Overview of Hospital Information Systems Architecture

Posted on January 22, 2015 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Join Our Mailing List 

On Configurations and Varieties

[By Brent Metfessel MD MIS]

Dr. Metfessel

Hospitals can use a variety of configurations for HIS implementation depending on business needs and budgetary constraints.

Staffing needed for these systems can range from a few full-time equivalents (FTEs) per 100 beds for very basic off-site processing systems to 15 or more FTEs per 100 beds for sophisticated systems that attempt to combine several architectures into one system (e.g., combination of client-server systems with mainframe processing). Resource use and customizability tend to vary in tandem; the greater the flexibility of the system to meet unique user needs, the greater the cost outlay for capital and/or additional FTEs.

***

Relationship of Resource Use and Customizability Based on System Architecture Selected

Values range from one (low) to four (high) stars
Architecture Hospital resource use Customizability
Off-site processing * *
Turnkey systems ** **
Mainframe systems *** ***
Client-server *** ****

***

The Possibilities

The basic system architecture possibilities are as follows:

Off-site (remote) processing: In this case the hospital contracts with a vendor external to the hospital. The hospital sends data over to the vendor site where the actual processing takes place. When processing is complete, the vendor sends the data back to the hospital, usually in electronic form.

Turnkey systems: A vendor provides the hospital with systems that are “pre-packaged” so that hospital-based system development is minimal. Limited customization of the system is possible using systems analysts or programmers.

Mainframe systems: Most applicable to large hospitals, this configuration is highly centralized. A large and powerful computer performs basically all the information processing for the institution and connects to multiple terminals that communicate with the mainframe to display the information at the user sites. Hospital IT departments usually use in-house programmers to modify the core operating systems or applications programs such as billing and scheduling programs.

eHR diagram

Client-server systems: In this configuration one or more “repository” computers exist, known as “servers,” that store large amounts of data and perform limited processing. Communicating with the server(s) are client workstations that perform much of the data processing and often have graphical user interfaces (GUIs) for ease of use. Both customizability and resource use is high, depending on the desired sophistication.

Many clinical information systems that process data directly related to patient care use this configuration.  For instance, the Veterans Health Administration, which has implemented what is likely the largest integrated healthcare information system in the United States, uses client-server architecture.  Known as the Veterans Health Information Systems and Technology Architecture (VistA), this system provides technology infrastructure to about 1,300 care facilities, including hospitals and medical centers, outpatient facilities, and long-term care centers.  VistA utilizes a client-server architecture that links together workstations and personal computers using software that is accessed via a graphical user interface.

Overall, for hospitals that have the financial and manpower resources for a significant investment in IT, client-server architectures are the fastest-growing and typically the most preferred of the system architectures, due in large part to their local adaptability and flexibility to meet changing hospital and medical center needs.

Broad Categories

The above architectures are broad categories.  Modifications and combinations of the above also exist, such as the use of client-server technology with mainframe systems and the addition of wireless technology, smart phones, laptop PCs and tablets,  and various personal digital assistants (PDAs) to supplement the core computing functionality.

In considering the optimal architecture for a hospital, management needs to take into account factors such as size of the institution, desired sophistication of the application, IT budget, and anticipated level of user community involvement.

Assessment

EHR

Another important aspect of HIS is the need for integration.  Often, different hospital departments have their own stand-alone systems — such as a Laboratory Information System (LIS) and pharmacy systems — that do not communicate with each other.  Duplicate data may be kept in separate systems, creating additional work to enter the data multiple times.

In an integrated system, each departmental system communicates with the other systems through either a centralized or decentralized. A computerized physician order entry (CPOE) system, for example, would be much less effective if it did not communicate electronically with the pharmacy system that would process the medication orders.

Channel Surfing the ME-P

Have you visited our other topic channels? Established to facilitate idea exchange and link our community together, the value of these topics is dependent upon your input. Please take a minute to visit. And, to prevent that annoying spam, we ask that you register. It is fast, free and secure.

Conclusion

Your thoughts and comments on this ME-P are appreciated. Feel free to review our top-left column, and top-right sidebar materials, links, URLs and related websites, too. Then, subscribe to the ME-P. It is fast, free and secure.

Speaker: If you need a moderator or speaker for an upcoming event, Dr. David E. Marcinko; MBA – Publisher-in-Chief of the Medical Executive-Post – is available for seminar or speaking engagements. Contact: MarcinkoAdvisors@msn.com

OUR OTHER PRINT BOOKS AND RELATED INFORMATION SOURCES:

NOTES: Resource use refers to the need for FTEs and hospital capital expenditure. Customizability refers to the ability for users to alter the system structure or function to meet the unique needs of the institution.

Product Details

Product DetailsProduct Details

Product Details

Filed under: iMBA, Inc., Information Technology | Tagged: , , , , , , , | 4 Comments »

Hospital Information Systems and the PP-ACA

Posted on October 17, 2013 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Join Our Mailing List

Extension of Hospital Information Systems Beyond the Hospital

By Brent A. Metfessel MD

Dr. MetfesselThe Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), affirmed after the November 7th 2012 presidential election, includes a number of policies and potential projects with the aim of improving quality of care while reducing costs – or at least greatly slowing increases in health care costs from year to year.

Included in this effort are CMS payment incentives for providers that can show care patterns that meet the goals of high quality, cost-efficient care.

HHS and ACOs 

On March 31, 2011, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released a set of proposed new rules to aid clinicians, hospitals, and other health facilities and providers to improve coordination of care for Medicare patients using a model known as Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs). ACOs that are shown to lower health care cost growth while meeting CMS quality benchmarks, including measures of patient/caregiver experience of care, care coordination, patient safety, preventive health, and health of high-risk populations, will receive incentive payments as part of the Medicare Shared Savings Program.

But, in some proposed models ACOs may also be held accountable for shared losses.

Care Co-ordination

Coordination of care means that hospitals, physician offices, and other providers have a complete record of patients’ episodes of care, including diagnostic tests, procedures, and medication information.  This potentially would decrease extra costs from unnecessary duplication of services as well as reducing medical errors from incomplete understanding of the patients’ illness histories and medical care provided.

It is also believed that better coordination of care may prevent 30-day hospital readmissions (which occur for nearly one in five Medicare discharges), since needed post-discharge care would be more readily obtainable with more aggressive care coordination.

Medicare patients in ACOs, however, would still be allowed to see providers outside of the ACO, and proposals exist to prevent physicians in ACOs from being penalized for patients with a greater illness severity or complexity.

According to a CMS analysis, ACOs may result in Medicare savings of up to $960 million over three years.  Although the Affordable Care Act’s ACO provisions primarily target Medicare beneficiaries, private insurers are also beginning to create care models based on the accountable care paradigm.  Insurers could offer similar incentives to the ACO model described above, and which might include features such as performance based contracting or tiered benefit models that favor physicians who score highly on care quality and cost-efficiency measures.

Balance

Only the Beginning

ACOs and other implementations of the accountable care paradigm, however, are in their beginning stages, with a number of pilots around the country currently being conducted to more fully evaluate the concept, and there still is some controversy over the best way to achieve these goals. It is a continuing balancing act.

The critical point here is that in all likelihood, with the advent of the ACA and other initiatives, stemming the upward tide of medical cost increases becomes an even higher priority, and no matter what the final models will look like, the success of any of the models requires a high level of care coordination – requiring information systems that are fully compatible and allow seamless and errorless transmission of information between sites of service and the various providers that can be involved in patient care.

More:

  1. Ground Breaking Book Explains Why Accountable Care Organizations May Be the Answer the Health Care Industry Has Been Seeking!
  2. Evaluating ACOs at Mid-Launch
  3. How Using a ‘Scorecard’ Can Smooth Your Hospital’s Transition to a Population Health-Based Reimbursement Model
  4. Doubting the Accountable Care Organization B-Model

Assessment

Thus, wherever a patient goes for care, all the information needed to provide high-quality and cost-efficient care is immediately available.

References

Feds Take Critical Look at Meaningful Use Payments”, InformationWeek Healthcare, October 24, 2012.  http://www.informationweek.com/healthcare/policy/feds-take-critical-look-at-meaningful-us/240009661 [Accessed on November 2, 2012].

Conclusion

Your thoughts and comments on this ME-P are appreciated. Feel free to review our top-left column, and top-right sidebar materials, links, URLs and related websites, too. Then, subscribe to the ME-P. It is fast, free and secure.

Link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/HealthcareFinancialsthePostForcxos

Speaker: If you need a moderator or speaker for an upcoming event, Dr. David E. Marcinko; MBA – Publisher-in-Chief of the Medical Executive-Post – is available for seminar or speaking engagements. Contact: MarcinkoAdvisors@msn.com

OUR OTHER PRINT BOOKS AND RELATED INFORMATION SOURCES:

LEXICONS: http://www.springerpub.com/Search/marcinko
PHYSICIANS: www.MedicalBusinessAdvisors.com
PRACTICES: www.BusinessofMedicalPractice.com
HOSPITALS: http://www.crcpress.com/product/isbn/9781466558731
CLINICS: http://www.crcpress.com/product/isbn/9781439879900
ADVISORS: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.org
PODIATRISTS: www.PodiatryPrep.com
BLOG: www.MedicalExecutivePost.com

Product DetailsProduct Details

Product Details

Filed under: Book Reviews, Health Law & Policy, Information Technology, Practice Management | Tagged: , , , , , , , | 3 Comments »

On Healthcare Intranets and Extranets

Posted on June 26, 2009 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Join Our Mailing List

A Primer for Physicians and Medical Executives

Dr. Mata

By Richard J. Mata; MD, MS, CMP™ [Hon]

According to the “Dictionary of Heath Information and Technology”,

“An intranet is a private network that uses Internet Protocols, network connectivity, and possibly the public telecommunication system to securely share part of an organization’s information or operations with its employees”.

Sometimes the term refers only to the most visible service, the internal website.  The same concepts and technologies of the Internet, such as clients and servers running on the Internet protocol suite, are used to build an intranet.

Uses in Healthcare

An intranet is commonly used to provide communication and application services.  The advantages of using an intranet in the healthcare setting include the following:

  • Medical Workforce productivity: Intranets can help employees quickly find and view information and applications relevant to their roles and responsibilities.  Via a simple-to-use web browser interface, users can access data held in any database the organization wants to make available, anytime and  subject to security provisions — from anywhere, increasing employees’ ability to perform their jobs faster, more accurately, and with confidence that they have the right information.
  • Time: With intranets, healthcare organizations can make more information available to employees on a “pull” basis (i.e., employees can link to relevant information at a time that suits them) rather than being deluged indiscriminately by e-mails.
  • Communication: Intranets can serve as powerful tools for communication within a healthcare organization; vertically and horizontally.

Vulnerability and Security Protection

Intranets, like other IT systems, need to be protected by security systems. Any intranet is vulnerable to attack by people intent on destruction or on stealing corporate data. The open nature of the Internet and TCP/IP protocols expose a corporation to attack.  Intranets require a variety of security measures, including hardware and software combinations that provide control of traffic; encryption and passwords to validate users; and software tools to prevent and cure viruses, block objectionable sites, and monitor traffic.

Multiple Lines of Defense

The first line of defense is a firewall and these are commonly set up using proxy servers, which allow system administrators to track all traffic coming in and out of an intranet. Another layer of sophistication is added by using a bastion server firewall, configured to withstand and prevent unauthorized access or services. It is typically segmented from the rest of the intranet in its own subnet or perimeter network. In this way, if the server is broken into, the rest of the intranet won’t be compromised.

Authentication Systems

Authentication systems are an important part of any intranet security scheme. They are used to ensure that anyone trying to log into the intranet or any of its resources is the person they claim to be. Authentication systems typically use user names, passwords, fingerprints and iris scans, and various encryption systems.

Protection and Monitoring

Server-based software is used to protect an intranet and its data. Virus-checking software can check every file coming into the intranet to make sure that it is virus-free, and site-blocking software can bar people on the intranet from getting objectionable material. Monitoring software tracks where people have gone and what services they have used, such as HTTP for Web access.

Filtering Systems and Routers

One way of ensuring that the wrong people or erroneous data can’t get into the intranet is to use a filtering router. This is a special kind of router that examines the IP address and header information in every packet coming into the network, and allows in only those packets that have addresses or other data, like e-mail, that the system administrator has decided should be allowed into the intranet. Increasingly, intranets are being used to deliver tools and applications, e.g., collaboration (to facilitate working in groups and for teleconferences) or sophisticated corporate directories, sales and customer relationship management (CRM) tools, project management, etc, to advance productivity. Intranets are also being used as Health 2.0 culture change platforms

Metrics

Intranet traffic, like public-facing website traffic, is better understood by using web metrics software to track overall activity, as well as through surveys of users. Intranet User experience, editorial, and technology teams work together to produce in-house sites. Most commonly, intranets are owned by the communications, HR or IT areas of large healthcare organizations, or some combination of the three.

Assessment

When part of an intranet is made accessible to customers, partners, suppliers, patients, or others outside the healthcare organization – that part becomes part of an extranet.

Conclusion

Your thoughts and comments on this ME-P are appreciated. Feel free to review our top-left column, and top-right sidebar materials, links, URLs and related websites, too. Then, subscribe to the ME-P. It is fast, free and secure.

Link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/HealthcareFinancialsthePostForcxos

Speaker: If you need a moderator or speaker for an upcoming event, Dr. David E. Marcinko; MBA – Publisher-in-Chief of the Medical Executive-Post – is available for seminar or speaking engagements. Contact: MarcinkoAdvisors@msn.com

OUR OTHER PRINT BOOKS AND RELATED INFORMATION SOURCES:

Product DetailsProduct DetailsProduct Details

Product DetailsProduct Details

***

Filed under: Career Development, iMBA, Inc., Information Technology, Practice Management, Recommended Books, Sponsors | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »