ONC CHIO: Build Person-Centered IT Solutions For Healthcare
Dr. Michael McCoy, the first chief health information officer (CHIO) for the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC), told Business Solutions at HIMSS15 held in Chicago April 12-16 that an approach to health IT solutions that makes sense is “to put the individual at the center of interoperability.”
McCoy, who began serving in this new position in January, brings to the ONC his experience with health IT in physicians’ practices, in his role as the CMIO of an integrated delivery system, and in his work with IT development and standards development organizations.
It’s not “patient-centered” health IT solutions you should be providing, though , as McCoy points out — the ONC wants to prevent people from becoming “patients” — but rather person-centered solutions that build healthcare’s connected enterprise that facilitates the “easy movement of health data.”
This includes considering, for example, the user experience of finding health information from one portal rather than one for each doctor a person sees, how to facilitate healthcare providers who want to use their own devices to stay connected, or the design of apps that allow healthcare data to be exchanged.
In your solutions, McCoy stresses, “Privacy and security are critical. It’s baked into whatever we do.” In addition, he says to bear in mind physicians are becoming inundated with data. “Intelligent systems can help filter out some of that noise,” he says. You could also be challenged with integrating legacy clinical applications with newer apps — so training and help desk services will be important. Testing software updates become crucial where downtime or security vulnerabilities are unacceptable. Healthcare providers could also use help to overcome hurdles with licensing and management of new apps doctors and staff want to add.
“Look at how healthcare end users and people receiving care will respond to the solution,” McCoy advises. “Talk to everyone.” Getting input from all stakeholders is important, he says, “If they’re heard, it’s easier to get buy in.”
He says IT solutions providers working with healthcare organizations will find a partnership develops. “It’s a relationship between businesses in many respects. Goals need to align. If you are truly partners, there will be a rational discussion about what the healthcare provider is trying to accomplish, and you’ll work together on it.”