Developing clinical informatics to support direct care and population health management: the VIEWER story

TL;DR

The paper presents VIEWER, a clinical informatics platform that improves access to unstructured EHR data in mental health to support personalized care and population health management, demonstrating its implementation in a UK NHS trust.

Contribution

Introduction of VIEWER, a novel informatics platform that enhances utilization of unstructured mental health EHR data for better clinical and population health outcomes.

Findings

Improved data accessibility for clinicians.

Enhanced decision-making and resource allocation.

Successful pilot implementation within a UK NHS trust.

Abstract

Electronic health records (EHRs) provide comprehensive patient data which could be better used to enhance informed decision-making, resource allocation, and coordinated care, thereby optimising healthcare delivery. However, in mental healthcare, critical information, such as on risk factors, precipitants, and treatment responses, is often embedded in unstructured text, limiting the ability to automate at scale measures to identify and prioritise local populations and patients, which potentially hinders timely prevention and intervention. We describe the development and proof-of-concept implementation of VIEWER, a clinical informatics platform designed to enhance direct patient care and population health management by improving the accessibility and usability of EHR data. We further outline strategies that were employed in this work to foster informatics innovation through interdisciplinary and cross-organisational collaboration to support integrated, personalised care, and detail how these advancements were piloted and implemented within a large UK mental health National Health Service Foundation Trust to improve patient outcomes at an individual patient, clinician, clinical team, and organisational level.