In Salesforce Health Cloud, modeling patients effectively is crucial for maintaining accurate and comprehensive healthcare records. For large provider systems, the recommended approach is to utilize Person Accounts to represent individual patients.
Understanding Person Accounts:
A Person Account in Salesforce is a special type of account that combines the characteristics of both an Account and a Contact into a single record. This structure is particularly beneficial in healthcare settings where the patient is both the individual receiving care (Contact) and the primary account holder (Account).
Advantages of Using Person Accounts in Health Cloud:
Unified Patient Representation:
Person Accounts provide a consolidated view of patient information, eliminating the need to manage separate Account and Contact records for the same individual.
Alignment with Healthcare Data Models:
Salesforce Health Cloud's data model is designed to work seamlessly with Person Accounts, ensuring compatibility with healthcare standards like FHIR (Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources). This alignment facilitates interoperability with Electronic Health Record (EHR) systems and other healthcare applications.
Enhanced Data Management:
With Person Accounts, healthcare providers can efficiently manage patient demographics, contact information, medical history, and other critical data within a single record, streamlining administrative processes and improving data accuracy.
Implementation Considerations:
Enabling Person Accounts:
Person Accounts must be enabled in your Salesforce org. This process is irreversible and should be carefully planned. Consult Salesforce documentation and consider involving a Salesforce administrator or consultant to ensure proper setup.
Data Migration:
If transitioning from a system that uses separate Account and Contact records, plan for data migration to consolidate existing patient records into Person Accounts.
Customization and Integration:
Ensure that customizations and integrations within your Salesforce org are compatible with Person Accounts. Some third-party applications may require adjustments to work effectively with this data model.
References:
Patient Resource Mapping: Salesforce Health Cloud maps the FHIR Patient resource to Person Accounts, reinforcing the suitability of Person Accounts for patient representation.
Salesforce Developers
Clinical Data Model: Salesforce's Clinical Data Model aligns with FHIR standards and supports the use of Person Accounts for patient data management.
Salesforce Developers
By leveraging Person Accounts, large provider systems can achieve a streamlined and standardized approach to patient data management within Salesforce Health Cloud, enhancing care coordination and supporting interoperability across healthcare platforms.
Submit