Epic has announced the release of new capabilities allowing app developers to build “connectors” linking other apps to Epic, and to support surfacing information stored elsewhere without switching between apps or portals.
These connectors will reportedly allow information and complete tasks within other apps to be surfaced in Epic, and also let Epic complete tasks in other apps.
Epic notes the connectors “will work with Emmie, Art (Epic AI for clinicians), and Penny (Epic AI for revenue cycle and operational teams), and custom AI that healthcare organisations create in Agent Factory”.
Johnston Thayer, vice president of health informatics at Epic, said: “Emmie could use a Connector to bring hospital wayfinding instructions to the patient. For the surgical team, Epic could check a medical equipment app to find information about assistive device availability, and help the care team bring together the devices needed for the patient’s recovery.”
Connectors created by developers are expected to be available from the Epic Showroom from March 2027, with the company stating that information will be available about capabilities and what kind of information they can read to help inform decision making on which to enable.
Companies commenting on the new functionality include healthcare logistics provider VPL, whose chief strategy and product officer Derrek Seif notes: “The question every patient has is ‘when will my medication arrive?’ With VPLRx connected to Epic, a care team can now answer with confidence. Logistics is complicated. But we’ve made it easier by combining decades of data with real-time inputs to automate and optimise the shipping decision, so patients leave the visit knowing exactly when their medication will arrive.”
Availity CEO Russ Thomas points to the “exciting opportunity” offered for connecting intelligence and information, adding: “From coverage to prior authorisation to claims management, we see enormous potential to reduce administrative complexity, accelerate the flow of information, and help healthcare teams focus more of their time on patients.”
Wider trend: EPR
HTN was joined by a fantastic panel including Shanker Vijayadeva, GP lead – digital transformation at NHS England (London region); Rosie Gilbert, head of digital programmes at Sherwood Forest Hospitals; Tom Stocker, CHIO and EPR advisor; and Jatinder Punia, director of sales at Nervecentre, to discuss the future of EPRs. Our panel considered the road ahead in the short, medium, and long term; the potential for AI, AVT, and automation; emerging opportunities; and practical realities of EPR programmes on the ground.
King’s College Hospital and Guy’s and St Thomas’ have reported savings of £4.1 million from their combined use of the Epic EPR system. The trusts point to the avoidance of 3.3 million duplicate or repeat tests, saving up to 275,000 hours of nursing and phlebotomy time since 2023. Automated alerts generated when clinicians order repeat tests sooner than recommended by national and Royal College guidelines, are credited with preventing 384,000 tests and saving £3.6 million. Similar alerts on blood transfusion orders have also saved the trusts. The same approach will now be applied across imaging, with hopes of similarly helping to avoid repeated scans.
BSW Hospitals Group, formed of Royal United Hospitals Bath, Great Western Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, and Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust, has shared progress toward the 2026 go-live of its shared EPR, highlighting appointments to senior leadership positions, and work to date on benefits realisation and process mapping. The group has moved to appoint Jonathan Hinchliffe, interim chief transformation and innovation officer, as EPR senior responsible officer. “Delivering an integrated Electronic Patient Record across Great Western Hospitals, Salisbury Foundation Trust and Royal United Hospitals presents a unique and first of type opportunity to transform the way we provide care for our patients,” Jonathan said. “With an integrated EPR we can operate as a group and better meet the needs of our patients, service users and colleagues.”
