Onboarding of HIEs in the GCC – the physician’s perspective

By Liam On Oct 25, 2023

Key areas in the GCC are making progress in implementing their health information exchange (HIE) systems, a topic that will be addressed in more detail in the near future. 6th GCC eHealth Workforce Development Conference (eHWDC 2023).

The event, scheduled from October 31 to November 2, 2023 at the Jumeirah Emirates Towers, will focus on critical digital health topics, with a particular emphasis on the research of various HIEs and their clinical onboarding.

But where do the most important markets currently stand?

In the United Arab Emirates, Abu Dhabi’s HIE, Malaffi, will eventually fully combine data with Dubai’s Nabidh under the country’s national Riayati program.

Earlier this year, Ali Juma Alajme, then Director of Digital Health at the UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention, told HIMSS that the country is moving towards offering a unified health record through a national HIE.

“It’s for better health care services and better outcomes for the community,” he said.

Saudi Arabia is set to launch part of the National Platform for Health and Insurance Exchange Services (NPHIES) before the end of the year.

Dr. Ahmed Balkhair is an advisor to the Saudi National Health Information Center. He is one of the region’s prominent healthcare figures appearing at eHWDC 2023.

Before the event, Dr. Balkhair that NPHIES is a ‘dream project’ for the Saudi healthcare sector.

“This project is a major achievement, a dream for us,” he says. “It is a unique project of its kind because for the first time (we will see both) the exchange of clinical and financial data is centrally managed by the NPHIES platform across the country, giving doctors a comprehensive 360-degree view of every patient to get. The HIE will undoubtedly contribute to more efficient healthcare management, reducing costs and time, while increasing patient satisfaction, safety and sustainability.”

While a simpler HIE is currently in operation in Qatar between two of the country’s largest healthcare organizations, Hamad Medical Corporation and Sidra Medicine, there are plans to launch a national HIE in the coming months. The Qatar Health Information Exchange (QHIE), operated by the Ministry of Health, is expected to connect both public and private healthcare institutions.

Another well-known figure in digital health attending eHWDC 2023 is the Chief Medical Informatics Officer and Senior Attending Physician of Emergency Medicine at Sidra Medicine, Dr. Khalid Alyafei. He shares the sentiments of Dr. Balkahir and believes that a national HIE would be beneficial for the nation.

“The QHIE will add a lot of value; it greatly benefits healthcare by providing doctors with comprehensive patient information such as previous visits, complaints, treatments, medications, allergies and procedures performed, ensuring faster and safer care delivery,” he says. “The prospect of a national-level HIE that can exchange images and implement e-prescriptions in the future is promising.”

Dr. Balkhair also believes that Saudi NPHIES will significantly enhance a physician’s ability to provide superior care, as well as improve billing processes.

“A unified record gives a physician a holistic view of a patient’s care journey, streamlining processes such as insurance approvals,” he explains. “This system gives the physician access to data from various sources, allowing for more informed decision-making. The system will also ensure that all relevant processes and financial transactions run smoothly, ultimately making the doctor’s work more efficient and improving quality, speed, safety and patient satisfaction.”

HERE CHALLENGES

As with any implementation of new technology, HIE adoption comes with a number of challenges, both physicians agree.

For Dr. Balkhair, the first hurdle is the sheer volume of data that needs to be managed.

“Challenges are inherent in implementing such systems. In some countries, a major challenge is the sheer amount of data collected,” he explains. “In clinical settings, clinicians may encounter a flood of results from different sources; So it may be necessary to introduce pop-up visual interface agents to help physicians identify the latest patient results or use AI as a co-pilot to support the physician in their decision-making process.”

A second challenge is to get providers enthusiastic about using it.

“The system should be user-friendly and healthcare organizations could be encouraged to implement it efficiently,” continues Dr. Balkhair. “Initial users may face a number of challenges, which can be addressed through a soft launch, but it is important to recognize that such projects are often time-consuming and budget-intensive.”

For Dr. Alyafei, the quality of patient registration is also a concern.

“An HIE relies heavily on automated matching, which looks for specific criteria such as the Qatar Identity (QID) number, full name and date of birth,” he says. “If errors occur during the registration process, such as missing or incorrect information, this can lead to problems with the automated matching.”

A final consideration organizations need to make, Dr. Alyafei adds, is “technical failure.”

“This could include system outages or power outages; we are constantly developing to anticipate and address future challenges.”

AI INSIDE HIEs

The role of artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare has been a topic of much discussion this year. And its use within HIEs should not be underestimated, says Dr. Balkhair, who has already highlighted its role as a co-pilot.

“The vast amount of data from an HIE can be significantly streamlined with the help of AI. It can serve as a valuable co-pilot for physicians and provide clinical support,” he says. “AI can also benefit financial systems by improving fraud protection and supporting policymakers in working with different stakeholders.”

INFLUENCE ON THE FUTURE OF HEALTHCARE

In the GCC, especially within the UAE, KSA and Qatar, both precision medicine and value-based healthcare are considered of great importance in shaping the future of healthcare in the region.

Currently, Qatar is implementing a national newborn screening program that checks for potential problems such as metabolic and endocrine diseases.

Centralizing this information through the QHIE will shape precision medicine in the future, Dr. Alyafei predicts.

“A GP who has access to a family’s genome allows him to provide comprehensive guidance and better treat the patient,” he says. “National newborn screening includes metabolic and genetic screening, and this information can help us predict future health problems and enable early intervention. By having this centralized, we can detect and manage earlier and reduce the number of emergencies.”

HIE data will also help shape future medical programs in Saudi Arabia, says Dr. Balkhair.

“When we merge data from different sources – clinical, socio-economic, genomic, environmental and mental health data – we can better understand how precision medicine can be supported in clinical services and gain insights into public health trends and changes “, he says. say. “It will also support the shift to value-based healthcare services, focusing on outcomes rather than just outputs.

“The proliferation of data from sources like our HIE has the potential to transform the entire healthcare landscape in the region.”