InterSystems OMOP is a managed solution that simplifies the transformation of clinical data from FHIR format into the OMOP common data model, enabling researchers to access high-quality real-world data efficiently. It supports incremental data refresh, robust error monitoring, and evolving standards compliance, helping clinical researchers focus on analytics and evidence generation without technical hurdles.
In the evolving landscape of clinical research, access to high-quality real-world data is crucial for understanding patient journeys, treatments, and outcomes. InterSystems OMOP offers a powerful solution to transform clinical data from the FHIR standard into the OMOP common data model, streamlining data integration and enhancing research capabilities.
Derek Robinson, a senior technical online course developer at InterSystems, discusses with product expert Chi Lee the value of InterSystems OMOP, its prerequisites, and a demonstration of how it transforms FHIR data into OMOP format.
InterSystems OMOP is a managed solution designed to help researchers gather real-world data from electronic health records (EHRs) and other clinical sources. Real-world data is increasingly important as clinical studies require comprehensive clinical data to analyze patient journeys, treatments, and outcomes.
Traditionally, converting data into the OMOP common data model has been tedious, technically challenging, and costly. Many clinical sites lack the expertise to perform this conversion, causing delays and limiting data availability, which can introduce bias.
InterSystems OMOP simplifies this process by enabling easier and faster transformation of EHR data into OMOP format. This allows clinical studies to access more datasets quickly and provides researchers with easier access to valuable data.
The primary prerequisite for using InterSystems OMOP is having a reliable clinical data source that provides data in the FHIR format. FHIR (Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources) is a healthcare data standard mandated by various government agencies in the US, Europe, and beyond for sharing clinical data.
The clinical system could be an EHR or a clinical repository that supports FHIR standard APIs. InterSystems OMOP focuses on transforming this FHIR data into the OMOP common data model.
InterSystems OMOP is offered as a managed service, meaning research teams do not need to set up infrastructure themselves. The managed services team handles onboarding, deployment, and configuration.
Deployments include several services such as the transformation pipeline, which extracts data from FHIR sources and transforms it into the OMOP repository. Cloud computing resources are allocated to handle the required volume and performance.
The solution supports various cloud providers, including hyperscalers like AWS. For example, AWS S3 buckets can be used to store source FHIR data files and terminology mapping files.
A terminology bucket stores mapping files that translate local codes into standard codes. Tools are provided to uncover data quality issues and guide users in adding necessary local code mappings.
The transformation pipeline includes a metrics dashboard where users can monitor transformation jobs. Key data points include the number of patients, resources processed, processing time, and error status.
Errors such as unrecognized race or ethnicity codes are flagged, and detailed reports help users identify and resolve issues. The system also tracks ingestion errors and warnings, providing utilities to search and verify data transformations.
This transparency and actionable error reporting make it easier for researchers to maintain high data quality and understand the transformation process.
Data quality is a top concern in the OMOP user community globally. InterSystems OMOP addresses this by providing built-in data quality checks related to FHIR data transformation.
The solution also supports incremental data refreshes by processing only new or updated patient data bundles. This enables daily updates to the OMOP repository, facilitating timely trial recruitment and quality monitoring.
InterSystems OMOP currently supports OMOP version 5.4 and is prepared to handle future versions such as 5.5. The transformation pipeline evolves with the FHIR standard, ensuring compatibility with new data types and definitions.
Managed services handle upgrades and enhancements, allowing researchers to focus on data analytics, real-world evidence generation, and AI applications without worrying about technical maintenance.
To maximize the benefits of InterSystems OMOP, organizations should ensure robust and accessible FHIR capabilities within their hospital or clinical systems. Understanding the available FHIR services and how to generate bulk FHIR data is essential.
InterSystems also offers additional technology to assist with leading EHRs in generating FHIR data.
A shift in mindset is recommended—from traditional data warehouses to leveraging FHIR as a standard data source. Researchers should become familiar with FHIR capabilities and collaborate with clinical and IT departments to align on FHIR strategies and roadmaps.
As more organizations and agencies adopt the FHIR standard, this approach will unlock new opportunities for clinical research and care.
InterSystems OMOP provides a streamlined, managed solution for transforming FHIR clinical data into the OMOP common data model. By simplifying data integration, enhancing data quality monitoring, and supporting evolving standards, it empowers clinical researchers to access and analyze real-world data efficiently.
This solution reduces technical barriers, accelerates study start times, and opens new possibilities for clinical research and patient care. As the healthcare industry increasingly adopts FHIR, InterSystems OMOP stands as a valuable tool for unlocking the full potential of clinical data.
Thank you to Chi Lee for sharing insights on InterSystems OMOP and its role in transforming clinical research data.
