Collaboration ignites at HL7 AU FHIR Connectathon
 

Collaboration ignites
at HL7 AU FHIR Connectathon

A spirit of collaboration even among competitors was the overwhelming experience of the MediRecords Technology & Product team this month at a key event for advancing the secure and seamless exchange of electronic healthcare data. 

 

The HL7 AU FHIR (Fast Health Interoperability Resources) Connectathon at the Sydney Microsoft headquarter revealed the broad range of organisations using FHIR. 

“This event was a great way to see what is on the horizon and to see how many organizations are using FHIR and are willing to work together towards a common objective,” said MediRecords Technical Product Owner Sanjeed Quaiyumi.

“At MediRecords, we have already built a huge suite of FHIR resources. Events like Connectathon allow us to validate our new ideas and in-progress work.” 

Sanjeed added that the team gained insights into the FHIR capabilities of organisations such as Australian Digital Health Agency, CSIRO, Telstra Health, Sonic HealthCare, and software developers Epic, and for what business purposes they are using FHIR.

“It is an amazing community which brings people from different aspects of healthcare together, sharing a common objective of interoperability, he said. 

MediRecords Software Developer/FHIR Analyst  Niel Sayo and FHIR Team Lead Jack Li agreed the friendly event was an opportunity to view the latest products, approaches and ideas in Australia. 

“We can look at our competitors also as partners when it comes to collaborative interoperability concerns,” Niel said. 

MediRecords Graduate Software Engineer Joshua Vazzoler also noted the collaborative nature of the event and appreciated the opportunity for practical experience in a hackathon-style setting. 

“My initial observations of the event highlighted the expanding presence of FHIR within the Australian market, with a significant turnout of professionals,” Josh said. 

“As a participant, I was eager to engage with like-minded FHIR professionals who share a passion for interoperability, and learn from esteemed industry experts.” 

“The event instilled a sense of inspiration and motivation to contribute towards the advancement of FHIR-based solutions within the healthcare industry.” 

Check out our latest FHIR update and roadmap

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    MediRecords in the fast lane for FHIR connectivity
     

    MediRecords in the
    fast lane for FHIR connectivity

    MediRecords will be releasing new FHIR integration pathways for clients throughout 2023, as part of our commitment to a better connected Australian healthcare system. 

     

    As can be seen from our FHIR Roadmap below, we not only have established and proven options for data sharing, but we’re investing in the expansion of our Connect platform which comprises of  FHIR (Fast Health Interoperability Resources) and Connect services.

    We now have FHIR integrations with hospital systems for ePrescribing, and updating patient records. New resources in development for MediRecords 2.0 include allergies, diagnostic requests and reports, patient summaries, and inpatient charting.

    MediRecords Chief Executive Officer Matthew Galetto said the Connect platform enabled health care providers and patients to access records quickly and securely, driving better and timelier health outcomes.

    “We’re keen to see more software vendors hit the road and deliver on industry standards for interoperability, resulting in connected health care across Australia,” Mr Galetto said.

    “Some vendors seem to be waiting for a reason to modernise when the motivation should be clear — the right care at the right time, wherever you are in Australia.”

    MediRecords is part of a national consortium, led by Leidos Australia, developing a new Health Knowledge Management (HKM) system for the Australian Defence Force. This project will see MediRecords connect health records for GPs, allied health practitioners, specialists, patients, and hospitals.

    MediRecords is also supporting the Victorian Virtual Emergency Department with an integrated ePrescribing system.

    MediRecords Technical Product Lead Sanjeed Quaiyumi said 2023 would be an exciting year. “We’re working on consultation notes and can’t wait to hit other milestones on our roadmap.”

    MediRecords FHIR Roadmap

    MediRecords FHIR roadmap was last updated 01/11/23.

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      Communication the key to reducing hospital readmissions

      Communication the
      key to reducing
      hospital readmissions

      Can health tech help reduce hospital readmissions?

       

      According to a global research review, telehealth and virtual wards can certainly make a difference.

      The Deeble Institute — the research arm of the Australian Healthcare and Hospitals Association (AHHA) — reviewed international research on the role of primary care in reducing hospital readmissions.

      In its Evidence Brief no. 24, the Institute says telehealth can be used to boost general practice involvement in hospital discharges and subsequent multidisciplinary virtual care, resulting in fewer unplanned readmissions.

      Unplanned readmissions are associated with poorer health outcomes, dissatisfaction with healthcare, increased costs, and bed blockages.

      The report highlighted research that showed improved communication and coordination of care between GPs, hospitals and/or pharmacists is effective.

      “Effective interventions included … electronic tools to facilitate quick, clear, and structured (health) summary generation… use of electronic discharge notifications; and web-based access to discharge information for general practitioners,” reported the Netherland’s Hesselink and colleagues.

      Virtual wards are another way to reduce risk of hospital readmissions and improve outcomes during hospital-to-home transition, with research indicating these can be effective with specific disease cohorts but less so with non-specific, complex diseases.

      The Evidence Brief contrasted virtual wards with Hospital in the Home (HITH). HITH is a form of remote hospital inpatient care whereas virtual wards facilitate transition from hospital care to home care.

      “Compared to HITH, virtual wards typically have a higher degree of interdisciplinary care coordination and review, are simpler in design and implementation, and have a broader scope of activities,” The Deeble Institute reported.

      “Transitional care is similar to virtual wards, but usually implemented within existing systems. Virtual wards typically require a completely new care pathway and potentially new organisations to manage its implementation.”

      MediRecords Connect provides FHIR (Fast Health Interoperability Resources) and API options for connectivity with hospital systems, including patient administration systems (PAS). MediRecords is deployed as an ePrescribing system at two Australian virtual emergency departments and as an outpatient billing and claiming system for Queensland Health. New functionality enabling multidisciplinary case management and inpatient care will be released later this year.

      MediRecords is also integrated with the Coviu telehealth platform for streamlined virtual consultations.

      Top three Technologies that reduce hospital admissions:

      Further reading

      ‘A wonderful day’: telehealth to become permanent

      Improving Patient Handovers From Hospital to Primary Care

      Consumer adoption of digital health in 2022: Moving at the speed of trust

      PARR++ is dead: long live predictive modelling

      Impact of ‘Virtual Wards’ on hospital use: a research study using propensity matched controls and a cost analysis

      Applying the Integrated Practice Unit Concept to a Modified Virtual Ward Model of Care for Patients at Highest Risk of Readmission: A Randomized Controlled Trial

      Effect of post-discharge virtual wards on improving outcomes in heart failure and non-heart failure populations: A systematic review and meta-analysis

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        MediRecords 2.0: New ways to Care, Connect and Engage
         

        MediRecords 2.0: New ways to Care, Connect
        and Engage

        MediRecords 2.0 is the most comprehensive overhaul of our electronic patient record and clinic management system since we launched in Australia in 2016. While there have been many product updates over the years, MediRecords 2.0 is designed to use screen space better, streamline workflows, reduce administrative burn-out and support shared care.

         

        MediRecords Head of Product Jayne Thompson says, “Innovation is as important to us as it is to our customers”. The 2.0 product update reflects this philosophy, introducing best-in-class user experience design and other client-driven enhancements, while reinforcing the foundations for next generation digital health connectivity.  

        Having grown beyond its origins as Australia’s pioneering, cloud-based practice management system, the MediRecords platform is now underpinned by three pillars: Care, Connect and Engage. Each of these will gain major new features during 2023.

         

        Care

        The MediRecords Care pillar contains core clinical features such as patient records, ePrescribing, appointment management, investigations, billing and claiming, correspondence, and assessments. New Care functionality will include: 

        • Case Management – Members of a designated Care Team can view and update client case notes. This is particularly valuable where care is shared between a multidisciplinary team working from separate locations or across different shifts. For example, mental health practitioners can collaborate with GPs and rehabilitation specialists as patients progress towards a safe return to work. 
        • Group appointments – Patients will be able to book and join group sessions or classes. This feature will enable group therapy, family consultations and community health programs, with providers able to message an entire group or individual group members. 
        • New mental health and readiness for work assessment templates are being added, including the Glasgow Coma Scale. 
        • Single provider view of appointments: Clinicians practising across multiple clinics won’t have to jump between them to view their appointments. Appointments across multiple sites will be consolidated in a single view. 
        • New communication capability: Real time chat with team members will be available throughout MediRecords, making it easier to message team members on the fly. Our new Comms bar will also provide shortcuts to SMS, email, alerts, and notifications. 
        • Inpatients – In a major new premium* feature, MediRecords will be able to support complex care, including inpatient admissions, detailed charting, clinical escalations, progress notes and Discharge Summaries. 
        • Our Letter writer tool is having a makeover and will be even easier to use, with highly requested new functionality, such as digital signatures. 
        • We’ve added industry-leading means of recording Consent (or denial of consent) and made it easier to add attachments to patient records. 
        • Custom fields and Tagging can be used in patient records, creating new and innovative ways to capture information, search records and report on data. 

         

        Connect 

        Many clients are familiar with our Connect site. MediRecords was an early adopter of FHIR (Fast Health Interoperability Resources) and API technology and new options for using these to share data are on the way. We have proven integrations with patient monitoring devices, patient-reported outcome and engagement measure systems (PROMs and PREMs), dictation technology and partner products. MediRecords is built on the SNOMED-CT-AU data coding system, which makes the data we share cleaner and primed for analytics. 

        • We now have FHIR integrations with enterprise products such as hospital patient administration systems (PAS) and scanned medical record software. This means a patient record created or updated in MediRecords can be pushed up into hospital systems, ensuring consistency of records and supporting better patient safety. Current options include allergies, medication requests and dispense notifications. 
        • New FHIR resources to be added throughout 2023 include referrals, diagnostic requests, diagnostic reports, and vital signs.  

         

        Engage 

        MediRecords has already connected over 60,000 patients to healthcare records via our patient mobile app. This enables consumers to book appointments, see medication information, receive reports and educational resources, and access and store personal health documents. We’re taking this to the next level in 2023 with an entirely new patient engagement platform. This will include new features such as:  

        • Real time surveys and forms 
        • Clinical assessment and observations data for remote monitoring 
        • In-appointment chat functionality 
        • Secure web access to personal health data. 

        Frequently asked questions

        MediRecords 2.0 is an overhaul of our current platform rather than a new product. All existing customers will transition to 2.0. Sticking with the old MediRecords format will not be an option.

        We will perform the update remotely. Users won’t have to download or do anything.

        We have done our utmost to preserve familiarity and usual behaviour within the MediRecords application, but the new layout may take some adjustment. To help with this, we have been providing Lunch and Learn sessions for clients. Please reach out to our training team if you have any further questions, training.success@medirecords.com.

        Development will finish in March. Rigorous testing will follow before pilot sites switch to 2.0 in late April. Once we have considered their feedback, we’ll finalise the date for general release and shout it from the rooftops to let you know. 

        If you are a current client, please contact your Account Manager if you would like to be a test pilot for these new features. Limited places are available.  

        MediRecords 2.0 is an upgrade of your existing system and will be covered by usual licence fees. However, some of the optional new features will be Premium products and require additional fees. Details will be published as soon as possible. 

         

        For other questions, please email support@medirecords.com.

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