Better PHM With Improved Data Architecture

By Wendy Grafius, contributing writer

Tools, processes in place to better manage population health data, give physicians access to information in real-time

ProHealth Care, of Wisconsin, has partnered with Perficient, Inc., to implement Epic System's Cogito data warehouse to improve data collection, measurement and analysis, and delivery of data. The implementation is expected to help the community-based healthcare system better manage population health.

Healthcare organizations receive health data from an increasingly complex variety of sources: EMRs, claims, billing transactions, and patient histories. Analyzing the data and translating it into actionable information remains the challenge. ProHealth sought to improve their data architecture efforts in order to drive population health management and to meet ACO pay-for-performance requirements. "At ProHealth Care, we were challenged with immense amounts of data coming from various systems and sources," said Christine Bessler, CIO of ProHealth Care. "We not only needed to integrate our systems to manage this data, but we needed to make the data actionable."

ProHealth Care chose to engage with leading IT consulting firm, Perficient, to drive their data architecture efforts. First, a business intelligence (BI) assessment and roadmap were created using Microsoft's BI stack. Next, Epic System's Cogito was chosen as the foundation for a data warehouse model to meet growing data and reporting needs. In the next step, the core capability of the data warehouse was extended to meet the ACO requirements. Finally, with ACO measures in place, areas of focus were identified for improved patient care and healthcare delivery.

"In working with Perficient, ProHealth has become the first healthcare system to successfully implement Epic's Cogito data warehouse and produce reports in a meaningful way," said Bessler. "Our organization now has the tools and processes in place to better manage population health data, giving physicians access to information in real-time, setting the stage for preventive care, and improving overall patient care and the health of our population."

Located in southeast Wisconsin, not-for-profit ProHealth Care is the leading provider of healthcare in Waukesha County and the surrounding area. Waukesha Memorial, a 301-bed tertiary care hospital, houses centers for neuroscience, orthopedics, cancer, heart and vascular, and women. With 75 beds, acute care facility Oconomowoc Memorial Hospital features an emergency department and centers for heart and vascular, cancer, and women. Both facilities are designated Primary Stroke Centers by the Joint Commission.

Additionally, the healthcare system includes the Rehabilitation Hospital of Wisconsin, which provides post-acute care for stroke, brain injuries, and neuro exacerbations as well as orthopedic conditions such as hip fractures and scheduled orthopedic surgeries. Nearly 1,000 physicians provide care at numerous clinics within the network which also features home care and hospice, long-term care, senior residency, and a health and fitness center.

SOURCE: Business Wire