How can you ensure your EHR system is interoperable?

1 Assess your current state

Before you can improve your interoperability, you need to know where you stand. You can use tools like the Interoperability Assessment Tool (IAT) or the Interoperability Proving Ground (IPG) to evaluate your current capabilities, gaps, and opportunities. These tools can help you identify your strengths and weaknesses, as well as the standards, policies, and best practices that apply to your EHR system.

3 Implement data governance

Data governance is the process of ensuring the quality, accuracy, security, and availability of your health data. It involves defining roles, responsibilities, policies, and procedures for data collection, storage, access, sharing, and use. Data governance can help you ensure your data is consistent, reliable, and compliant with the regulations and standards for interoperability. You should establish a data governance team or committee that oversees and monitors your data management practices and resolves any issues or conflicts that arise.

4 Engage with stakeholders

Interoperability is not only a technical issue, but also a social and cultural one. It requires the collaboration and coordination of various stakeholders, such as patients, providers, payers, vendors, and regulators. You should engage with these stakeholders to understand their needs, expectations, and challenges regarding interoperability. You should also seek feedback, input, and support from them to align your goals, strategies, and actions for interoperability. You should also participate in networks, communities, and initiatives that promote interoperability, such as the Sequoia Project, the CommonWell Health Alliance, and the Carequality Framework.

5 Monitor and improve performance

Finally, you should not stop at achieving interoperability, but strive to maintain and improve it over time. You should monitor your interoperability performance using metrics, indicators, and benchmarks that measure the quality, quantity, and impact of your data exchange and use. You should also evaluate your interoperability outcomes using feedback, surveys, and audits that assess the satisfaction, efficiency, and effectiveness of your interoperability practices. You should also identify and address any issues, gaps, or barriers that hinder your interoperability progress and seek continuous improvement opportunities.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?