The electronic health record giant Epic will use the InterSystems IRIS Data Platform beginning with the August release of its EHR, the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based technology provider announced this week.

Using the IRIS platform will allow Epic customers access to larger datasets and provide enhancements in asynchronous mirroring, according to InterSystems.

"InterSystems conducted rigorous testing with Epic across each stage of the development process to ensure a smooth transition to InterSystems IRIS and to maintain the highest level of performance for Epic’s customers," said Scott Gnau, vice president of data platforms at InterSystems, in a press release.

"One of our key priorities throughout the entire process was to ensure that IRIS would be able to service applications well into the future and accommodate customers’ long-term scalability requirements," Gnau added.

WHY IT MATTERS

The IRIS data management software platform's features include database management, interoperability, and machine learning and analytics. It allows clients to develop and deploy applications in public and private clouds, with security architecture encrypting data in transit and at rest.

According to the InterSystems website, IRIS is used in thousands of production implementations in "virtually every industry."

Its use cases include concurrent transactions and analytics, rapid data ingestion, high-performance distributed SQL, and interoperability with real-time analytics.

Epic has been using InterSystems technology for more than four decades. It will use the IRIS Data Platform starting with the August release of its EHR, making it generally available to Epic customers.

THE LARGER TREND

Before the novel coronavirus began to spread in earnest across the United States this spring, InterSystems had highlighted its interoperability hub as a way to reduce the time and cost of connecting healthcare organizations. 

Almost eight months later, in a vastly altered healthcare environment, Epic CEO and founder Judy Faulkner said that interoperability and standardized data elements will be key for enacting a robust coronavirus response. 

"Think of it as if you're on the [hospital] ship Comfort and here comes a gurney with the patient. And all you know is the patient's name. You could estimate the age and a few other things, but it's just a body lying there. How do you take good care of that patient?" Faulkner said at HLTH VRTL 2020 this week.

"But if you have interoperability and can you look up all that information about the patient, suddenly you see what's really going to be important to help you treat that patient. To me, it's a huge difference. And that's what interoperability is able to do," she continued.

ON THE RECORD

"InterSystems IRIS has been a strong focus in recent years, with a goal to drive next-generation capabilities into the hands of our partners and users," said Gnau. "We are excited that Epic, one of our longest-standing and most valued partners, has adopted IRIS."

Gnau went on: "We know our continued collaboration will have a positive impact on the delivery of patient care around the world, especially now, when access to clinical data is more important than ever."

Kat Jercich is senior editor of Healthcare IT News.
Twitter: @kjercich
Email: kjercich@himss.org
Healthcare IT News is a HIMSS Media publication.