Why patient-centered interoperability is the next healthcare hurdle for innovators?

Digital health investors and innovators should focus on solutions to simplify the complicated U.S. healthcare system for patients.

Calling the U.S. healthcare system complex would be like calling the universe big: an understatement that poorly conveys its true scale. It's populated with primary care physicians, specialists, pharmacists, insurance companies, labs, therapists, caregivers and others – all using different tools, methods of communication and care delivery solutions.

Our healthcare system attempts to deliver coordinated service from distant silos, hoping for better health outcomes.

Recent policies have aimed to synthesize the back end of healthcare in order to give stakeholders in the healthcare ecosystem better visibility and simplified coordination. This systems-level approach is welcome and will likely yield results that make healthcare more efficient and effective.

What’s missing, however, is a simplified experience for the end user navigating the healthcare journey: the patient. Currently, the patient carries the burden of ensuring these systems, their providers and caregivers work seamlessly together.

Think about the challenges you or a loved one faced during a transition in the healthcare journey: moving from one insurance plan to another, from wellness maintenance to addressing a disease, or shifting out of acute medical care to rehabilitation or chronic-condition management.