Oracle updates Fusion Cloud suites to aid healthcare firms

Oracle has updated several applications within its various Fusion Cloud suites in order to align them toward supporting use cases for its healthcare enterprise customers.

These updates, which include changes to multiple applications within its Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Human Capital Management (HCM), Enterprise Performance Management (EPM), and Supply Chain and manufacturing (SCM) Fusion Clouds, are expected to help healthcare enterprises unify operations and improve patient care, Oracle said.

In its Fusion Cloud HCM suite, targeted at healthcare enterprises, the company is introducing a new feature, dubbed Oracle Workforce Scheduling and Workforce Labor Optimization, which will connect healthcare enterprises’ data along with electronic health records (EHR) on a single cloud platform. This is designed to help enterprises, especially hospitals and large clinics, resolve issues around scheduling.

The new feature is an improved version of Oracle’s existing Scheduling feature inside HCM Cloud, according to Natalia Rachelson, Oracle’s group vice president for Fusion Applications.

“We needed we needed to add capabilities to the existing footprint in order to better serve healthcare firms,” Rachelson said. “We are also using AI via our dynamic scheduling tool to help healthcare firms on the fly.”

The AI can analyze any situation and schedule resources as available, such as situations wherein a licensed medical professional is needed for a medical procedure.

The AI-based dynamic scheduler can also be taught to consider the needs of patients and adherence to complex union rules, the company said, adding that HR and operational leaders can prioritize multiple business and employee needs, such as preferred and required hours, location or service line requirements, and other worker preferences.

Other tools, clubbed under the umbrella of employee-driven scheduling tools, are also included in the Workforce Scheduling and Workforce Labor Optimization. These tools allow employees to create and manage their schedules, request shift swaps, and claim shift opportunities that align with operational needs, Rachelson said.

The self-service scheduling tools, which can be accessed on any device, will help healthcare workers save time and gain more control of their schedule, Rachelson said.

Updates to procurement, financial reporting applications

Oracle has also updated several existing applications within its EPM, ERP, and SCM Fusion Cloud suites in order to better support healthcare enterprises, Rachelson said.

In its EPM Fusion Cloud, the company has tweaked several features to allow healthcare enterprises to take advantage of AI and automation for financial consolidation and reporting.

These tweaks are expected to streamline corporate reorganization and acquisitions, and enhance planning and decision-making while ensuring required governance, the company said.

In April, Oracle added new AI and automation capabilities to its Fusion Supply Chain Management (SCM) and Fusion Human Capital Management (HCM) suites to help enterprises increase efficiency across divisions.

In its ERP Fusion Cloud, the company has upgraded its procurement tools to serve the needs of healthcare enterprises. The new enhancements to procurement tools include contract and pricing integrations with group purchasing capabilities, which are expected to help healthcare organizations reduce costs and lower risk. 

To help healthcare enterprises with inventory planning, the company has updated its Replenishment Planning and Recall Management feature within its SCM Fusion Cloud.

“The new healthcare-specific updates to Oracle Cloud SCM enable customers to better predict demand and direct supplies where and when they are most needed,” Rachelson said, adding that the new recall management capabilities help customers track inventory and quickly and efficiently conduct medical product recalls to help improve safety and reduce risk. 

Last year, the company added features, including machine learning and real-time analytics, to its SCM cloud suite to handle global supply chain issues and increase the efficiency of operations.

While the company has not provided any specific details on pricing, it said most of the updates targeted towards healthcare enterprises are expected to be added to each of the Fusion Cloud suites with no added cost. These features are expected to roll out to enterprises over the next calendar year, a company spokesperson said.