MultiCare Health System is tackling the growing complexity of its data integration needs through a platform-based approach to data orchestration, according to Nick Shepard, the system’s assistant vice president of data orchestration.
Scaling Through Growth and Integration
Over the past seven years, MultiCare has expanded rapidly, growing from three hospitals to 18, with plans to affiliate with five additional facilities following its recent partnership with Samaritan Healthcare in Oregon. This explosive growth has introduced significant challenges in managing and integrating data across a fragmented IT environment.
Shepard, who has been with the organization for 27 years and previously worked in strategy and business development before transitioning to IT leadership, emphasized the need to connect disparate data sources to provide clinicians with a more holistic view of patient information.
He noted that MultiCare previously managed over 50 siloed data sources, a common challenge in healthcare where pharmaceutical, imaging, and radiology systems often operate independently without seamless communication capabilities.
“We want to be able to connect all of those different sources of data together and orchestrate between those systems to paint a holistic picture,” Shepard said.
Building a Unified EHR Ecosystem
MultiCare relies on Epic as its enterprise-wide electronic health record system, a platform the organization has used for many years. As part of its expansion strategy, MultiCare has served as a Community Connect partner, offering Epic to other health systems lacking the infrastructure to deploy it independently.
With more than 40 Community Connect customers, MultiCare supports data archival solutions using ELLKAY, which helps legacy systems either migrate into Epic or maintain access to historical records as required by regulations such as Washington state’s 26-year data retention mandate.
“Data conversion is the migration of the data from the legacy system into the Epic EHR, and we do that with ELLKAY as well,” Shepard explained.
The shift to a platform-based model followed years of manual processes handled by a small internal team. In 2001, MultiCare had six staff members managing integrations; by 2021, that number remained the same despite tripling in hospital count.
“We had to acknowledge that our growth was driving us toward a more platform-based approach,” Shepard said. “Going from the six FTEs to a team at ELLKAY of 900-plus is a huge difference for MultiCare.”
In late January 2026, MultiCare completed its transition by shifting its entire interface and integration team to ELLKAY, effectively dissolving its internal interface department. Several long-time MultiCare employees were rebaded as ELLKAY staff, reflecting the depth of the partnership between the two organizations.
Enterprise Data Warehouse and AI Readiness
MultiCare maintains a large Azure-based enterprise data warehouse built on Microsoft Fabric, supporting reporting and analytics across the system. The warehouse aggregates data from multiple sources to enable value-based care and research initiatives.
Partnership Evolution and Staff Transition
The collaboration with ELLKAY began with a archival engagement before expanding to full integration services. A pilot project at Forks Community Hospital demonstrated ELLKAY’s interoperability strengths, leading to broader adoption.
