Electronic Health Records (EHR, EMR)

Vendors offer their perspective on the opportunities and challenges for healthcare data exchange in the year ahead.

Healthcare information technology will be the focus of investors in 2020, with interest in the pharmaceutical and biotech sector, home and hospice care and managed care companies also high on the list, according to a KPMG report including survey results from 333 investment professionals. WHY IT MATTERS The study projected the healthcare and life sciences industry would likely continue to be an attractive investment target for the foreseeable future, as national healthcare spending rises to $6 trillion by 2027. Overall, more than three-quarters (76%) of respondents thought the health IT market would grow faster than the overall healthcare and life sciences market. Healthcare analytics, cloud-based EHRs and workflow applications, revenue cycle management software, and telemedicine are among the IT products of greatest interest to investors. The medical technology space, which includes precision medicine, robotics and smart wearables, is expected to continue to grow at a pace of more than 5% per year, with annual sales worldwide expected to reach $800 billion by 2030, according to KPMG. Indeed, robotic surgery is one of the main potential areas of investor focus in 2020, alongside AI-enabled devices, while in the more classic medical device segment, the robotic surgery market is expected to continue to attract M&A interest. As artificial intelligence and robotic process automation are more widely deployed, they will help re-humanize medicine by allowing doctors to focus less on paperwork and administrative functions, and more on patient care. In the area of revenue cycle management, KPMG's report urged investors to look for technologies that facilitate one patient experience continuum from scheduling to treatment to billing. When it comes to home health and hospice care, potential investors are looking for firms that provide a spectrum of services across nonmedical home care that range from activities of daily living and basic home healthcare for the transitional period after a hospital or rehab stay, all the way to home hospice scenarios. THE LARGER TREND Despite the demand for investment in healthcare IT innovators, a study released earlier this week indicates health systems don't always make good use of the technology they already have in place. A Black Book survey of 748 providers organizations found the vast majority of them are failing to meaningfully integrate data analytics into their clinical and operational workflows, despite widespread availability of the technology. ON THE RECORD "We believe we are entering a very exciting time for investment in healthcare and life sciences," the report concluded. "Despite unknowns related to the 2020 election and uncertain industry regulatory challenges, there are significant investment opportunities across the industry." The report predicted these opportunities would continue to gain momentum in 2020 due to multiple factors, including the push towards consumer-centric care delivery and connected medical devices, as well as new models of vertical integration, and consolidation for scale and efficiencies. Nathan Eddy is a healthcare and technology freelancer based in Berlin. Email the writer: nathaneddy@gmail.com Twitter: @dropdeaded209

Professional Records Standards Body Chair Maureen Baker discusses the work of the PRSB and its collaboration with providers of health and social care in the UK and abroad.

The 2020-2025 plan aligns with the 21st Century Cures Act's interoperability and patient access provisions.

Masimo, the maker of monitoring technologies and connectivity tools for hospitals, announced this week that it will acquire the connected care assets of NantHealth for $47.25 million in cash. WHY IT MATTERS NantHealth’s Connected Care suite – with tools such as DCX device connectivity, VCX patient vitals software, HBox connectivity hub and Shuttle interface cable – enables medical device interoperability for hospitals and health systems. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2020, subject to customary closing conditions. Masimo officials say the deal will help it offer hospital customers improved continuum of care with its automation and noninvasive monitoring technologies. It notes that NantHealth's suite of connected care tech enables more streamlined collection and storage of medical device data, through a vendor-agnostic platform, into electronic health records and other clinical information systems. THE LARGER TREND For its part, NantHealth says the sale will enable the company to focus on innovating in areas such as precision medicine. "Our decision to sell the Connected Care business enables us to focus on accelerating growth for our NaviNet and Eviti SaaS solutions, our data and molecular analytics capabilities, and pursue other strategically aligned goals," said Patrick Soon-Shiong, NantHealth's chairman and CEO, in a statement. "We believe Masimo has the best connectivity solutions, and we are delighted to have found the right home for our Connected Care business and our committed team of employees. We are working with Masimo to ensure a smooth transition for our Connected Care customers." ON THE RECORD "One of the strategic priorities for Masimo is, through our Hospital Automation solutions, to reduce clinician cognitive overload and reduce errors of omission," added Joe Kiani, chairman and CEO of Masimo. "Through connectivity, predictive algorithms, and decision support, we hope to improve the continuum of great care. The connectivity assets we are acquiring are completely in line with our mission as they will help accelerate our internal growth initiatives in this area. Not only does Connected Care immediately increase our customer footprint but also provides us with products which complement our current portfolio." Twitter: @MikeMiliardHITN Email the writer: mike.miliard@himssmedia.com Healthcare IT News is a publication of HIMSS Media.

Quorum Health achieved many financial milestones from a successful spinoff operation, and its integration of the athenahealth EHR across the org also helped get the Chronic Care Management program to 60,000 Medicare patients.

“Our goal is to make all of a patient’s health record available in our clinical portal so that when a clinician brings up a patient’s record, they can have all the information they need,” said S. Wissmann, director of information management, Mater.

The trust joins a number of organisations in the Greater Manchester area working with Allscripts.

FHIR-based clinical data retrieval and an API to more easily share data will help payers, pharma and providers with forthcoming 21st Century Cures rules, the company says.

The new technology enabled Catalyst Health Network to achieve all of its care management goals and create a fully connected information highway, its president says.