Africa’s first private healthcare information exchange set to drive health revolution

CareConnect, a non-profit organisation founded by three of the largest medical insurance administrators and three of the largest hospital groups in South Africa, has selected InterSystems, a global leader in IT platforms for health, business and government applications, to implement HealthShare Unified Care Record and HealthShare Patient Index to revolutionise the local healthcare system by providing unified access to vital patient information for the first time.

HealthShare lets those in the medical industry overcome the challenges of decentralised data by consolidating information across multiple stakeholders when requested. The system delivers relevant data from across an application and business ecosystem, facilitating timely action through real-time communication.

"This is the first substantial health data exchange of its kind in Africa and will dramatically improve South African patient care in the future. After an extensive procurement process by CareConnect, InterSystems was selected as the preferred technology provider thanks to its proven capabilities in Europe, especially the UK, and the US," said Henry Adams, sales manager for InterSystems South Africa.

Dr Burnett Biddulph, CEO of CareConnect, welcomes the partnership and believes that CareConnect will benefit from the InterSystems track record of providing HIE services in various regions around the world.

"We're excited to be partnering with a company that has had global experience in developing health information exchanges," he said.

Traditionally, healthcare in South Africa has been very fragmented due to limited clinical information between – and among – payers and providers. The CareConnect initiative will change that.

"We believe that the CareConnect HIE will usher in a new era for South Africa's health system by transforming the healthcare experience for the patient and the health professional," Biddulph said.

To date, InterSystems has partnered with some of the largest HIEs in the US and UK to serve as the underlying technology behind these healthcare networks.