It Will Take a “Community” at HIMSS18 to Break Down the Barriers of Health Data Exchange

By Buff Colchagoff, CEO, RosettaHealth
Twitter: @rosettahealth
Twitter: @BuffColchagoff
At HIMSS18: Visit RosettaHealth at #HIMSS18 in Booth 11418 this year in Las Vegas.

It’s no secret that breaking down the barriers of health data interoperability is a major challenge in the healthcare arena, which will certainly be a major discussion topic at HIMSS 2018.

One of the biggest issues is that health data exchange – while it is accelerating these days –happens in the narrow channels of HL7 v2 messages through VPNs, or Direct messaging for Transitions of Care.

In addition, many care facilities live near “data deserts,” and don’t have access to the right options for sharing health data. For example, ambulatory sites using smaller EHRs rarely have the option to participate in true health data exchange. We have also seen many health data exchange projects fail, and ultimately require new vendor choices, or “re-platforming” solutions.

This all just makes the vision of ubiquitous health data exchange much harder to actually bring to life.

To help address these needs, RosettaHealth is taking a new approach at HIMSS 2018 that aims to provide clarity, and make health data exchange seamless and ubiquitous. At Booth #11418, we are showcasing how it takes a community cast of HIEs, vendors and health startups to make health data exchange truly work.

We will be joined by HASA, the community HIE for North, South and West Texas, IMAT Solutions, SocialClime, and Shatzkin Systems – to showcase how different members of the healthcare data community have cooperated to achieve innovative exchange use cases, and enable exchanges that were too costly or too risky before.

“This community message is a powerful call to action, and it reflects the reality that no one vendor can do all of this – there are just too many workflows and systems involved,” said Philip Beckett, CIO at HASA, in this recent podcast interview. “You wouldn’t build a house without a solid foundation, and the same with a health information exchange. I want to get this message out at HIMSS 2018.”

By bringing together this special community, we aim to show HIMSS 2018 attendees that health data exchange can actually work in ways that are better, faster, and more cost-effective. We urge any health organization struggling to make health data exchange work to come visit our “community” in booth #11418.

See you all in Las Vegas next month!