"Billions of dollars are spent inside institutional walls on clinical technology, but there's very little spent trying to
help people transition into a hospital," says Griffiths. "Now the market is rushing to fill this gap that healthcare providers
have kind of ignored." THINKING INSIDE AND OUT Last year, St. Joseph Mercy Oakland, a Pontiac, Mich.-based hospital that is part of the Trinity Health system, launched its
Interactive Patient Care System. Essentially, the system turns the patient-room television monitor into an interactive resource.
For example, patients can read about their medications while in their rooms. "And we're about to add a system that will enable them to see a video of the procedure they're scheduled to undergo, so that
they can understand exactly what will take place," says Jack Weiner, CEO of the hospital. The system also features a self-generating survey. During a patient's stay, a survey pops up on their television screen, asking
for comments. If patients indicate a problem, the system immediately contacts a representative for resolution. Weiner says
patient satisfaction scores have risen significantly since the interactive system was implemented. The hospital soon will add information on holistic and alternative medicine to the system, and is poised to launch a patient
and physician portal that will access the hospital's electronic medical record system from both inside and outside the facility.
"It's digital technology," says Weiner. "Once you have the computer to distribute it through, you can start to personalize
activities." LONG ROAD AHEAD The gap between what healthcare consumers want and what they actually receive from providers may be narrowing, but Microsoft's
Conn says this is only the beginning of a long journey. "I don't think any of us is naïve enough to think we can change everything overnight," says Conn. "This is a huge challenge."
Bigalke says that part of the challenge is that doctors today are still facing the same privacy, security and cost concerns.
Health plans have tried to encourage providers to work more closely with consumers and to make data more accessible, but it's
been a struggle pushing the technology for a personal health record into the provider environment. Collaboration, he says,
will be key going forward. "I think there's an opportunity for providers and health plans to collaborate, and the consumer will be part of that," Bigalke
says. "And those that are bright, intelligent, use the technologies and seek opportunities to collaborate for the benefit
of the consumer, they're going to be the ones on top." Ed Rabinowitz is a freelance writer based in Bangor, Pa.
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