CiLN Award finalist - Karl Cole

PROFILE – Karl Cole, Chief Clinical Information Officer, healthAlliance

Judge’s comment

“Karl is a strong advocate for data liquidity and interoperability which give him a unique perspective on digital projects. Working across regions and multiple stakeholders, Karl has demonstrated strategic acuity and an ability to ensure technical solutions align with real world clinical implications. This last year Karl has enabled the rapid digitisation of healthcare services across his region in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.”

Nominator quote

“The question Karl always asks is: "how can we improve the patient and clinician experience?" The answer is always grounded in clinical informatics, focusing on the use of data and information to create a joined-up region and in turn, a better patient experience.”

Profile

Karl leads two key programmes of work at healthAlliance, for which he provides leadership to ensure the technical solutions align with real-world clinical implications. 

One is the Regional Clinical Portal, a patient-centric digital dashboard where clinicians can view health information and track patient journeys. 

The second programme is Data Sharing & Interoperability, which links information systems to improve data sharing across the Northern region.

Impact on interoperability

The projects that Karl and his clinical informatics team at healthAlliance champion are pivotal in helping clinicians and healthcare workers across the region to work more efficiently and effectively through improved interoperability.

Your Health Summary allows clinicians at more than 100 GP practices to securely share core patient information.

During the Your Health Summary project, Karl’s insight, expertise, and clinical leadership was critical in not only the practical current uses of the system, but also its future potential capabilities to improve health outcomes. 

While he understands the technical level of new systems and their power to solve problems, his mind is always at the strategic level in terms of how projects fit into the wider objectives of 'one person, one whānau, one region, one record'.

Covid response

Over the last year, Karl has been instrumental in fast-tracking a number of projects needed for the rapid digitisation of healthcare services during the region's Covid response. 

As part of his role on the Northern Region Health System Design Council (HSDC), he and the group met daily to help speed up the process to create paperless clinics. 

The Regional Telehealth Service was established in 2018 and during 2020 it was expanded exponentially to support the region's new ways of working, including; rapid uptake of virtual consults, e-referrals and allowing for the sharing of patient information from GP patient management systems. 

Outpatient paperless prescriptions went live at all four Northern region DHBs in June 2020, replacing what was largely a paper and fax-based process. 

They also recognised early on the need for electronic testing processes for Covid-19 as opposed to traditional fax-based means. Together, they came up with an efficient digital e-referral system for testing that is still proving its worth today.

Inspiring and leading

One of Karl's strengths is to engage clinicians and consumers at the early stages of health IT projects, creating a collaborative, co-design approach that focuses on making the patient journey more seamless. 

Through his experience and mana, Karl provides inspiration and leadership. His expertise keeps teams firmly focused on the customer, be they clinicians, administrators or health consumers.

He works hard to obtain buy-in from the region about the power of data and clinical informatics and how it can help to transform people's lives. 

He has led the healthAlliance CCIO team in developing the next generation of clinical informaticians, offering placements for high-performing tertiary students and mentoring up-and-coming health professionals with an interest in clinical informatics careers. 

His influence is not just confined to the Northern DHB environment, but also to the people of South Auckland that he serves from his local community GP practice in Papatoetoe.

This profile is an edited version of the nomination/s.

Vote for the winner of the 2021 Clinical Informatics Leadership Award here.

Read more CiLN Award 2021 finalist profiles:

Steve Earnshaw
Ruth Large

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