Beyond data silos: creating collaborative ecosystems

Transforming information into intelligence requires the adoption of interoperability approaches, including a key set of standards.

That’s the message from managing director for Global ehealth Collaborative Dr Evelyn Hovenga who will address delegates at the World Hospital Congress in Brisbane.

Her presentation will provide an overview of various national strategies currently in progress and explore their outcomes based on evidence associated with the adoption of interoperability principles.

Hovenga said there was a gap in technical knowledge and a lack of appreciation of technologies that severely limited the potential use of digital platforms.

“Most healthcare organisations continue to rely on the use of silos of data, where data accuracy or consistency is in doubt, and where data retrieval, sharing, linking and machine processing is a time consuming and expensive exercise,” Hovenga said.

She said this practice needs to be consistent with the national health system’s transformative directions which is designed to achieve uniformity in the digital health ecosystem.

“Successful achievement is dependent upon facilitating health system-wide connectivity and data sharing in a manner that supports patient-centred collaborative care and enables the delivery of safe, timely, efficient and effective health care services.”

She said the collaboration aimed to harness the benefits of technologies and standards to overcome obstacles as well as maximising connectivity to optimise automation and improve overall performance.

“Our work is about bridging eHealth silos by building communities, capability and making a difference though the adoption of innovative interoperability approaches, including the use of key standards and data governance protocols, enabling the implementation of future proof systems,” she said.