With the COVID-19 pandemic rearing its ugly head in 2020, the health care industry was in dire need of adaptability to continue serving patients. Telehealth existed before the pandemic, but it saw a more significant purpose when medical offices began to shutter their doors and providers needed to seek innovative ways to reach their patients. Ideally, almost overnight, a new data source emerged, leading to further complexity in the existing world of health care data. While this new source has the potential to facilitate care, it’s important to understand the barriers of integrating it into an already fragmented data center effectively.
To paint just a brief overview of the situation, let's consider where my health care my data resides. Since birth, I have been cared for by 13 health systems. While I'm sure it's somewhere, I have no idea where the claims data exists for the surgeries I had at ages 16 (broken leg — skiing), 22 (broken leg — skiing), 29 (broken leg — falling down the stairs), and 32 (vein stripping as a result of the previous three injuries/surgeries). I had different insurance providers for each claim, and they were handled by different health systems in different states. I have had at least two colonoscopies in different systems. I have a family history of cancer, but the relative is married and has a different last name. I received my flu shot and COVID-19 vaccinations at a supermarket (I think they asked for my insurance card, but I’m not sure). Since moving to Washington, D.C., I have received a tetanus booster, but I guessed when my last booster was on the form. For fun, I count my steps on my phone to keep healthy, but there is no integration with my medical record. Plus, my charts are populated from the forms I fill out, which may or may not be accurate, depending on what I remembered at the time.