To Convert Patient Data Or Not to Convert - Historical Data Will Be More Valuable Than You May Think

Going live on a new computer system without a data conversion, especially in healthcare, is more often the choice than paying the cost and making the effort to convert old information. Many reasons are offered to persuade or justify this decision. In the end, clinicians and providers frequently (perhaps secretly) wish their historical data were available in the new system. This is particularly true of clinical system records (EMR or EHR).

Can the old data, once left behind, still be recovered and made useful again? Maybe.

It costs nothing or very little to ask and often the answer can be a qualified yes. The value of the old information as a measure against the cost of the conversion depends on several things: 1.quality and format of the data in the old system; 2. data integrity parameters of the new system; 3. skill of the conversion team.

ADDING data to an existing, in-production system can be a challenge and if not done correctly can create retrieval issues and possibly data integrity problems.

The two key factors governing the challenge of loading data into a live database are: 1. accurately matching the patient ID; 2. knowing how to add historical information into a live database so that it does not compromise a patient's current information. Fortunately these obstacles can often be overcome and a clean migration delivered.

There are at least two options for consideration:

The most straight forward method is to create images of the old data, such as pdfs, and load them into the image folder(s) and associated directory in the new system. This has the obvious limitation of the ease of data retrieval. Also, none of the information is digitized so it cannot be computerized into averages, graphic representation or similar uses.

A more useful transfer of data is to add it to the new system in digital format. The results of this choice are governed first by the format of the data in the old system. Digital data can be converted into digital fields if adequate integrity rules were adhered to in the old system. Non-digital data will come over to the new system in a non-digital format.

The need for data migration is growing as the complexity of patient medical information increases, interrelationships among patient and providers broadens, and the value of historical data in patient care becomes more important in treating current illnesses. When transitioning to a new computer system, data can no longer be casually left behind.