Data collection empowers the healthcare industry, enabling sophisticated analyses that enhance clinical trials, operational efficiency, and overall patient outcomes. That’s why more and more organizations across the healthcare sector continue to integrate data analytics technologies.
But data by itself is inert. Analysis requires curated collection followed by careful interpretation. Only then can data fulfill its promise to improve patient care. It follows that any organization seeking to benefit from healthcare data needs to leverage it in the right areas and in the right ways.
Here, we narrow our scope to data collected by medical devices and outline three important things that healthcare companies can do to improve patient outcomes.
Determine Valuable Data
The first step to leveraging the data your medical device is collecting is to get in touch with its users—patients and clinicians—for an informational interview. You’ll want to have a very solid understanding of how a device is currently used and the nature of the data it’s currently collecting. With that understanding in hand, you’ll be able to assess the value of the data and formulate its potential use cases within your organization.
There are a number of ways that medical device data might be of benefit to individuals both inside and outside of the healthcare industry. Here are two.
Patient outcomes
Medical devices are sometimes used to monitor vital signs and other important health indicators, enhancing the ability of healthcare workers to mitigate the risk of patient decline.
Data collected by remote patient monitoring is also frequently relied upon for clinical trials, which are increasingly virtual and decentralized. Reliable clinical trials are, of course, a central pillar of the healthcare industry.
Optimal device usage
Medical device data can also shed light on how and where the devices themselves are being used. Location and use rates of medical devices can be calculated and analyzed. That data can be leveraged for efficiency in allocation and maintenance of devices, as well as budgeting for future purchases or development.
Constantly Analyze Results
Having access to data enables organizations to iterate their processes for greater efficiency and better outcomes. Empirically motivated response to medical data impacts healthcare in many areas, including records management, diagnostics, and drug development. The introduction of medical devices has enabled remote patient monitoring, an efficient and streamlined way to get a holistic view of patient health over long time intervals.
However, none of these solutions is available to an organization that is not dedicated to constantly monitoring the data coming in. Proper data analysis, machine learning, in particular, requires that data be in good order, curated to undergo the algorithmic transformations that reveal useful patterns.
Since data plays such an important role in contemporary healthcare, it behooves any serious company to invest in data-related infrastructure. That infrastructure may come in the form of dedicated staff steeped in the art of data collection, curation, and interpretation. It may come in the form of stakeholder meetings targeted toward constructive uses of data for the business. Constant analysis of data is crucial.
Implement a Cloud-Based Data Center
Healthcare, more than many other industries, is data-rich. Healthcare data emerges in a multitude of forms, from imaging to EHRs, to medical device measurements, and more. Collecting, storing, curating, and transforming that data is no small undertaking for business, especially when it comes to personnel and space.
Medical companies can, quite simply, become overwhelmed by the amount and variability of data that they must acquire, extract, aggregate, analyze, and interpret. That’s why it’s imperative for healthcare companies to set up a system that collects and aggregates the data so it’s going to the right end-users.
One solution is to partner with a cloud-based data center provider. Among the many benefits of cloud computing are off-site storage, server, and software capabilities, all of which can help alleviate some pressure for small and mid-sized companies dealing with large amounts of medical device data.
Customize Your Process
At this stage, you may be wondering if custom software is right for your organization. If so, you should strive to work with experts who can create customized software that is capable of managing data derived from medical devices so it can be successfully leveraged to enhance your business.
illumisoft has the industry knowledge and expertise you need to fully understand and use your data to expand market opportunities, all while enhancing patient outcomes.
With years of experience creating and implementing data-related apps and software for organizations across the healthcare sector, illumisoft is known for being communicative and responsive to clients–becoming an extra arm of their team.
Partner with us to harness the power of your medical device data and drive your business into the future.
