The HL7 FHIR® standard makes clinical and administrative data available in a standardized and secure format to help reduce inefficiencies and increase quality of care
RENTON, Wash., November 14, 2023 – Providence today announced the health system is the first in the country to build an HL7® Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR®) driven data-as-a-service (DaaS) product that facilitates the exchange of clinical data between providers and payers. The system-wide standardization of clinical data will ease the delivery of value-based care (VBC) to patients in a way that alleviates administrative and financial burdens.
Traditionally, one of the most significant barriers to seamless clinical data exchange has been the lack of standardization and automation. In many cases, payers and providers compile data in spreadsheets, share this information via email or secure file transfer protocol (SFTP) and then manually review each record. This process is time-consuming, prone to human error and in need of a solution.
The FHIR standard — which defines how health care information can be exchanged between different computer systems — makes clinical and administrative data available in a standardized and secure format to help reduce inefficiencies and increase quality of care. Providence's DaaS product leverages the Member Attribution (ATR), Clinical Data exchange (CDex) and Bulk Implementation Guides as national data exchange standards developed through HL7 Da Vinci Project, an industry-led project to enhance data sharing between payers and providers to enable the industry’s transition to value-based care. By allowing health systems, payers and patients to seamlessly connect and share data when and where it is needed most, patient records, treatment plans and critical information can flow smoothly and securely.
“Interoperability is critical within value-based care, and FHIR integration allows health care organizations to exchange comprehensive clinical data that enables more accurate risk assessments, enhances care coordination and captures outcomes more effectively,” said Michael Westover, vice president of population health informatics at Providence. “By using a national standard for contract gap closure and capturing the much-needed clinical data, we empower all stakeholders in their ecosystem to make more informed decisions, improve patient outcomes and enhance the overall quality of care to our patients – who are always at the center of all our efforts.”
In September 2023, Providence piloted the product with Premera Blue Cross, one of the largest health plans in the Pacific Northwest, during which the product was thoroughly vetted and approved by internal quality teams and external Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS) auditors.
Paving the way for industry-wide innovation, Providence has designed this solution to be scalable and adopted by other providers, ensuring payer partners have access to cutting-edge technology that supports growth and success in value-based care and beyond.
About Providence
Providence is a not-for-profit Catholic health system and one of the nation’s largest health systems, comprising a diverse family of organizations and driven by a belief that health is a human right. With 51 hospitals, over 1,000 physician clinics, senior services, supportive housing, and many other health and educational services, the health system and its partners employ more than 120,000 caregivers serving communities across seven states – Alaska, California, Montana, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas, and Washington, with system offices in Renton, Wash., and Irvine, Calif. Learn about our vision of health for a better world at Providence.org.
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