CumuluZ outgrows hospital environment

The CumuluZ Coalition, which aims for optimal availability of health data, is growing rapidly. In addition to NVZ, NFU and hospital combines mProve and Santeon, ActiZ, InEen, LHV, NHG and Nederlandse ggz have now joined. This gives the ambition of a healthcare-wide data infrastructure that extends beyond hospitals a considerable boost.

It was the teaching hospitals that took the first steps toward such a national healthcare data infrastructure about two years ago. General hospitals soon joined the initiative. So now primary care (LHV, NHG, InEen), elderly care (ActiZ) and mental health care (the Nederlandse ggz) are following suit.

Separate foundation

By joining forces, CumuluZ manages to unite virtually all parties in the healthcare chain. In addition to broadening its scope, the coalition is also working to increase its administrative clout. To this end, NFU, NVZ and Actiz have established a foundation: CumuluZ Care Data Foundation. The other umbrella organizations will also join the founders' council in the near future.

National Vision and Strategy

The expansion is consistent with the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport's National Vision and Strategy for the Health Information System. One of the pillars of this vision is a National Coverage Network. This should ensure safe and future-proof data exchange between healthcare providers. CumuluZ operates within the National Coverage Network as one of the implementers and focuses on the change from data exchange to data availability.

Available for care

This means that data is not only exchanged, but also made available according to appropriate standards and made almost immediately available for direct care delivery. In other words, data must be secure, accessible and immediately usable for better patient care.

In technical terms, this requires an integration layer, in which data is made available according to appropriate standards. CumuluZ does not want to reinvent the wheel. Co-creation is a key word. Already existing standards, agreement system and generic functions are used as much as possible, as are the infrastructures created by the industry in recent years. "The CumuluZ platform ensures that all health data is system-independent available to healthcare provider and patient," say the initiators on the CumuluZ website.

Powerful action CumuluZ

According to stakeholders, further digitization is badly needed to meet the challenges of the healthcare sector. Recent figures show that double aging and a growing shortage of healthcare personnel are increasing the pressure on the sector faster than expected. This calls for "immediate and strong action," the availability of client and patient data is essential.