We’re trying something a little different this year…a throwback to the early days of blogging. Today John Lynn and I will be posting interesting news, conversations, thoughts and insights from Day 2 here at #HIMSS21 in Las Vegas. Bookmark this article and watch for updates from me throughout the day. Be sure to check out John’s updates as well.
Data, Care@Home & Patient Experience Discussion
What a great way to start Day 2 of #HIMSS21. Had the chance to interview Lisa Esch, SVP and Chief Innovation Officer and Dr. Michael C Petersen, Chief Clinical Innovation Officer – both from NTT Data Services. It was a fantastic conversation and we covered a lot of ground: interoperability, data sharing, care-at-home and patient experience.
Here are my three takeaways:
- Patient experience needs to get more digital and more personal. We need to cater healthcare interactions into the lives of patients not the other way around.
- Data sharing can easier when you have the right technology, skills, resources and willingness to share. Start by looking at who is requesting information and build a strategy to address their needs.
- Care-at-home will only accelerate in the years ahead. Hospitals will need to think carefully about the impact on operations, infrastructure & workflow. It’s not just about the tech in a patient’s home.
Cute Dog Sighting
Walking by the Avaya booth and spotted this cute service dog. Absolutely had to stop and say hello. So well behaved and dipped her head whenever I tried to snap a shot. You can’t see it but there is a giant smile under my mask now.
Using HIMSS21 as a Litmus Test
Have had at least six conversations with people who are using HIMSS21 as a litmus test to determine whether or not it makes sense for their company to be an exhibitor in future years or to send more people for business development. They all realize that this year’s conference is unlike any others but that still hasn’t deterred them from taking this opportunity to really explore and engage with the HIMSS regulars that are here.
I’m encouraged by these conversations. I am big proponent of attending a conference before becoming an exhibitor. The fact that so many are doing that this year with HIMSS21 bodes well for future years.
A Cable Company Disrupting Healthcare?
Stopped in to interview the team at Cox Business (yes THAT Cox, the giant cable operator). They have been helping healthcare organizations for decades, but mostly behind the scenes and mostly with communication infrastructure. With the acquisition of Trapollo in 2015, however, Cox suddenly had a clinical solution that helped the front-side of the healthcare house.
Here at HIMSS21, Cox is highlighting their new Prosight RTLS solution. Their goal is to disrupt the high initial cost of these types of solutions.
GIS for Equity, Inclusion and Impact
One of my favorite companies to visit with is Esri. I am fascinated by how geospatial data can be used to improve healthcare. One of my favorite people to talk to is Dr. Estella (Este) Geraghty, Chief Medical Officer and Health Solutions Director at Esri. I always enjoy hearing about the latest use-cases from Geraghty and her enthusiasm for GIS+Healthcare is infectious (excuse the pun).
In just 30min we dove into:
- Using GIS and waste water analysis to pinpoint issues. Using this for COVID-19 detection has been in the news recently, but this technology can also be used to detect opioids and other pharmaceuticals.
- GIS + FHIR. There is now a location component to the FHIR standard and Esri is part of a consortium of companies that is working on proof of concepts to demonstrate interoperability of this type of data. Both Geraghty and I are excited about the possibilities here.
- Leveraging GIS to systematize equity. Imagine being able to look at your community and see the demographic information mapped out. Now imaging tying that information to an inclusion mandate. You would literally be able to determine if your organization/company/program/initiative was truly representative.
I also met a new company, Epistemix, who was presenting in the Esri theatre. They were showing their incredible technology that can perform complex analysis using the digital clone of the US that they have created. Want to know what the impact on COVID-19 spread will be if you implement a mask mandate (or not)? They can do it. Want to see how many ED visits might happen because of the smoke from the forest fires? They can do it. I’m looking forward to learning more in an interview after HIMSS21.
Still Struggling with Interoperability
Just finished an interview with John Nebergall, Senior Vice President & General Manager at J2 Cloud Services and future COO at Consensus Cloud Solutions. We spoke about the state of interoperability and discussed why we continue to struggle to achieve it in healthcare. Nebergall rightly pointed out that we keep changing the goal posts – policies change regularly, new technologies emerge, legacy systems are retired, etc.
We also discussed how the fax protocol still has a place in the interoperability picture. We laugh at the fax machine but fax technology is still a viable way to share data…especially when something is on paper. I also couldn’t let Nebergall go without asking him about the brand separation between J2 Global and Consensus (their new stand-alone healthcare company).
The Voice of Interoperability
Took her to her through the interoperability showcase. It’s much larger than past years with multiple pavilions each featuring different connectivity and information sharing examples.
It was a bit disconcerting to hear voices of presenters who were not physically there in the hall but who had dialed in remotely to give their part of the demonstration. This was understandable given how many had changed their travel plans due to the COVID situation in Las Vegas.
I have to say that it felt like being in a museum and having a narrator explain what you were looking at in the display. I couldn’t help but Wonder that maybe one day 10 years from now, there may be an interoperability museum with the same voices telling us the story of the time when we couldn’t share data freely or easily.
I’m excited to come back tomorrow to live-tweet a presentation by Consensus at 10:45am PT.
Sweet End to Day 2
Can’t think of a better way to end off day two of HIMSS21 then a scoop of handmade ice cream served with a choice of toppings. Thank you to the HIMSS PR Team for hosting us at this after-party.
It’s time for bed and get ready for another day of live updates on Day 3.
