Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/644565
75 PRACTICE MANAGEMENT THOUGHT LEADERSHIP Data integration is pivotal There are two interesting approaches to integrating this data: a new user interface that marries data from the devic- es with EHR data and presents a comprehensive dash- board; or an integration platform that sends data to the physician's EHR and displays the dashboard there. Whichever route is taken, the key is to provide a system that is seamless with caregivers' routine workflow, so the data is instantly accessible, properly filtered and analyzed, and presented in a dashboard that gives relevant data to guide treatment and coaching decisions. A real-life example that works One example of a chronic disease management system that uses remote monitoring data and telehealth is at Baystate Health, a large community-based integrated health system in Western Massachusetts. Baystate is part of the Pioneer Valley Accountable Care Organization, which was recently designated as one of the first Next Gener- ation ACOs in the country by CMS. Baystate developed an innovative program integrating remote monitoring and telehealth in care delivery. The program was led by TechSpring, Baystate's technology innovation center. It uses a solution from Health Net Connect to proactively monitor patients with diabetes in an effort to reduce or eliminate 30-day readmissions. Health Net Connect sends telehealth-equipped suitcases to diabetic patients. The suit- case contains tools needed to monitor the patient in their home, such as a tablet for virtual visits and a glucose meter. Patient data is recorded by the tablet and sent securely via cellular connection to the Health Net Connect dash- board used by Baystate's clinical teams. It is critical that care managers are able to quickly view patient data from remote monitoring in the same interface with all the other patient data. No extra applications should be needed to access the data, no manual input required, no change to the clinician's workflow. Easy access means less time wasted and more physician and patient engagement. But making the data available within existing EHRs or care management platforms takes the right technology. Health Net Connect talks in JSON and an EHR might only speak HL7. (Disclosure: I work for Dell, the company that provides the integration engine used to do the translation from JSON to HL7 for Health Net Connect.) The alternative to the EHR-based dashboard is a new application type being developed by a number of entre- preneurs, many of which are expected to hit the market in the next year. Know them well, coach them daily The success of population health and chronic disease man- agement efforts hinges on a few key elements: identifying those at risk; having access to the right data about them; creating actionable insights about patients; and coaching them daily toward healthier choices. It's not really rocket science, but it does require the right technology and a coordinated plan to make it effective and affordable. The key to successful disease management requires inte- gration into the clinical workflows and environment.'That was the focus of Baystate's program, which requires trial and error. Technology is secondary; overcoming the barri- ers of adoption is the real work and real need. n November 7-9, 2016 l Swissotel, Chicago CEO + CFO Roundtable Becker's 5th Annual