Addressing data fragmentation and disconnected systems has been a top priority for healthcare organizations over the past few years. Yet recent survey findings suggest that many hospitals and health systems still struggle to provide clinicians with timely, reliable access to patient information, particularly when that information spans multiple platforms.
In a February 2026 survey of 61 health IT professionals, respondents identified their top frustrations with current health data systems. Data fragmentation across platforms emerged as the most common concern, cited by nearly 40% of respondents. An additional 30% pointed to slow or unreliable access to patient information, while 23% cited systems that are not designed to support clinical workflows.
The Untapped Opportunity in Legacy Clinical Data
While many factors contribute to fragmented data environments and patient access challenges, legacy systems do not have to be one of them. The most effective data archiving solutions can consolidate historical records, standardize access, and preserve decades of patient history, without forcing clinicians to leave the EHR or rely on parallel systems.
For many organizations, however, that opportunity to reduce fragmentation is unrealized. Findings from the same February 2026 survey show that only 20% of health IT professionals believe clinician access to legacy data within their organization is “very good,” while 34% believe clinician access is “fair” or “poor.”
Turning Legacy Archives into a Seamless Part of Care Delivery
Legacy archives deliver the most value when they function as an extension of the EHR, not a separate system. The goal is simple: make historical data as easy to access and use as current records.
Healthcare organizations should prioritize archiving solutions that eliminate fragmentation and support clinical and operational workflows.
Key capabilities to seek out include:
Enable clinicians to view historical records directly within their workflow, without managing separate systems or credentials.
Surface a clear indicator when legacy data exists, so clinicians know immediately when additional history is available.
Enable clinicians, HIM, and revenue cycle teams to search structured and unstructured data to surface immediate insights.
Deliver archived records directly to EHR endpoints without manual steps. For Epic users, this can include transmitting full historical charts to Epic and MyChart via HL7v2 APIs.
Notable KLAS Research Findings
A recent report from KLAS Research, “Clinician EHR Experience 2026” found that 40% of clinicians report a basic to poor experience with their EHRs. For organizations in this category, the report highlights several improvement strategies, including a greater focus on internal and external integration (i.e., ensuring that data from outside sources is accurate, relevant, and easy to find). These are prime areas supported by archiving capabilities such as SSO, Keyword Search, and Legacy Record Indicator.
As one respondent from a Harmony Healthcare IT customer organization noted in KLAS research: “Financial savings were the biggest driver for using HealthData Archiver, and we have fully achieved those outcomes. Integration with our Epic EHR was the largest feature, hands‑down, that helped us achieve the outcomes.” – Analyst/Coordinator, November 2025, KLAS Research
Key Takeaways
As healthcare organizations continue to invest in data modernization, the usability of historical data should not be an afterthought. Legacy records that are embedded into existing workflows can function as enablers of clinical decision‑making and HIM efficiency, rather than slowing teams down or introducing new workarounds.
For organizations looking to reduce fragmentation and improve clinical efficiency, rethinking how legacy data is accessed, inside the EHR and at the point of care, remains one of the most impactful places to start.
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