Management consulting company Guidehouse announced it is partnering with MobiHealthNews' parent company, the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS), to measure the current state of Missouri's Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) public health information.

The partners will use the HIMSS Digital Health Indicator (DHI) to survey the Missouri DHSS public health-data landscape across the agency, including its divisions, bureaus and local public health authorities.

The DHI measures four dimensions of digital health, including governance and health, predictive analytics, interoperability and person-enabled health. 

It evaluates data governance and security, how well digital health is integrated into workflows, how interoperable health systems are, and pinpoints hidden data exchange issues. 

It explores the availability of advanced predictive analytics across clinical practice and operations, and it evaluates person-enabled health, such as patient portals. 

Additionally, Guidehouse will work with stakeholders throughout Missouri and with DHSS leaders to gather input into the assessment from the appropriate entities and individuals. 

HIMSS will then provide an analysis of Missouri's DHSS to determine where its strengths lie and provide recommendations on where improvements can be made. 

"Enhancing the health of Missouri communities requires a clear understanding of our current digital health maturity landscape," Dr. Josh Wymer, chief health information and data strategy officer at the Missouri DHSS, said in a statement. 

"We look forward to working with Guidehouse and HIMSS to identify strengths and opportunities to inform a comprehensive digital health strategy designed to increase system capacity and improve population health."

THE LARGER TREND

Last year, the National Health Insurance Administration of Taiwan and HIMSS signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to enhance the country's digital health transformation.

The MOU would leverage HIMSS' DHI and Digital Maturity Models to focus on four key areas: population health, digital capacity building, cybersecurity resilience and workforce development.

In 2022, Samsung Medical Center in South Korea secured a top score for the HIMSS Digital Health Indicator, and earlier this year achieved a maximum score of 400 for the DHI.