Piloting new digital health tools will soon be as easy as downloading a smartphone app, at least if Graphite Health has anything to say about it.
Intermountain Healthcare, Presbyterian Healthcare Services, and SSM Health recently announced the launch of Graphite Health, a member-led nonprofit aiming to create an interoperable data platform that will allow health systems to adopt new technologies “as easily as anyone can download an app from an app store to a smartphone.”
Graphite Health is modeled on another Intermountain-owned venture called CivicaRx, which works to make generic medications broadly accessible, and is seeking to build an open marketplace for digital health tools.
- Graphite Health Platform – To support the development of plug-and-play applications, Graphite Health is creating a common data language (built on the FHIR framework) that will allow providers to implement tools without unique customizations.
- Graphite Health Marketplace – The marketplace will serve as a single location for innovators to distribute their solutions at scale, while giving providers a way to save months (if not years) of security and integration reviews when piloting a new tool.
In addition to the founding health systems, Graphite Health is planning on bringing additional organizations into the coalition over the coming months, with a target of reaching over 40m lives covered.
Industry Impact
Unlike current health marketplaces such as Epic’s App Orchard, Graphite Health’s nonprofit structure allows its marketplace to function as a “health utility,” serving members without the additional provisions of alternatives. If the company succeeds in its vision of streamlining interoperability, an elusive goal for many that have attempted, it will help facilitate the adoption of new tools while bringing operational efficiency to health systems.
