In The Know - MEDSEEK News and Expert Opinion on the eHealth Industry

eVisits Are Making A Difference

We have all read about the strong desire of patients to have online access. There are a number of studies and surveys available to support the argument that today's consumers not only want but expect the ability to have "self-service" in every area of their lives. Consumers can book a hotel reservation online, pinpoint particular seats on an airplane, pay utility bills and much more, yet hospital continue to fall behind.
 
By reading through the various articles related to the economic stimulus package, one can see that the provisions for healthcare are targeted towards enhancing the online experience. Adding the self-service component and providing an automated approach in the workflow of healthcare organizations will ultimately change the face of healthcare as we know it. (And isn't it about time?)
 
But the jury is still out in the healthcare community. Questions linger: If I implement a patient portal, will people register to use it? If I take the time to create an eVisit program, will patients take advantage of the service? Will physicians embrace it? Will insurance companies provide reimbursement?
 
After years of asking ourselves these same questions, researching, and discovering new and better ways to conduct virtual physician/patient interactions, the verdict is in.

Click here to read how MEDSEEK’s client Henry Ford Health System is using eVisits in conjunction with their patient portal to make a difference in their community.

Are you ready to join the “Health Information Revolution”?

When I plug an appliance in the wall, I don’t really care who made it, how big it is, how much or what kind of power it takes…I expect it to work.

This is where healthcare information fails many executives, professionals, consumers, patients and employees. CIOs are asked to provide a report or application and too often the response is “I cannot or it is difficult to satisfy the request.” This is not caused by an unwillingness on the part of the CIO. The information is contained in a number of disparate systems and it is difficult to pull from these different sources or information silos.

What is healthcare looking to do to solve these issues? Achieving system interoperability by promoting cooperation among vendors, Health Information Exchange (HIE), EMRs, PHRs, eHealth, Health 2.0…

So what’s the bottom line? We need a National Health Information Revolution!

But what can hospitals do today? Research and deploy systems that support data aggregation.

To get you started, we’ve collected some articles that might interest you.

KLAS has just published a new report “Why Hospitals are turning to data aggregation to provide help to clinicians.”  The Report in part  examines “aggregation solutions, which provide a single view of clinical data from disconnected systems.”

The report, “Beyond the CIS: Why are hospitals buying aggregation solutions?” examines why healthcare providers are deploying aggregation solutions, whether those solutions are meeting expectations, and which aggregation vendors are doing the best job delivering on the promised benefits.”
 
Likewise, HealthLeaders released an article in 2008 which clearly describes “The Power of Data Aggregation” and is good information to understand why this is important to improve the user experience.
My guess is you have already joined the healthcare information revolution… now we just have to wait for the rest of the nation to join us.

For more information on Data Aggregation, follow these links.

http://www.healthleadersmedia.com/print/content/209949/topic/WS_HLM2_TEC/Collaboration-The-Power-of-Data-Aggregation.html

Some Hospitals Turning to Aggregation to Help Frustrated Clinicians

You Won’t Go In To See The Doctor

“I love the Internet and so do you,” says Dr. Jay Parkinson, a physician at Johns Hopkins Hospital, on his Web site www.jayparkinsonmd.com.

Don’t expect to find a traditional physician website, in fact don’t expect to find a traditional physician. As Dr. Parkinson notes, “I’m Dr. Jay Parkinson and I’m a new kind of physician. I mix the old with the new. I believe in truly knowing your doctor. I also believe in the Internet. Why not mix the two to keep you as healthy as possible?” He has found a way to use traditional methods of practicing medicine while also incorporating the power of the Internet into his practice.

Recently CNN highlighted how the Internet has changed the way we bank, travel, reserve movie tickets, and make restaurant reservations. Now the Internet is beginning to transform the way we do health care. This article and corresponding video highlight ways in which some eHealth pioneers now leverage the Internet to meet consumer’s expectations for transactions related to their health care needs.

Click hereto check out ways the Internet is reinventing healthcare and see the latest on virtual clinics and health information sites.

How will HIE’s play in the Economic Stimulus Package?

It appears the hottest topic of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 is Section B, Title IV of the bill, known as the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act. In this section approximately $20 billion is set aside for the purchase, implementation, and use of health information technology (HIT).  Health Information Exchanges  and RHIO’s are part of the discussion, playing an instrumental role in the HITECH Act.
 
In the first of a four part series from Health Data Management entitled “Lessons front the HIE front,” the series explores the perspective of a number of RHIOS and the issues they have had or currently experiencing. Among the many examples, MEDSEEK is pleased that Gary Bowers was interviewed to describe his involvement in the WNC Data Link using MEDSEEK’s portal to facilitate the data exchange among 16 hospitals in western North Carolina.
I think this series of articles is timely and beneficial to provide an insider view of various HIE initiatives.
 
Click here to read the entire article.