From Systems to Information: Rethinking Legacy Data in Healthcare

At HIMSS26, Legacy Data Access CEO Shawn Fichter joined us to talk about why health systems should transition from holding on to legacy applications to a more strategic approach that makes access to their historical data easier and more purposeful.

Post-COVID cost pressures and a wave of point solutions left many organizations drowning in siloed data. Fichter argues the problem runs deeper than technology choices. When left unmanaged, legacy applications quietly become security liabilities and information dead-ends. M&A activity only compounds the chaos by generating duplicate and orphaned systems with no clear need for access.

The antidote, he suggests, is a proactive archival strategy built around use cases rather than applications. That means engaging clinicians, HIM managers, finance and HR leaders, and research teams to understand how they actually need to access information, and then designing a governance approach that balances ease of use with a defensible risk profile. Getting that balance right also has a direct payoff: optimized data management reduces the overhead required for routine reporting and release-of-information work.

Looking ahead, Fichter sees new opportunities in care enablement, particularly for case managers drawing on historical data to inform treatment decisions, and in preparing health system data to be genuinely useful for AI.

The throughline across all of it: the goal is no longer to manage systems, but to unlock what the power of the information inside them.

Watch the full interview below to hear more.

Learn more about Legacy Data Access: https://www.legacydataaccess.com/

Listen and subscribe to the Healthcare IT Today Interviews Podcast to hear all the latest insights from experts in healthcare IT.

And for an exclusive look at our top stories, subscribe to our newsletter and YouTube.

Tell us what you think. Contact us here or on Twitter at @hcitoday. And if you’re interested in advertising with us, check out our various advertising packages and request our Media Kit.

Legacy Data Access is a proud sponsor of Healthcare Scene.

At HIMSS26, Legacy Data Access CEO Shawn Fichter joined us to talk about why health systems should transition from holding on to legacy applications to a more strategic approach that makes access to their historical data easier and more purposeful.

Post-COVID cost pressures and a wave of point solutions left many organizations drowning in siloed data. Fichter argues the problem runs deeper than technology choices. When left unmanaged, legacy applications quietly become security liabilities and information dead-ends. M&A activity only compounds the chaos by generating duplicate and orphaned systems with no clear need for access.

The antidote, he suggests, is a proactive archival strategy built around use cases rather than applications. That means engaging clinicians, HIM managers, finance and HR leaders, and research teams to understand how they actually need to access information, and then designing a governance approach that balances ease of use with a defensible risk profile. Getting that balance right also has a direct payoff: optimized data management reduces the overhead required for routine reporting and release-of-information work.

Looking ahead, Fichter sees new opportunities in care enablement, particularly for case managers drawing on historical data to inform treatment decisions, and in preparing health system data to be genuinely useful for AI.

The throughline across all of it: the goal is no longer to manage systems, but to unlock what the power of the information inside them.

Watch the full interview below to hear more.

Learn more about Legacy Data Access: https://www.legacydataaccess.com/

Listen and subscribe to the Healthcare IT Today Interviews Podcast to hear all the latest insights from experts in healthcare IT.

And for an exclusive look at our top stories, subscribe to our newsletter and YouTube.

Tell us what you think. Contact us here or on Twitter at @hcitoday. And if you’re interested in advertising with us, check out our various advertising packages and request our Media Kit.

Legacy Data Access is a proud sponsor of Healthcare Scene.