About Sun Master Patient Index

Sun Master Patient Index is an enterprise-wide master index application built using the Sun Master Index platform and provides all of the functionality of a Sun master index application. Sun Master Patient Index creates a single, consistent view of all patient data by providing an automatic, common identification process regardless of the location or system from which the data originates. Patient profiles from various locations are cross-referenced using an enterprise-wide unique identifier (EUID) assigned to each profile by Sun Master Patient Index. By creating EUIDs, Sun Master Patient Index can identify many types of participants, such as patients, customers, employees, contacts, and so on.

The identification and demographic information for all patients is centralized in one shared index. Sun Master Patient Index is designed specifically to support scattered business locations and disparate information systems across an enterprise, as well as various applications from multiple vendors. Sun Master Patient Index makes it easy to find information that was previously scattered among multiple systems.

The following topics describe the features and functions of Sun Master Patient Index.

• Features of Sun Master Patient Index

• Functions of the Patient EDM

Features of Sun Master Patient Index

The components of Sun Master Patient Index are highly configurable, allowing the application to be customized for your specific data processing needs. Primary features ofSun Master Patient Index include the following:

• Centralized Information – Sun Master Patient Index maintains a centralized database, enabling the integration of data records throughout the enterprise while allowing local systems to continue operating independently. The index stores copies of local system records and the single best record (SBR), which represents the most accurate and complete data for each patient. This database is the central location of all patient information and identifiers, and it is accessible throughout the enterprise. Records from various systems are cross-referenced using the EUID assigned by Sun Master Patient Index to each patient profile.

• Configurability – Before deploying Sun Master Patient Index, you can customize the components and processing capabilities of the system. The configurable components include:

  • The types of objects to index

  • The types of data stored in Sun Master Patient Index

  • The standardization and match engines to use

  • Matching, standardization, and phonetic conversion rules

  • Survivorship and weighting rules for determining the SBR

  • The types of queries available

  • How queries are blocked, or grouped, for match processing

  • Patient EDM appearance

  • Searches available to the Patient EDM

  • Local ID validation rules

  Cross-referencing – Sun Master Patient Index is a global cross-referencing application, matching profiles across disparate source systems and simplifying the process of sharing data between systems. Sun Master Patient Index uses the local identifiers assigned by your existing systems as a reference, allowing you to maintain your current systems and practices.

• Data Cleansing – Sun Master Patient Index uses configurable matching algorithm logic to uniquely identify patient profiles and to identify duplicate and potential duplicate profiles. Sun Master Patient Index provides the ability to easily merge or resolve duplicates, and can be configured to automatically match profiles that are found to be duplicates of one another.

• Data Updates – Sun Master Patient Index provides the ability to add, update, deactivate, merge, and delete data in the database tables through messages received from external systems or the Patient EDM. Messages received from external systems and the Patient EDM are checked for potential duplicates during processing.

• Updates to External Systems – The Sun Enterprise Service Bus provides the master index application with the ability to publish updated information to external systems, provided the external systems can accept incoming messages. This is handled through a JMS Topic to which the master index application publishes XML messages that contain the updates.

• Identification – Sun Master Patient Index employs configurable probabilistic matching technology. This technology uses a matching algorithm to formulate an effective statistical measure of how closely profiles match. Using a state-of-the-art algorithm in real-time mode and establishing a common method of locating patientprofiles, Sun Master Patient Index consistently and precisely identifies objects within an enterprise.

• Integration – Relying on the Sun Enterprise Service Bus, Sun Master Patient Index provides the power and flexibility to identify, route, and transform data to and from any system or application throughout your business enterprise. It can accept incoming transactions and distribute updates to any external system, providing seamless integration with the systems in your enterprise.

• Matching Algorithm – Sun Master Patient Index is designed to use the Sun Match Engine or a custom matching algorithm to provide a matching probability weight between patient profiles. The Sun Match Engine provides the flexibility to create user-defined matching thresholds, which control how potential duplicates and automatic merges are determined.

• Unique Identifier – Sun Master Patient Index assigns an enterprise-wide unique identifier (EUID) to each object added to the database. The index uses the EUID to cross-reference the local IDs assigned to each patient by the various computer systems throughout the enterprise.

Functions of the Patient EDM

While Sun Master Patient Index cleanses data automatically as it is entered through external system messages or the Patient EDM, there are instances where it cannot be determined automatically whether two patient profiles truly match one another. In these cases, manual review through the Patient EDM is needed to verify the status of the two profiles and then to possibly join two potential duplicate profiles or separate two profiles that were automatically joined. The Patient EDM provides additional functions to help you maintain the data you store. Using the Patient EDM, you can perform the following activities.

• View a Patient’s History – The system provides a complete transaction history of each patient profile by recording all changes to each patient’s data. This allows you to view before and after images of a profile for each change made. The table also records the user ID of the person who made the changes. This history is maintained for both the local system records and the SBR.

• Search for Patient Profiles – Using the Patient EDM, you can search for specific patients or sets of patients. The Patient EDM allows you to perform different types of searches using different combinations of data elements, and returns a list of potential matches to your search criteria. Sun Master Patient Index also parses address components, so you can search for a patient profile by their street address. For certain searches, the results are assigned a matching weight that indicates the probability of a match.

• Maintain Patient Data – The Patient EDM supports all the necessary features for maintaining patient profiles. It allows you to add new profiles; view, update, deactivate, or reactivate existing profiles; and compare profiles for similarities and differences. You can also view each local system record associated with an SBR.

• Compare Patient Data – The Patient EDM allows you to compare two patient profiles in a side-by-side comparison so you can evaluate their differences or similarities. You can also compare different objects within one patient profile in the same comparison view. For example, you can compare the profile’s SBR with a record from System A; or you can compare a profile’s record from System A with its record from System B.

• View and Resolve Potential Duplicates – Using algorithm matching logic,Sun Master Patient Index has the ability to identify potential duplicate profiles and the Patient EDM provides the ability to correct the duplicate profiles. Profiles that are potential duplicates can be viewed online in a side-by-side comparison. Potential duplication is resolved by either merging the profiles in question or removing their potential duplicate flags.

• Merge and Unmerge Profiles – You can compare potential duplicate profiles and then merge the profiles if you find them to be actual duplicates of one another. Using the merge feature, you can determine which profile to retain as the active profile. The Patient EDM also allows you to merge system records between patient profiles and to specify which information from each system record to preserve in the resulting profile. If two patient profiles or system records are merged in error, you can unmerge them, returning the information to the original records. You can also view a history of merges for a profile by viewing its merge tree.

• Add and View Comments – You can add free-text comments to a patient profile or system record to provide additional information about the patient that might not be included in the standard fields.

• Audit Log – The system administrator can specify that a log be maintained of each instance that patient data is accessed from the Patient EDM. This log provides information such as the user ID of the user who accessed the data, the type of action that was performed against the data, and the date and time of access. From the audit log, you can also view a transaction history for each transaction that caused an audit log entry.

• Security – Security is provided through the application server and includes basic access to the database through user login IDs and passwords, as well as access to specific functions and actions of Sun Master Patient Index. Access can be restricted by functions, actions within functions, data element, and user ID.