We all know the statistics on healthcare data growing exponentially and understand how gathering useful insights from this data means healthier people and populations. That’s the key – the people. In fact, it’s important that all this data from different, siloed systems, stored in different formats with different codes is accurately linked to the right person.
When the records within an organization’s system reach 10 million, 40 million, or even over 150 million in number, data governance becomes resource intensive. Yet, throughout healthcare, leaders are faced with needing to do more with less – less people, less money, less time.
Cutting corners is not an option. We cannot sacrifice data privacy, security, or quality on account of not having enough data stewards or funds for enterprise master person index (EMPI) technology to resolve data linking and data quality issues. Whether an organization reconciles person data manually or with an EMPI, it must be done consistently and accurately. Rhapsody supports efforts at the federal level to standardize patient matching practices, enhance data sharing, and provide transparency for person-matching certification.
The current Patient Matching and Transparency in Certified Health IT Act (MATCH IT Act) legislation focuses on improving person matching and data sharing throughout healthcare. It aims to address challenges related to person matching, which is the process of accurately identifying and matching person records across different providers and systems. Standardizing these practices helps reduce errors in person identification, leading to safer, higher-quality care. It also emphasizes the importance of protecting patient privacy and security.
If approved and signed into law, Rhapsody will comply with the requirements of the act, making any updates to our technology, systems, policies, and practices related to patient matching and data sharing. This includes Rhapsody EMPI that enables users to link records across systems for a single, comprehensive view, leading to accurate and consistent identity data needed for true person-centered care and efficient data quality management. Rhapsody Autopilot, a first-of-its-kind technology that uses machine learning (ML) to automatically link person records, in line with customer preferences, for a comprehensive view, will also meet regulatory requirements.
Ultimately, we feel that this legislation would improve person matching practices and enhance data sharing across the industry. While it could require EMPI solutions to adhere to certain standards, we believe this would improve the overall effectiveness and reliability of EMPI solutions. This means they become more valuable for health tech and health system organizations. Improved accuracy and reliability of record matching will lead to better care coordination and more personalized health services.
