HIMSS19 Day 2: Interoperability and Core EMR

HIMSS19 resumed for day two with a packed schedule of health care education sessions and networking events that inspired industry leaders in their pursuit of improving the health care experience for consumers and providers. Both reoccurring health care topics and the latest trends were at the forefront of the day's activities. Cerner’s exhibition space featured a diverse lineup of discussions with leading experts via podcast recordings and livestreams.

Here are some highlights from our second day at the conference:

Continued push for interoperability

Wednesday was a big day for interoperability at HIMSS19, kicking off with the Interoperability & HIE Breakfast Panel, which brought together nursing informaticists, HIE exchange professionals, CRM specialists and interoperability thought leaders to discuss the framework for true nationwide interoperability. The panel, which included Dr. David McCallie, vice president of Medical Informatics at Cerner, examined disruptive factors that expand the value of the interoperability continuum.

Kashif Rathore, vice president of interoperability at Cerner, participated in the Perspectives on Health and Tech podcast, where he talked about the now and next of interoperability. He shared insights on the concept of seamless care: the transfer of data from provider to provider and venue to venue. Rathore gave his reaction to interoperability trends and innovation from around the conference.

Cerner is proud to promote patient-centric interoperability that allows consumers of care to transfer their personal health data from provider to provider and venue to venue.

To experience innovative, open platforms that advance Seamless Care, visit #HIMSS19 booth #2941. pic.twitter.com/UXIFEuU5YS

— Cerner (@Cerner) February 13, 2019

“Person-centered care drives our health care system, but that can’t be fully achieved if providers don’t have access to a patient’s complete medical record, regardless of where and when they received care, and what health IT system was used,” Rathore said.

At HIMSS19, the Cerner team rolled out four key interoperability capabilities, which will be implemented through 2020:

• Longitudinal patient record: gives users access to an organized, structured view of multiple clinical sources, and creates a consolidated picture of a person’s health care data.
• Open standards for edge development: empowers health systems and third-party developers to create technology and apps that work across existing health records, through open data standards like Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR).
• Advanced reconciliation: allows providers to reconcile data from other trusted health care organizations with a simple action.
• Referral management: lets providers make referrals to connected specialists, transferring relevant patient data and tracking to confirm the referral care is complete.

“We’re working toward a future that enables a greater exchange of data,” Rathore said. “When providers and patients can easily access health information and care communication is streamlined, it drives better outcomes.”

Cerner also introduced plans to streamline care communication and coordination, allowing multiple providers to create a single plan to track a person’s progress as they transition from primary care to a specialist to the hospital and back again. 

Core EMR improves patient and provider experience

The Foundation space within Cerner’s HIMSS19 exhibit is focused on the core EMR. Attendees can explore and discover EHR modernization and optimization solutions that are flexible and scalable for critical access, community, academic pediatric and integrated delivery networks.

Ryan Azar, Cerner’s director of continuous advancement, joined us in the podcast studio to talk about the now and next of Core EMR. He said the patient journey is a theme of many conversations at the conference as health care organizations look to understand all the ways they can engage with patients from the beginning to the end of their health care experience. Azar also touched on the epidemic of physician burnout and how the core EMR can improve the provider workflow.

“We want to use our tools to provide the best experience for patients, but we also can’t forget the pop health of the clinicians,” Azar said. “We want to make the EMR really easy to use so that they can spend their time focused on the patient. We have seen a lot of interest in our mobility solutions. Physicians are excited about how these tools can change the way they have traditionally interacted with the EHR.”

Excited for another eventful day at #HIMSS19? Visit booth #2941 to discover how The Foundation – Cerner's core EMR – can modernize and optimize care coordination for all, including critical access, post-acute and behavior health care providers. pic.twitter.com/XIEhVvjhbk

— Cerner (@Cerner) February 13, 2019