Technology and efficiency are advancing at a faster pace than ever, and in healthcare IT, that means an emerging need for IT teams to be at the forefront of system assessment and implementation.
Your team should actively partner with the clinical team and other decision makers on how to improve and optimize workflows and interconnectivity. When you are part of these conversations from the beginning, you will be able to share concerns that could impact not only your workflow but also the overall quality of patient care and hospital operations.
In GE healthcare, We’ve found that there are some universal concerns that your IT teams express when involved in onboarding a new system. These include collaboration, interoperability, standardization and cybersecurity.
But the best way to combat a problem is to bring it to light. Let’s talk about these pain points and how you can address them to help build connections with your providers and care teams.
- Collaboration
In any relationship, strong communication is essential, so it’s no surprise that a lack of it can negatively impact teams, vendors, and project success.
Your teams specifically need vendors to provide necessary documentation upfront, including compliance documentation (e.g. GDPR, HIPAA), integration documentation, and workflow diagrams, to move forward with the onboarding process.
In many cases, the best way to ensure collaboration occurs is to build it in at the beginning of a process. This means involving the right people in the conversation early in the buying process. Next, everyone involved should share their concerns, projected timeline, needs and expectations, and establish preferred means of communication.
Collaboration is a two-way street that creates clarity for all parties if everyone is involved and committed from the beginning. Once the system is purchased, GE HealthCare immediately steps in to facilitate implementation by assigning a project manager. This way, you’ll have a dedicated team member and support system that constantly encourages communication and keeps things moving forward.
- Cybersecurity
The threat is real and the stakes are high. That’s why you and your IT teams face significant challenges in ensuring vendors maintain strict cybersecurity standards. With increasing connectivity, medical devices are vulnerable to cyber attacks, which could compromise patient data and device functionality, making it an essential consideration in implementation.
One way to be proactive in this fight is to require data protection systems, encryption models, and regular security updates from providers. Specifically for encryption, most installations require end-to-end and in-transit encryption, with Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) algorithms and two-factor authentication preferred.
These protocols must be clearly defined, not only to comply with guidelines, but also to keep clinicians and patients safe. At GE HealthCare, we are well versed in cybersecurity needs and ensure that software is used and implemented in a way that maintains data security and privacy.
- Interoperability
When considering a solution to interoperability challenges, the ultimate goal is to ensure reliable data exchange between different medical devices and systems within your network, making data easily accessible to all teams.
This requires software and platforms that ensure compatibility and integration. And with a provider that can work with you on all the moving parts of a deployment, you can configure all of your operations to make sure data moves as smoothly as possible.
- Standardization
Another critical component of data management is standardization across the hospital system. Time is of the essence for team members throughout your system, so if data and reports are organized consistently, efficiency can get a big boost throughout your organization.
For example, doctors often look for the same data in reports, so no matter who the technician is performing a scan, a standardized system helps everyone work more efficiently.
GE HealthCare’s Verisound™, specifically the ViewPoint™ 6 system, supports documentation accuracy and efficient reporting by minimizing manual entry and dictation time while fully integrating with radiology department workflows and IT systems. So the data looks the same and your team can quickly analyze it.
Ultimately, your IT voice is essential
In all of this, the reality is that you have the power to effect change between yourself, your care teams, and your providers. As in any healthy relationship, strengthening trust begins by expressing concerns, needs and goals. When it comes to purchasing and implementing a new system, it’s a perfect time to connect as a team and make sure everyone’s voices are heard, including the IT department. GE Health Care specifically prides itself on working with both clinicians and IT teams to ensure a smooth onboarding, whether it be a fleet of equipment or a full installation of a software system. When we all share our concerns and needs, we can focus together on the ultimate goal: providing excellent patient care.
