California Pilot Offers Online Patient Info to Rural Docs - : "A clinical message service pilot in Ukiah, Calif., aims to provide physicians with online access to patient test results and imaging scans.The project eventually could offer physicians many electronic health record system functions without the high cost, according to Carl Henning, president of Redwood MedNet and an Ukiah orthopedic surgeon. The clinical message service costs much less than an EHR system because software is placed on a secure Web site that physicians can access without having to purchase it individually. Hospitals and labs will enter their test results electronically on the secure Web site, which will sort the documents. Physicians then can enter their codes to access their patients' tests."
This is interesting ! A problem which often deters patients from signing up for a PHR ( personal health record ) is that their doctors will not buy in to the system. However, if patients can upload their scan images and lab reports to their own PHR, this will make it much easier for them to communicate intelligently with their doctors - even those who do not have a EMR ! And once their doctors see the benefits of having medical records online, they may be persuaded to adopt them for their own practises !
How about a web-based EMR which seamlessly integrates with the PHR? Seems to be a simple solution for doctors not having an EMR currently to switch over and become early adopters of the PHR revolution!
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