Survey Reveals Data Analytics as Major Focus but Confusion Point for Healthcare IT Leaders

PITTSBURGH,PA – April 28, 2015 /PRNewswire/ — In the third annual Health IT Industry Outlook Survey conducted by Stoltenberg Consulting Inc., a leading healthcare information technology (HIT) consulting firm, a majority of respondents (41 percent) pointed to data analytics and business intelligence as the biggest topic in health IT for 2015. However, most (51 percent) showed confusion toward what healthcare data to actually collect and how much. The survey was conducted at the 2015 Health Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) annual conference held recently in Chicago, Illinois.

“Organizations feel they need to jump on the big data bandwagon, yet they approach this emerging issue reactively versus proactively,” Shane Pilcher, vice president of Stoltenberg Consulting, said. “Healthcare IT leaders should instead focus on collecting smart healthcare data, monitoring what data they’re saving and concentrating on the quality, quantify and validity of data needed to answer future questions for organizations.”

Completed by project managers, CIOs, IT directors and consultants, the survey also revealed that a majority (34 percent) felt that the lack of buy-in across their healthcare organizations was the largest barrier to IT initiatives, including data analytics and achieving meaningful use.

“Ultimately data analytics is only as good as the data being analyzed. Therefore, adoption is critical among all users along the data collection pathway,” Pilcher said. “Identifying early wins in decreasing cost of care and increasing overall patient outcomes is essential to developing confidence and buy-in for an organization’s data analytics program.

For a complete look at the survey results, please click here or visit www.stoltenberg.com.