How to Enhance Analytics Governance for Healthcare Leaders

Healthcare leaders have much to gain from a rigorous analysis of the information they gather about patients, services, and finances. But imposing order on the deluge of data is difficult. "Analytics governance" has emerged as a possible solution.

This article delves into how analytics governance principles can be applied in the healthcare industry, with a specific focus on structured data use, simplified compliance, better decision-making, and the application of analytics platforms.

Structured Use of Healthcare Data
The concept is founded on instituting clear rules for how medical data are collected, stored, safeguarded, and analyzed. Robust procedures should be established at every link in the chain: from defining policies that ensure consistency and accuracy, to integrating and cleansing fragmented data sets, to controlling who can access sensitive records. Advanced analytical techniques, including artificial intelligence (AI), can then be brought to bear on the well-structured information.

Simplified Compliance for Healthcare Regulations

Implementing analytics governance is a challenge, however. The thicket of regulations in the health sector is a particular hurdle; organizations must institute rigid protocols for activities like encryption and audit trails from the outset. Training staff in best practices for data stewardship is another imperative.

Better Decision-Making
The benefits could be considerable. With reliable data exploited to their full potential, healthcare organizations can provide better-informed treatment while streamlining operations—for example, by optimizing the billing cycle to reduce revenue leakage. Administrators will be better placed to identify risks and areas for improvement. Data protection and compliance with privacy laws will also be easier to uphold.

Applying Analytics Platform Solution

One possible solution would be an analytics platform tailored to the needs of healthcare providers. It offers sophisticated tools for activities like pre-built reports, and certifying reports to be used in compliance monitoring. Keeping a tight rein on metadata is another core function.

Whether they turn to specialist providers or craft governance regimes themselves, health organizations can ill afford to neglect the issue. In an era of accelerating digital transformation, maintaining control of data is vital. Those unable to marshal their information resources effectively will struggle to realize their potential.