisions on modality choice requires monitoring CKD progression and referral for patient education.2 Optimal dialysis starts at home or with an arteriovenous (AV) fistula instead of central venous catheter (CVC) and is predicated on timely referral of CKD patients for vascular access.3

Looking ahead, the transition to value based care is dependent on the ability to aggregate and analyze population-level data to improve quality outcomes with smarter spending. The promise of personalized, precise renal disease care with targeted interventions tailored to individual patient needs requires the ability to manage clinical data sets longitudinally. Simply put, current and future goals for patient care require a holistic view of the records that "follow the patient," offering a comprehensive view of the patient journey as well as support for the nephrologist. To do this, we need to design and deliver data sets that transcend the physical walls of care venues—be it the CKD clinic, the patient's home, the dialysis unit, or an inpatient facility.