The electronic health record giant, Epic Systems, currently reaches between 100 and 200 million patients and is used by two thirds of providers nationwide. Currently the company is working to release EpicShare.org, a de-identified platform for healthcare providers and customers to share information on patient care.
Epic CEO, Judy Faulkner, expects all Epic customers to eventually use the medical data sets. Epic made advancements in May by sharing information using the Epic Health Research Network in order to expand medical knowledge. Epic utilizes Cosmos, a research repository, for its database. This will enable clinicians to review data and treatments and chose what is best for their patient. In the future, Cosmos will provide clinicians with trusted results, however the clinician will always have the authority to override them.
By launching EpicShare.org, the company aims to rapidly spread information to users, whether they use Epic or not, to increase the quality of patient care. The platform will be data driven, informing both patients and providers on what has helped patients with similar cases.
Faulkner said, “This will help clinicians make decisions on observational evidence-based medicine.” Faulkner spoke of the Cosmos database at the HLTH VRTL 2020 conference earlier this year, telling The Institute for Intergroup Understanding Chair George Halvorson of the platform’s influence on observational data decision making.
This platform will streamline administrative processes, resulting in quality care. A large amount of medical errors are a result of the time used for administrative tasks. According to the most recent American Medical Association data, over twenty hours each week are used for administrative tasks by one third of physicians. Clinicians could also shift to a Value Based Care model (VBC) tying physician payment to positive patient outcomes rather than the number of services provided.
Epic believes that the launch of this platform will strengthen evidence-based care and open communication for patients and healthcare providers. By streamlining administrative duties, the time, efficiency, and cost of healthcare will improve. By utilizing a Cosmos database, the company will rapidly increase the quality of patient care and build a blueprint for the future of digitalized medical records.
