TORONTO – June 3, 2021 – OnCall Health today introduced an enhanced API (Application Programming Interface) with new functionality that seamlessly integrates its telemedicine solution with a healthcare provider’s existing technology to alleviate interoperability challenges that have long been identified as a concern for the healthcare sector. By connecting healthcare systems, people, and data – including EMR (electronic medical records), CRM (customer relationship management), call centre, website, and other third party systems – the API allows data to flow seamlessly, which reduces administrative redundancies, drives greater efficiency, and enables better patient health outcomes by improving continuity of care. 

At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, many healthcare organizations rushed to implement short-term telemedicine solutions to continue providing care for patients. In April 2020, soon after COVID-19 was declared a pandemic, 95 percent of U.S. health centres used telehealth compared to just 43 percent in 2019(1). Prior to the pandemic, only 4 percent of primary care visits in Canada were conducted virtually but have since increased to 60 percent(2). The consequences of using disparate systems that were deployed to meet the immediate needs of patients – such as video conferencing solutions, charting software, and e-prescription platforms  – are now being felt by healthcare professionals due to a disconnect in patient data. OnCall’s API, which is available to OnCall’s enterprise customers, empowers healthcare organizations to increase interoperability across their IT infrastructure so providers can work without restrictions.

“During the pandemic, we’ve seen customers invest in multiple solutions for different needs across the patient journey, resulting in even more disparate systems and disconnected data. Our API is designed to connect these systems and help reduce operational inefficiencies across healthcare organizations, especially as telemedicine operations become more complex with more platforms and systems available,” says Nicholas Chepesiuk, CEO of OnCall Health. “With our API, healthcare providers can manage patients and their care in a more efficient way with the information they need at their fingertips. They no longer have to “swivel chair” or repeat tasks to ensure all their systems have the same patient information. With a connected system, providers can be more proactive in their treatment and improve continuity of care across their organization.”