Cost savings and answers to labour shortage through more efficient use of social welfare and healthcare data

The use of social welfare and healthcare data is already relatively efficient in Finland. However, there are still some bottlenecks in the flow and usability of data that prevent its most optimal use.

More efficient use of social welfare and healthcare data would entail cost savings and improve the quality of care. A recent study done by the Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra examines the measures for developing the use of social welfare and healthcare data and future goals for data mobility and usability.

Social welfare and healthcare data flows mainly within the organisation providing care, but it should also flow more efficiently between different service providers, for example via national data system services. The poor flow of social welfare and healthcare data between different actors, such as the healthcare centre and the emergency department, or between different wellbeing services counties, is one of the major challenges right now. Health records are saved in different systems, often in a format that makes data portability impossible.

Sitra’s study on social welfare and healthcare data

Sitra released its study “The social welfare and healthcare system powered by data” (in Finnish) in May 2023. The study explores the concept of social welfare and healthcare data, the bottlenecks in the usability and flow of the data as well as guidelines for the future. It is hoped that more efficient and harmonised use of social welfare and healthcare data will alleviate the incurring of debt in the public sector as well as ease the growing labour shortage in the healthcare sector. The study includes seven proposals for measures to achieve considerable cost savings, increase the time spent by healthcare professionals on care work and provide better health services.

Challenges related to the usability and flow of social welfare and healthcare data

The Sitra study reveals that high-quality, easily accessible social welfare and healthcare data would streamline the work of social welfare and health service providers. Streamlining the work requires effortlessly usable, mobile social welfare and healthcare data.

In Finland, data flows from one service provider to another mostly via national Kanta services, and the processing of data is restricted by the provisions of the Act on the Status and Rights of Patients and the Act on the Electronic Processing of Client Data in Healthcare and Social Welfare. According to the Sitra study, data transfer in line with the current model will not be sufficient for promoting optimised or more efficient care. Another challenge is that the health records in the Kanta services are scattered across various documents and professionals have to refer to multiple sources to gain a comprehensive understanding of the patient’s situation.

The challenges related to the usability and flow of social welfare and healthcare data are also connected to the challenges in decision-making. When the data is saved in different systems and there is no clear overview, decision-making gets complicated. Social welfare and healthcare data may also be inaccurate, resulting in incorrect treatment decisions.

The future goal is for social welfare and healthcare data to flow efficiently between actors inside the wellbeing services county and also from one wellbeing services county to another. Another long-term goal is to promote data flow between EU Member States as well.

Seven recommendations for reforming the use of social welfare and healthcare data

Sitra has prepared seven proposals for social welfare and healthcare to reach the aforementioned goals:

1. People must have easier access to real-time data about themselves.
2. The principle of “collect and record easily once, use often” should be introduced.
3. The quality of social welfare and healthcare data must be improved.
4. Individual-centric, international data models must be implemented.
5. Legislation should enable the use of AI and make it mandatory.
6. The national steering model needs to be reformed.
7. Funding should be directed towards implementing the recommendations.

The Sitra study estimates that implementing the aforementioned recommendations would result in cost savings of EUR 770 million a year in Finnish social welfare and healthcare services. It could also free up much of the work input of nurses and doctors, which could then be more efficiently directed towards care work, thus easing the labour shortage. More efficient use of data would also improve the quality of care, enabling more personalised and preventive healthcare.

The future goals related to social welfare and healthcare data and Sitra’s proposals are commendable. They have been formatted at a high level and their implementation will require extensive legislative and social changes. The structured documentation of data in a compatible format also needs further development. Solutions that can be connected to various EHR systems, such as the Medanets app, contribute to promoting the compatibility and mobility of data. Within organisations, the use of the Medanets app already supports the principle of “collect and record easily once, use often”.

Sources:

The Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra 2023: The social welfare and healthcare system powered by data (in Finnish)

The Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra 2023: Data offers a chance to save hundreds of millions of euros in social welfare and healthcare spending – Sitra’s recommendations for improving efficiency

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