From Weeks to Hours: How Validic Revolutionized Health Data Integration

In 2013, while leading the development of a new wellness solution at Cerner Corporation, I ran into a challenge that, several years later, changed the course of my career. Our team had successfully integrated Fitbit data into our platform, a process that took our engineers about six weeks to complete. The work went fine, but it highlighted a looming issue.

We had at least 15 more data sources we wanted to connect with, and our engineers estimated that each integration would require similar effort and time as the Fitbit project. The math said 15 sources at 6 weeks of effort each, which meant we were looking at 90 weeks, or nearly two years, of development time just for these integrations. That wasn’t going to work.

So, doing a market scan we found Validic, a game-changing Health IoT platform. What caught my attention was the promise that integrating with Validic would require about the same amount of work as integrating with a single data source, but unlock access to hundreds of devices and apps.

Instead of spending months on individual integrations, we completed a single integration that immediately gave us access to around 300 devices. Fast forward to today, and Validic now supports more than 580 apps and devices.

The time savings alone were monumental, but the advantages of this approach extended far beyond just efficiency. Here are some key benefits we realized:

Scalability: As new devices entered the market, they were often quickly added to Validic's platform, meaning our solution could rapidly expand its compatibility without additional development work.

Standardization: Validic normalized data from various sources, providing a consistent format that simplified our data processing and analysis pipelines.

Resource Allocation: With less time spent on building integrations, maintaining integrations, troubleshooting integrations, our engineering team could focus on differentiating features that set our solution apart in the market.

User Choice: We could offer our users a wide array of device options, catering to diverse preferences and needs without compromising on data quality or user experience.

Future-Proofing: As the health tech landscape evolved, our solution remained relevant and compatible with emerging technologies, all through a single integration point.

Cost-Effectiveness: While there was a cost associated with using Validic, it paled in comparison to the resources required for multiple individual integrations and their ongoing maintenance.

Faster Time-to-Market: By reducing development time, we were able to launch our solution much sooner than originally planned.

Improved Data Quality: Validic's expertise in handling various data sources meant we benefited from their data validation and standardization processes, enhancing the overall quality of data in our system.

The decision to integrate with Validic didn't just save us time; it boosted our product's trajectory and capabilities. It allowed us to create a more robust, flexible, and user-centric wellness solution that could adapt to the rapidly changing health tech landscape.

As health data continues to grow in volume and importance, platforms like Validic play a crucial role in breaking down silos and enabling the seamless flow of information. They empower developers to create more comprehensive and personalized health solutions, ultimately contributing to better health outcomes for users.

I said at the beginning of this post that this decision also changed the course of my career. As they say, I’m not just a client, I’m a member! After getting to know the Validic team for several years as a client and partner, I came to appreciate the Validic team’s can-do attitude and the fact that the technology “just works” (a sad rarity in health IT sometimes), and so in 2018 joined Validic full-time. It’s now been six years and I’m happy to say that it was definitely the best decision I’ve made in my quarter-century working in healthcare. Want to be Validic’s next client or learn more about how to access more than 580+ apps and devices with the work of one integration? Drop us a note at hello@validic.com or request a demo here.