HUS

The integration provider is responsible for maintenance, monitoring and further development

HUS, Finland’s largest healthcare provider, is responsible for organizing specialized healthcare in the Uusimaa region and the centralized treatment of several rare and difficult diseases nationwide. The special responsibility area of HUS is home to 2.2 million people, and HUS employs 27,000 people. Its nursing professionals treat nearly 700,000 patients each year.

HUS IT Management is responsible for the maintenance of its information systems. The key parts of the managed system are patient information systems, financial and human resources management systems, and support services systems. In spring 2022, HUS IT Management and Pinja started a joint transition project in which the maintenance, supervision and further development of HUS integration services were transferred to Pinja.

In addition to the definition and implementation of the transition, the project consisted of completing and updating the documentation, and introducing automated monitoring and a Service Desk service. At the beginning of the integration cooperation, the aim was to ensure a smooth and fast transition from the previous service provider to Pinja, and then to ensure reliable maintenance services for HUS, as well as good availability and high-quality further development of Service Desk services well into the future.

– Integration services were previously part of a larger service package, but it was decided to separate them into their own part. One of the reasons we chose Pinja as our partner was our previous cooperation with them. We also appreciate the fact that Pinja’s technical experts are able to provide critical integration services for our industry from Finland, says Miika Nevalainen, Development Manager of the Integration and Coding Services unit of HUS IT Management.

A tight target timetable was set for the transition, which was met. The scale and complexity of the project presented its own challenges: HUS has more than 500 integrations in production, most of which are related to patient information systems. In terms of the volume of communications, we are talking about several million messages per month.

– The transition project was fast-paced, but everything went well, and we have been happy with the cooperation. In my opinion, the crucial factors in the success of the schedule were that both parties were genuinely focused on the project, and that sufficient and competent resources were available. Pinja has taken on the new role well, and they have shown good responsiveness. We also appreciate the fact that Pinjans have trained themselves, says Nevalainen.

Pinja’s integration professionals participated in the HealthShare training organized by integration platform provider InterSystems. Pinja also contributes to the promotion of digitalization and interoperability in the healthcare sector as a member of HL7 Finland association. The association provides a common meeting place for health data users, system providers, and authorities.

Effective integrations contribute to effective car

The importance of integration services in the health and social services sector is fundamentally linked to ensuring a smooth flow of information. Effective integrations enable effective processes and, in turn, effective information flow and care. The integration solutions of HUS, as well as those of the recently launched welfare counties, are subject to the same, uncompromising requirements: they must ensure fast and uninterrupted communication. The solution must also be scalable and yet as simple as possible.

In the partnership between HUS and Pinja, both parties have a shared ultimate goal and guiding star: to support and facilitate care.

– Most of our integrations concern patient information systems, so the flow of information must be reliable, fast and secure, says Miika Nevalainen.

Another important partner is InterSystems, the provider of the HealthShare Health Connect integration platform used by HUS, a global market leader in healthcare integration technology. The solutions developed by the company are used in almost all countries where patient information systems are used.

The tripartite cooperation between HUS, Pinja and InterSystems has worked smoothly. This has been facilitated by a clear division of tasks: HUS IT Management as the client, InterSystems as the integration platform provider, and Pinja as the integration services provider.

– At InterSystems, we only sell software products, we do not provide services. This also prevents conflicts of interest. We believe that our success also depends on the success of our partners, so in this case, for example, our common goal is that the client, HUS, is satisfied, says Anssi Kauppi, Sales Engineer at InterSystems.

– Important factors in smooth cooperation have been, for example, open interaction and raising issues with a low threshold. This has also been based on sufficient resources, regular meetings, and quick response, says Matti Hiitola, who is responsible for the overall integration services of HUS at Pinja.

– Overall, the cooperation with Pinja and InterSystems has been smooth. After the transition, we are now in a more static phase, but of course we are still developing the operating model. The next areas for further development arise from our FHIR FIRST policy, i.e. we aim to do more and more integrations using FHIR technology in the future. Pinja will certainly be heavily involved in this work as well, says Miika Nevalainen of HUS.