Intersectoral Networking in Healthcare

Even before the German government passed an investment program worth billions of euros in 2020, known as the Hospital Future Act (KHZG), UNITY and the participants in this consortium had already set themselves the task of digitalizing the region of East Westphalia-Lippe (OWL) in 2018 through an unprecedented project in the healthcare sector.

As a pioneer in the field of cross-organizational digital transformation, the consortium was able to secure over €4.96 million in funding, in addition to €1.62 million that was contributed by the consortium partners. This set an example for the implementation of intersectoral networking in German healthcare in the region of East Westphalia-Lippe and serves as a model for other regions.

To realize this, a digital platform was designed that links the five acute care hospitals in the region and more than 150 physicians in private practice from the professional association ‘Practice Network Paderborn’ (Praxisnetz Paderborn) and enables the secure exchange of patients’ health information according to international standards (IHE). For this purpose, four concrete use cases were initially defined by the project consortium and implemented into the technical solution: the digital transmission of medical reports, the digital medication plan, the digital transmission of image data as well as digital referrals. The use cases were implemented across all medical facilities – always considering the patient‘s consent and the highest data protection standards.

In addition, further use cases along the entire supply chain were defined during the project. To support prevention, patients‘ medical documents, such as vaccine and maternity records or blood type identification cards, can be uploaded and used across facilities. Furthermore, radiology practices are already integrated. Moreover, the patient’s follow-up care can be facilitated by the prospective integration of rehabilitation or nursing facilities. The Digital Health Platform OWL will not only increase the efficiency of the participating service providers, but also improve the quality of healthcare for citizens.