Bringing like-minded IT companies together to increase their innovative strength and thus accelerate the transition to digital care. That is the goal of the Health Cloud Initiative (HCI). To give this joint approach an extra boost, HCI has entered into a partnership with Dutch Health Hub. Against the backdrop of the health tech event Zorg & ICT, the two parties sealed the collaboration on 13 June.
The underlying goal of HCI is to free up healthcare professionals as much as possible for their actual work. “In the Netherlands, healthcare providers spend an average of 30 percent of their time on administration, while the pressure on healthcare is increasing,” says initiator and general manager Eric de Boer.
Uniform software
“Everyone feels the pressure of continuously changing laws and regulations. Within Health Cloud Initiative, the main objective is to make healthcare uncomplicated by means of uniform software and at the same time minimize administrative burdens. In this way, we can help to shorten waiting lists in healthcare and enable healthcare providers to pay more attention to the treatment of the patient. In this way, we improve healthcare in the Netherlands.”
The companies operating under the HCI flag currently serve more than 20.000 healthcare providers, mainly in the paramedical field and mental health care. De Boer expects to grow to 40.000 healthcare providers in the foreseeable future. In addition, HCI is expanding its activities to adjacent healthcare fields, such as prevention and e-Health. HCI is also seeking collaboration with PGO suppliers.
Cloud-based solutions
As the name suggests, HCI opts for cloud-based solutions. According to De Boer, the cloud not only offers scale and flexibility, but also contributes to better data exchange. “Because data is no longer stored locally, but in the cloud, you can in principle make data available directly,” says De Boer. “By making that data available again in a patient portal or PGO, you involve the patient in his treatment and also stimulate therapy compliance.”