Health Informatics
Linking Investment to Value
- Affiliations of the authors: Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee (WWS); University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio (NML)
- Corresdpondence and reprints: William W. Stead, MD, Associate Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs, Eskind Biomedical Library, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, 2209 Garland Avenue, Nashville, TN 37232-8340. e-mail: 〈bill.stead{at}mcmail.vanderbilt.edu〉
- Received 29 April 1999
- Accepted 17 May 1999
Abstract
Informatics and information technology do not appear to be valued by the health industry to the degree that they are in other industries. The agenda for health informatics should be presented so that value to the health system is linked directly to required investment. The agenda should acknowledge the foundation provided by the current health system and the role of financial issues, system impediments, policy, and knowledge in effecting change. The desired outcomes should be compelling, such as improved public health, improved quality as perceived by consumers, and lower costs. Strategies to achieve these outcomes should derive from the differentia of health, opportunities to leverage other efforts, and lessons from successes inside and outside the health industry. Examples might include using logistics to improve quality, mass customization to adapt to individual values, and system thinking to change the game to one that can be won. The justification for the informatics infrastructure of a virtual health care data bank, a national health care knowledge base, and a personal clinical health record flows naturally from these strategies.
Footnotes
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This paper is based on discussions among the fellows of the American College of Medical Informatics (ACMI) during the 1999 ACMI Scientific Symposium, held Feb 12-14, 1999, in Tucson, Arizona.
