EHR Interoperability in LTC: The Urgent Call and the Real-World Solution
Radical Demographic Shifts Drive Need for Effective Data Exchange
In the world of healthcare, long-term care centers (LTC) find themselves at a critical juncture. As the healthcare paradigm swiftly transforms and ushers in a new era, the integration of digital healthcare solutions becomes imperative. Unfortunately, a substantial gap persists: despite significant advancements in EHR interoperability across multiple healthcare sectors, LTC settings trail conspicuously. Far from being a modern nicety or convenience, EHR interoperability plays a critical role in care collaboration and coordination, without which the patient journey is jeopardized – sometimes terribly – during transitions of care.
Recent data drives home the point. A MatrixCare survey from 2021 paints a bleak picture, indicating that while almost all Post-Acute Care (PAC) providers recognize the immense value of interoperability, a mere 39% have initiated measures to improve their strategies over the preceding year (ResMed, 2021). The significance of this gap is further accentuated by the demographics. As the U.S. Census Bureau highlights, by 2034, Americans of retirement age will outnumber children, suggesting an imminent surge in demand for LTC services like we’ve never seen, and that cannot be ignored (Older People Projected to Outnumber Children for First Time in U.S. History, 2021).
At this pivotal juncture, the deficiency in EHR interoperability within LTC is more than a technological oversight—it's an impending crisis. Yet, solutions are emerging that don't just address the problem but do so with precision and efficiency.
Enter CYBX, a company dedicated to ensuring that care collaboration among providers and LTC is achieved by offering customized interoperability solutions for real-time health information exchange. To illustrate what’s possible, consider the achievements of Behavioral Health Solutions (BHS) when they implemented such solutions.
BHS: Navigating Challenges, Finding Solutions, Producing Results with CYBX
Behavioral Health Solutions (BHS), a multi-state behavioral health enterprise based in Henderson, NV provides remote patient support to SNFs and ACOs. BHS sought to redefine its growth trajectory by harnessing the power of real-time patient data delivery, and in 2021 they implemented CYBX’s data exchange solutions. BHS’ growth strategy included providing real-time patient information, including diagnostics, prescriptions, and progress notes to client organizations.
While BHS relied on athenahealth for their interoperability solutions, there were still barriers to care collaboration in that BHS’ clients still used other vendors (ex., PointClickCare, MatrixCare, Epic), which meant that end users still experienced breakdowns in care collaboration due to data silos, especially between Acute Care and LTC settings. BHS initiated a project leveraging CYBX TRNZT interoperability gateway (in Google Cloud), which bridged this gap with finesse. The launch was swift, taking a mere 40 days, and in its wake, 18,000 patients across 22 organizations and 250 facilities experienced upgraded care, exemplifying the immense potential of integrated, forward-thinking solutions.
Implementing CYBX’s solution also dramatically improved administrative and operational efficiency. BHS’ partnership with CYBX provided API-based integration with the clients’ EHRs, resulting in instantaneous relief for administrators, performance improvements in data quality, customer satisfaction, and patient quality of service, as well as an instant decrease in data entry load. As of 2023, BHS reports that with two minutes saved on each patient chart creation 509 annual hours of chart creation time have been eliminated, or more than three months of work days when factoring in 40 hour work weeks.
Conclusion: The Path Forward
The collaboration between BHS and CYBX underscores the tangible impact of addressing EHR interoperability, and shows that when care coordination is achieved, patients, administrators, and healthcare businesses all benefit. As the demography of America leans towards an older age profile, and as LTC providers brace for increased demands, the era of antiquated, isolated systems is untenable. The BHS-CYBX partnership exemplifies the future: a seamlessly integrated, efficient, and patient-centric approach. In the larger scheme, it isn't just about technological innovation—it's about reimagining patient care for the next generation.
ReferenceOlder People Projected to Outnumber Children for First Time in U.S. History. (2021, October 8). Census.gov. https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2018/cb18-41-population-projections.htmlResMed. (2021). The Great Divide: Research reveals continued interoperability gaps in post-acute care. www.matrixcare.com. Retrieved September 28, 2023, from https://go.matrixcare.com/rs/227-DAM-058/images/WP_HH_interoperability_survey_02-2021.pdf
