Using Virtual Health Networks to Build a Resource-Event-Agent Healthcare Paradigm

Abstract Integration has often been an afterthought but now must become a central approach to heath IT transformation. A representation of the integration approach is shown in Figure 3.1. Major issues in establishing patient-consumer centric and information-centric Wave 2, described in Chapters 2 and 4, respectively, require defining a new services and information architecture and providing an integrative approach. We cannot build a totally new integrated patient-consumer-informationcentric architecture from scratch and get to a connected Health and Human Services shared services (HHSs) approach. To achieve that goal, we must evolve in an incremental fashion. However, if our vision is centered only on the providers and hospitals, and their host systems-as the current approach, and we don’t turn the focus to patient-consumer interactions and their contentinformation and service needs, we will still have great complexity and the wrong focus. Healthcare improvement has to be about better quality, more efficient, and less confusing care. Today, health IT systems are focused on the providers, the hospitals, the labs, etc., and automating their functions. That step is necessary, but like all industry transformation, the focus needs to shift to the consumer in balance with all stakeholders. Providers practice transformation and improvement must focus on ease of use, interoperability, and new capabilities for care coordination, with mental health integration; however, new patient-consumer-information-centric approaches are needed. That shift must take place with a set of managed integration planning steps.