Business intelligence (BI), also referred to as big data, refers to the capture, aggregation, and analysis of large amounts of data. Such data can be used to help organizations make better decisions about all aspects of their business. In recent years, BI has been applied to the healthcare industry with great success.

In the healthcare industry, mistakes lead to misdiagnoses, improper medical treatment, and, inevitably, hospital readmissions. But business intelligence (BI) is changing that by equipping healthcare professionals with powerful real-time information.

At its core, BI software is all about data analytics.

Business intelligence (BI) has fueled the growth of many businesses through the years, especially in the finance and manufacturing industries. Today, the benefits extend beyond those industries, as BI and big data have become important tools for healthcare businesses aiming to improve their processes.

The medical industry is teeming with data. Patients that receive care, for example, have hundreds of data points associated with their medical history. But how is this data being handled? In most cases, not carefully enough. By adopting one of business’s more popular technology solutions, your medical facility could save money and improve patient care so much as to lower readmission rates.

At a recent cloud technology conference, Amazon Web Services (AWS) launched a tool to help streamline data analytics in the cloud. This new tool, named “Glue,” is designed to help reduce the burden on engineers and employees so they can get down to the important elements of data analytics.

Costs are a major concern when it comes to IT solutions, and the healthcare industry has its struggles trying to keep up with the latest technology on the market. Thankfully, cloud solutions and increased storage availability mean hospitals and clinics finally get some relief.

It’s one thing to look at and collect your business’s data, but how do you actually go about turning that wealth of information into something meaningful you can use as a force to propel your organization on to bigger and better things? Data mining can be a daunting task, and may well make a regular appearance at the very bottom of your to-do list, but there are ways of tackling this seemingly insurmountable challenge.