Australia’s First and Only Health IT Magazine
PULSE IT
Issue
September
24 2011
Consumer eHealth Cooperation, standards and interoperability Derek Gower highlights the results of a successful collaboration between GP software developers. Planning for a rainbow journey Bryn Evans intertwines observations from the HIC2011 event with insights into eHealth planning. Beyond technical interoperability David Hancock outlines the areas crucial to facilitating an integrated collaborative healthcare system. On the road to the PCEHR Simon James provides an update on the progress and ambitions of the six Vendor Panel members. To tweet or not to tweet? Alberto Tinazzi advises caution when it comes to the use of social media in the health sector. Big results come from taking small steps Rachel de Sain provides a consumer’s perspective on the development of PCEHR.
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
19 19 20 21 22 22 25
IHTSDO coming to Sydney in October Clintel Systems flags support for MacOS X Lion Sysmex to link Clinical Data Repositories in NZ Diagnostic Imaging Pathways released for iPad Advantech upgrades patient infotainment system NPS releases MedicineWise app for iPad Inala Primary Care deploys iPad for mobile use
Want to know more about eHealth? Whether you are a consumer, healthcare manager, healthcare provider or vendor, you need a central location to quickly find and access eHealth information.
Welcome to:
www.ehealthinfo.gov.au Your gateway to the emerging world of modern healthcare. Discover how information technology is delivering a more reliable and efficient health system. Featuring: • The Healthcare Identifiers (HI) Service which commenced operations on 1 July 2010. Access fact sheets for individuals, healthcare providers, healthcare organisations, and medical software vendors • How eHealth systems are being designed to maximize security and privacy • Why a national certification capability is an essential foundation for safe, secure and interoperable eHealth solutions in Australia • The latest Federal, State and Territory government eHealth initiatives • The delivery of a standard clinical language for use across Australia’s eHealth implementations and how it is a significant step towards improving the quality and safety of healthcare
www.ehealthinfo.gov.au is jointly brought to you by Australia’s Federal, State and Territory health authorities and the National E-Health Transition Authority (NEHTA) to help you explore the eHealth concept and stay in touch with the latest innovations as they unfold.
National E-Health Transition Authority www.nehta.gov.au
“ The speed at which medical service is provided will be
faster.
Better information means there is less chance of things going wrong.” Devendra Maisnam Business Analyst, Information Modeller
Leading the progression of eHealth in Australia Join the NEHTA team The National E-Health Transition Authority (NEHTA) was established by the Australian Commonwealth, State and Territory governments on 5 July 2005 to develop better ways of electronically collecting and securely exchanging health information. NEHTA is the lead organisation supporting the national vision for eHealth in Australia.
See how NEHTA’s work is helping to enable a better health system and support the Government’s goal of personally controlled electronic health records for all Australians. Go to: www.nehta.gov.au
Use your health, informatics, analytical, project or architecture skills and join the NEHTA team who are making eHealth a reality in Australia
For up to date information on current opportunities see: www.nehta.gov.au ““The
flexibility
is brilliant – the opportunity and understanding of my situation after maternity leave is a huge help.” Amy Richardson HR Business Partner
“The idea of being involved in something that could make a difference in Australia. You can actually see at the end of the line, your work has made a
difference.” Tony Warren System Administrator
NEHTA is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Only people with the right to work in Australia may apply for these positions.
Enquiries and applications can be directed to: careers@nehta.gov.au
PULSE IT +
Publisher Pulse Magazine PO Box 243 Gundagai NSW 2722 Australia ABN: 19 923 710 562 www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
Editor Simon James Australia: +61 2 8006 5185 New Zealand: +64 9 889 3185 simon.james@pulseitmagazine.com.au
Pages 32, 40, 42 Consumer eHealth
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About Pulse+IT Pulse+IT is Australia’s first and only Health IT magazine. With an international distribution exceeding 37,000 copies, it is also one of the highest circulating health publications in Australasia. 32,000 copies of Pulse+IT are distributed to GPs, specialists, practice managers and the IT professionals that support them. In addition, over 5,000 copies of Pulse+IT are distributed to health information managers, health informaticians, and IT decision makers in hospitals, day surgeries and aged care facilities.
Looking ahead The November 2011 edition of Pulse+IT will feature a selection of articles related to electronic prescribing, electronic transfer of prescriptions, and electronic medication management. Pulse+IT welcomes feature articles and guest editorial submissions relating to this theme, as well as articles relating to eHealth more broadly. Submission guidelines and deadlines are available online: http://www.pulseitmagazine.com.au/editorial
ISSN: 1835-1522 Contributors Bryn Evans, Derek Gower, David Hancock, Simon James, Rachel de Sain, Dr Geoffrey Sayer, Cara Sayer-Bourne and Alberto Tinazzi.
Disclaimer The views contained herein are not necessarily the views of Pulse Magazine or its staff. The content of any advertising or promotional material contained herein is not endorsed by the publisher. While care has been taken in the preparation of this magazine, the publisher cannot be held responsible for the accuracy of the information herein, or any consequences arising from it. Pulse Magazine has no affiliation with any organisation, including, but not limited to Health Services Australia, Sony, Health Scope, UBM Medica, the New Zealand College of General Practitioners, or the Kimberley Aboriginal Medical Services Council, all who produce publications that include the word “Pulse” in their titles.
Copyright 2011 Pulse Magazine No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored electronically or transmitted in any form by any means without the prior written permission of the Publisher.
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Pulse+IT acknowledges the support of the following organisations, each of whom supply copies of Pulse+IT to their members.
Page 10 Strategic Planning
Page 28 Lessons Learnt
Page 40 Social Media
Editorials
Features
News
Page 6 STARTUP Editor Simon James introduces the 24th edition of Pulse+IT.
Page 32 FEATURE ARTICLE Simon James provides an update on the progress and ambitions of the six Vendor Panel members.
Page 19 IHTSDO meeting and showcase coming to Sydney in October
Page 8 GUEST EDITORIAL Derek Gower highlights the results of a successful collaboration between GP software developers. Page 10 GUEST EDITORIAL Bryn Evans intertwines observations from the HIC2011 event with insights into eHealth planning. Page 16 GUEST EDITORIAL David Hancock outlines the areas crucial to facilitating a integrated collaborative healthcare system. Page 28 MSIA Dr Geoffrey Sayer shares some lessons about the lessons learnt process. Page 30 NEHTA Andrew Howard provides an update on the PCEHR.
Page 40 FEATURE ARTICLE Alberto Tinazzi advises caution when it comes to the use of social media in the health sector. Page 42 FEATURE ARTICLE Rachel de Sain provides a consumer’s perspective on the development of the PCEHR.
Resources Page 26 EVENTS CALENDAR Up and coming Health IT, Health, and IT events. Page 44 MARKET PLACE The Pulse+IT Directory profiles Australasia’s most innovative and influential eHealth organisations.
Page 19 Clintel Systems certifies The Specialist for MacOS X Lion, expands claiming options Page 20 Sysmex prepares to link Clinical Data Repositories in New Zealand Page 21 Diagnostic Imaging Pathways now available as an iPad app Page 22 Advantech upgrades patient infotainment system NPS Releases MedicineWise medication list app for iPhone Page 25 Inala Primary Care deploys iPad for community health assessments
EDITORIAL
Pulse+IT: 2011.4 Simon James
BIT, BComm Editor, Pulse+IT Phone (AU): +61 2 8006 5185 Phone (NZ): +64 9 889 3185 simon.james@pulseitmagazine.com.au
Welcome to the 24th edition of Pulse+IT, Australia’s
eHealth strategy and planning.
first and only Health IT magazine.
This edition presents a detailed look at the work
Andrew Howard provides some useful background
being undertaken by the Vendor Panel, a group of six
information and updates on the PCEHR, with Geoffrey
software companies tasked and funded by Government
Sayer from the Medical Software Industry Association
to incorporate specific pieces of functionality into their
encouraging the sharing of lessons to ensure the
clinical software. Much of this work is related to the
system becomes a reality.
forthcoming Personally Controlled Electronic Health
Record (PCEHR), with some parcels of development
details about the forthcoming International Health
already completed and finding their way into medical
Terminology Standards Development Organisation
centres around the country. Derek Gower provides a
meeting, to be held in Sydney in October.
complementary article about the work of a similarly
collaborative software development effort from New
edition featuring the MedicineWise utility from the
Zealand, which culminated in the recent unveiling of
NPS and an announcement about the launch of the
functionality that allows New Zealand general practices
clinician-centric Diagnostic Imaging Pathways app for
to electronically send entire patient records from one
iPad. A report from Inala Primary Care detailing their
practice to another, a technical achievement that has
innovative use of iPads by Practice Nurses operating in
not yet been matched in Australia.
the community is also included, with coverage about
the linking of Sysmex Clinical Data Repositories in New
Rachel de Sain provides a consumer’s perspective
on the ongoing development of the PCEHR, with Alberto Tinazzi advising health professionals and
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The National E-Health Transition Authority’s
This edition’s Bits and Bytes section includes
Apps for iPhones and iPads are also covered, this
Zealand rounding out this edition.
healthcare organisations to be cautious about their
Looking ahead
use of social media, particularly when engaging with
The next edition of Pulse+IT, and the final edition for
consumers.
the year, will focus on electronic prescribing, electronic
medication management, and electronic transfer of
David Hancock of Orion Health, a company recently
announced as an National Infrastructure Partner for the
prescriptions.
development of the PCEHR, outlines the areas crucial
to facilitating a integrated collaborative healthcare
articles, would like to contribute to an edition, or would
system, while Bryn Evans intertwines his observations
simply like to discuss your experiences with eHealth,
from the recent HIC2011 event with insights into
don’t hesitate to get in touch.
As always, if you have any suggestions for future
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
EDITORIAL
Some thoughts on cooperation, standards and interoperability Derek Gower
Managing Director Houston Medical derek@houstonmedical.net
In late August I attended a celebratory function
Houston Medical, Intrahealth6, MedTech Global7 and
in the Wellington Town Hall hosted by the New
MyPractice, and to make this wish come true. It was
Zealand National Health IT Board . Along with three
a cost recovery only budget with a total of around
other vendors, Houston Medical2 had completed a
$750,000 split between all of us.
ground‑breaking program in New Zealand called
GP2GP. Similar initiatives have been tried elsewhere
were so different, with completely different database
in the world but we believe, only if anecdotally, this
structures it would be necessary to build an interface
is the first one that could be regarded as a success for
engine to generate the Clinical Document Architecture
the interchanging of information between different
(CDA) message. This work, fortunately for us all,
practice management systems that are under different
was carried out by an independent contractor, Peter
ownership and management. As the project’s name
Jordan under the supervision of Dr David Hay from the
implies, at present it is only working between general
Auckland Health Alliance and Andre Bredenkamp from
practices. But given the will there are no technical
GPNZ. Over a 12 month period the vendors completed
reasons that the mechanism cannot be extended to
development, met for Connectathons, exchanged
other parts of the healthcare sector if the relevant
sample messages and found and squashed bugs. As
vendors are interested in developing the necessary
funding was provided through a fixed price contract,
protocols within their own software.
the project was delivered on budget. Although
The scope of the functionality of the system can
the same could not be said for the delivery date, a
also be extended. The next initiative is to use the same
six‑month project rapidly became 12! The vendors put
‘engine’ for ePrescribing, something that has already
aside their normal competitive behaviour, as we all
been demonstrated by Dr Ashwin Patel of MyPractice .
realised we had something to learn and something to
share and if it was not a success we were all the joint
1
3
Medical software is an area where New Zealand
It was quickly found that because the four systems
can play its small size to a big advantage. It is easy to
losers.
organise a meeting, nowhere is more than four hours
away and there are now just four practice software
practice to another can be instigated from either end,
vendors serving general practice. When Houston made
but in my first example, Jenny the patient has arrived
its first tentative offering in 1989 we were number 32!
from Christchurch with her two children at a new
The transfer of the patient record from one general
A poll from GPNZ identified the transfer of patient
practice and wishes to have their medical records
records from one doctor to another as the next most
transferred. Jenny enrols with the practice and then
important outstanding software need. The National
signs the record transfer request form, which is faxed
Health IT board took up the challenge and funded
or posted to her previous doctor. For obvious medico-
GPNZ, under Patients First , to project manage
legal reasons this request has to be approved and
4
5
Author Info
signed by the patient. On receipt of the request at the Derek Gower is Managing Director of Houston Medical, which has offices in Hamilton, New Zealand and Sydney, Australia. He started off in farming and was a Nuffield scholar to the United Kingdom in 1972, but a midlife crisis, share market crash and a change in lifestyle in 1987 saw him move into a small computer company in Hamilton. In the mid-90s he bought the company and grew it to be the one of the major suppliers of software to all medical professions in both countries.
sending doctor’s practice, Jenny’s records are brought up on the screen and quickly reviewed. Any notes marked confidential to the doctor or the practice may be withheld but in most cases the ‘Send’ button in the practice software is clicked. HealthLink8 picks up the encoded patient record and transmits it to the receiving doctor. If the file is over 5MB, which is the maximum
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file size that presently can be transmitted
request form there. As long as she had
have been HL7 compliant since the mid-
between practices, the sender is advised to
enrolled in the new practice, everything
90s. Over the years HL7 has evolved from
insert a CD and, unless a record is marked
would be waiting for her and her two
version 1 to version 2, and then through
confidential, everything is sent or copied
children when she arrived.
various iterations of version 2. New
to the CD. 128 bit encryption is used and
Obviously these are early days, there
Zealand has moved to version 2.4 which
the CD can only be read by the appropriate
will be enhancements and feedback to be
allows the inclusion of an embedded PDF
receiving software. It would therefore not
actioned and there is much more to it than
so images and letters can all be included.
be possible for the patient to take the CD
described above, but for $750,000, what a
Version 3 is under consideration and is
on holiday to India to use as a complete
bargain! NEHTA are you listening? This is
used in the GP2GP CDA message.
medical record! Confidentiality around
also a very important example of what you
encounter notes is maintained. Even when
can do with standards.
struggling to mandate even version
a medication is attached to a confidential
For the technically minded and industry
2.3.1. The Royal College of Pathologists
record the medication is sent and the
insiders, now comes a particular gripe and
Australasia mandated the use of HL7 three
associated note can be omitted.
a plea to my competitors and colleagues in
years ago, but unfortunately the Royal
Australia,
unfortunately
is
still
Jenny’s new practice will receive
Australia. Since Houston Medical started
Australian and New Zealand College of
the transfer notes as a message in their
supplying software in Australia in 1993, we
Radiologists still has to make a decision.
HealthLink
is
have had a constant battle with standards,
The transference of Referral, Status and
exchanged as a CDA HL7 V3 document.
in-tray.
The
message
in particular with PIT, the ‘birth’ of which I
Discharge messages between doctors and
Because there must be no dispute as to
am old enough to remember well.
hospitals cannot sensibly move ahead until
what has been sent, this document also
the HL7 international standard is accepted
contains the complete patient record in
pathology lab and I asked if they could
across all health disciplines.
human readable format. The receiving
send lab results to a dermatology client
doctor may decide that a record of a
in the HL7 format which we had been
to the software vendors of Australia that
runny nose when the 25-year-old patient
using in New Zealand for several years.
need to implement the transfer of medical
was three is not really necessary and
They looked at me aghast and I quote:
records from one practice or health
may decide not to import this particular
“Australian software would not be capable
service to another. If you really do want to
encounter note.
of receiving an HL7 message and we have
embrace an eHealth record like the PCEHR,
As an aside, this optionality is currently
Around 1996 I was with a Brisbane
Therefore I close with a personal plea
devised something easier to implement
then standards are essential and the first
a point of considerable controversy
called PIT”.
move you should make is to ensure that
between doctors. One school of thought
And now, in 2011 doctors are still
all RSD messages between doctors and
says
import
sending and receiving Referral, Status
all reports from radiology and pathology
everything because that runny nose might
and Discharge (RSD) messages and even
are sent using the internationally accepted
be important in another context, and
worse, having radiology results forced
HL7 standard.
another is equally emphatic that they only
upon them in the PIT format, even though
want what they want. This debate is still to
it is non‑standard and, in my opinion,
References
be resolved!
should have been put out of its misery and
1. http://www.ithealthboard.health.nz
that
the
doctor
must
buried years ago.
2. http://www.houstonmedical.net
‘Import All’ button, in which case allergies
The receiving doctor can click the
3. http://www.mypractice.co.nz
go to allergies, prescriptions go to
an international standard that was devised
4. http://gpnz.org.nz
prescriptions and medical notes go to
by Duke University in the United States in
5. http://www.ithealthboard.health.nz/
medical notes. Pathology and radiology
the late 80s for the secure transmission of
primary-healthcare-it-programme-
reports are also correctly filed.
health results from one facility to another.
group
If Jenny knew which practice she was
In New Zealand under the guidance of
6. http://www.intrahealth.com
going to before she left Christchurch then
HealthLink, all messages between doctors
7. http://www.medtechglobal.com
she could have signed the record transfer
and all pathology and all radiology results
8. http://www.healthlink.net
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
For those not acquainted with HL7, it is
Pulse+IT
9
EDITORIAL
eHealth’s search for meaning – is it a rainbow journey? Bryn Evans
Director JEMS Consulting bryn.evans@ozemail.com.
All health services face the challenge of the Commonwealth Government’s health reforms, its eHealth strategy and the pivotal Personally Controlled Electronic Health Record (PCEHR). Simultaneously, innovation and change in technology seems to be accelerating. How to move forward for the benefit of the consumer, from existing ICT systems is complex, and different for every health service provider. Introduction
from hospital treatment to prevention and care in the
Everyone wants an electronic health record. Everyone
community. Healthcare must become more effective
wants their health to be looked after, and thinks that
in providing coordinated care in the home and
someone else should be responsible for it. Yet the gap
community settings, promoting healthier lifestyles,
between the dreams and plans for personalised and
and keeping people out of hospitals.
coordinated care still seem to be just that: dreams
and plans. Certainly the gap between the reality of
Commonwealth Government’s E-Health strategy,
existing healthcare systems, and what can be done
perhaps its flagship, is the PCEHR. Funding for
with innovation and new technology, appears to be
telehealth consultations is another aspect of the
widening.
strategy, and can exploit the NBN to reach consumers
Health Reform and the Consumer
Probably the highest profile initiative of the
in country and remote areas with a more timely and cost-effective service.
To help narrow that gap, the Commonwealth
Government’s eHealth strategy is designed as an
a patient’s health information needs to be shared
important driver to assist its hospital and health
across a wide spectrum of healthcare providers. These
reform objectives. Australia’s health reform is a
include GPs, outpatient and primary care clinics, public
political response to democratic pressures, to people’s
and private hospitals, medical specialists, community
desire to see health services more responsive to local
health, mental health, drug and alcohol clinics,
community needs. It has resulted in the creation of
aged care facilities, pharmacies, medical specialists,
local health networks, each with their own boards for
diagnostic services for pathology and imaging, and
greater local autonomy.
many other providers.
This structural change is closely aligned with the
To support coordinated care in the community,
It is hoped that the PCEHR can bring a measure of
established consensus in the healthcare industry, that
integration and interoperability of information across
there must be a shift of care, at least in emphasis,
all healthcare providers. At a summary level the PCEHR in time can enable the sharing of the consumer’s
Author Info
information at any point of care, wherever it may be. Bryn Evans is a management consultant, with many years experience as a CIO in healthcare, and as chief executive of a clinical software supplier. He writes extensively across a range of categories and genres, notably in the areas of management, information technology, sport, travel, history and fiction.
Within the national health reform agenda there
is another initiative, which is gathering momentum and has enormous implications for health services and their ICT. It is the intention to introduce by July 2012, activity based costing and funding of health services. For health services to be effective and obtain
10 Pulse+IT
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their appropriate funding needs, through the input
on using KPIs to measure clinical change, Steve
of activity data into clinical costing systems, they will
Shaha from Harvard University, pointed out that
require greater coverage and integration of clinical
only measured outcomes, which are proved to be
information systems.
beneficial to patient care, can justify the innovation’s
Innovation and technology trends – what do they mean for eHealth?
Dr Ilkka Kornhonen of Tampere University of
Technology in Finland, said that the consumer must
Besides the impetus of the Government’s health reform
make the most fundamental change. To confront
on eHealth initiatives, what are the other trends in
the explosion of chronic disease arising from both an
innovation and technology? Are the uncertainties and
ageing population and lifestyle disorders, Dr Kornhonen
gloom of the world economy providing motivation for
believes the 21st century must see behavioural change
an accelerating surge in technology innovation and
by the health consumer. Through health and wellness
change?
technologies, and by using the smart phone for self
At the recent HIC2011 conference in Brisbane,
monitoring, the consumer must become a co-producer
presenters and exhibitors displayed a bewildering
of personal health. Health resources and budgets
spectrum
innovative
cannot keep on increasing as a share of GDP. There
technology. The continuing challenge for healthcare
of
original
has to be a shift in focus from, not merely enhancing
providers — ‘Where do you place your bet?’ — just
healthcare diagnosis and treatment, but to improving
keeps getting harder. How do you pick a winner?
a person’s health and lifestyle.
And which innovation and technology, assuming a
successful implementation which is far from certain,
revolutionising communication. It is projected that
would best meet the needs of consumers served by a
500 million will be using mobile applications by 2015.
particular healthcare provider?
Mike Walsh, CEO of innovation research company
thinking
and
‘Tomorrow’ asked, ‘What happens when our smart
Here is a small selection from some of the HIC2011
Social
media
and
mobile
technology
are
speakers’ presentations:
phones become our healthcare monitors?’ An attendee
Whatever the new idea or technology may be,
from the floor was more specific, asking why her GP
implementation is critical to success. Yet a new idea,
would not accept an email from her mobile phone
stated Peter Kambouris from CSIRO speaking on
containing data on her health condition. There was no
Innovation in E-Health, is not innovation until it has
answer. Networks connecting everyone, and sharing
been delivered as a product and/or service, and been
healthcare information, are upon us now. In websites
successfully implemented. Yet in his presentation
like ‘Cure Together’, consumers are sharing everything
Clinical software providers who integrate MIMS medicines information and decision support into their applications to ensure that clinicians have the most trusted information available at all times.
12 Pulse+IT
introduction.
- Abaki, Medinet - Access GP - Alcidion - Ambulance Services • Victoria • Tasmania • Queensland - Australian Pharmacy Solutions - Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority - Best Practice Software - Cardio Vascular Systems - CDC Systems - charmhealth - Clintel Healthsolve, The Specialist - Cloud 9 Software
- Communicare Systems - CompuDoc Medical - Deltra Pty Ltd, Practice Pro - DoctorWare Australia, Smartrooms - DrsDesk Software - Episoft - Equipoise International, Totalcare - Genie Solutions - Global Health - Godbar Software P/L - GPComplete - Health Track Medical Systems - HealthCare Software - Healthpoint Technologies - Healthsoft Australia
- Healthways Inc - Houston Medical Australia - Incisive Medical Systems - InterSystems - International SOS (Australasia) - Intrahealth Systems, Profile - iSoft Group • Classic • ePharmacy • MedChart • Patient Safety International • Practix - Jam Software - Lane Cove General Practice - Manrex Pty Ltd, Webstercare - MediFlex
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
about their health and conditions.
for widespread acceptance and implementation of
In the Q&A session hosted by the ABC’s Tony
standards. In another he wondered if we are now at a
Jones, one opinion was that innovation and new
point of such complexity, that we should not add more
technologies such as mobile applications, are stifled by
before identifying some which can be excised.
standard state-based systems. A clinician’s response
acknowledged that they may be the case, but on the
help to drive more healthcare out of large hospitals and
other hand recognised that standardised systems
nursing homes, and back into the home. Eric believes
to support connectivity and interoperability were
that large institutions of hospital centric facilities
vital. Another view was that industry’s ownership of
cannot keep growing, and are unsustainable. The aged
intellectual property was stifling innovation.
population will double by 2025, and then double again
by 2050. We should take on a challenge to move 50% of
In NSW a majority of public health services have
Eric Dishman from Intel asked how can technology
implemented a standardized eMR, which enables
healthcare from hospitals to the home by 2020.
clinicians to collaborate more easily, and share
information on a patient. It has introduced a new
conversational robotics for customer support and
paradigm of openness and transparency in patient
companionship solutions, Ms Liesl Capper-Beilby, CEO
care. However in an alternate view, Professor Jon
of ‘MyCyberTwin’ company, described their success
Patrick of Sydney University put forward the startling
with major customers such as NAB, HP, NASA and
idea of giving clinicians full control and responsibility
Westpac, and their work on prototypes for healthcare.
over design and support of information systems. He
Against the impact of an ageing population and an
advocates the embedding of language technology
increasing shortage of clinicians and other healthcare
within his own development of ‘generative clinical
professionals, Liesl posed the question, ‘Is a robot
information systems’. Of course questions hanging
companion better than no companion at all?’ Just like
in the air over this contrary stance are such as, ‘Who
Enrico Coiera, Liesl sees the future as a very different
would own the intellectual property?’, and ‘Which
country!
clinicians would get this power?’
In a presentation intriguingly titled ‘Seven
relevant in the future, Dr Simon Kos from Microsoft
Heresies’, Professor Enrico Coiera of NSW University,
stressed that change is essential, and embracing it
suggested that the future is a different country, and
now is necessary. The current models of care cannot be
that we will surely see changes which today we might
sustained. In a concluding session of the conference,
view as revolutionary or heresy. In one heresy Enrico
perhaps it all came together when the question was
envisioned that we not delay progress by waiting
asked, ‘Are we good enough at understanding all the
- Mednetwork Systems - Medtech Global - Merck Sharp and Dohme - MMex - Mountain Top Systems - Mouse Soft - MTS Australia - Mx Solutions - NPS - NIB Health Funds - Pen Computer Systems - Pharmacy4U - Pharmacy Computer Solutions - Practicare - Practice Management Software Company
- Promadis - Promedicus - Queensland Emergency Services - Queensland Eye Institute - Queensland Government - Shexie Medical System - SmartClinics - SmartHealth - Software for Specialists - South West Alliance of Rural Health - Stat Health - Sydney Adventist Hospital - Telethon Institute for Child Health Research - Zedmed
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In a presentation on the growing use of
For healthcare providers to improve and be
A special thank you to all those who partner with us to deliver our trusted medicines information and decision support to the point of care. The team at MIMS
Pulse+IT 13
how to find the best way forward, with the
it for the benefit of the consumer?’ It
The search for an eHealth Strategy
appeared that no-one was prepared to
To make sense of the potential of
for their needs. The answer has to be,
answer in the affirmative.
innovation and technology trends, match
eHealth and ICT strategic planning. But
them with the Government’s eHealth
not for the sake of producing a voluminous
strategy, as well as reconcile them with
document which is out of date before it
existing ICT operations, current projects
is approved. Rather it is for the journey
innovation going on, and how to apply
The reality of health services’ ICT, and how to embrace eHealth
best mix of eHealth priorities and solutions
and future demands, every health service
of discovery, insights, and knowledge
So how can health services and the reality
faces a daunting challenge. Every health
of the business, which the ICT planning
of their current information systems,
service is different and has its own drivers
process reveals. Only then can an informed
embrace eHealth and all its manifestations
and priorities, with services and processes
decision be taken on which eHealth
of accelerating innovation? Apart from
which are continually changing and
technology should be adopted.
new start-up hospitals such as the
evolving. Resources, time deadlines and
Macquarie Private in Sydney, which has
budget constraints are different for every
a health service is an exercise in self
recently opened with some of the latest
provider, and ever present. For some
examination.
technology, most health services have
health services with their own EMR and
information, eHealth and ICT have become
valued information systems and ICT
own eHealth strategy, the PCEHR can
the life blood and sinews of health services.
infrastructure, built up from many years
seem to be a low priority. For others it
Every year at least, health services should
of staff effort and capital investment.
can look attractive, but not above more
re-evaluate all existing systems, review
To invest in new technology, requires
immediate needs. Somehow a balanced
ongoing and planned projects, assess new
significant planning, resources, funding
and informed judgement must be made on
and innovative clinical information systems
and the inevitable, painful disruption to
how to embrace eHealth.
and technologies such as: medication
daily
activity
during
implementation.
In essence eHealth planning for Recognise
it
or
not,
That judgement must be made in the
management, the PCEHR, anti-microbial
Above all the introduction of innovative
context of what innovation and technology
systems, mobile applications, robotics etc,
new systems, demands difficult process
will best improve patient care in each
for the feasibility of introduction. In parallel
and work practice changes, where not
health service. What will most benefit the
examine what is practicable in terms of
everyone can come out a winner.
consumer?
resources and funding. Above all, identify
what will most improve patient care, and
Despite the continual improvement
In some ways it is like a search for
in diagnostic and treatment procedures,
the end of the rainbow. And there at its
benefit the organisation’s consumers.
compared with many other industries
end is the legendary pot of gold, which
and their investment in ICT, healthcare
in healthcare is coordinated patient care
but the planning process is in effect a
has for many years been chronically
and the integrated health information to
productivity check of every aspect of a
under resourced and under funded in
support it, anywhere, any time.
health service’s operations, to identify its
ICT. Inevitably healthcare ICT has to
In Australia’s predominantly urbanised
changing priorities. The discovery process
cede priority for resources and funding
population, it is said that an average of
is in many ways as important as the
to clinical services. Remuneration rates
only around 2-3% of patients move from
planning’s conclusions. And is it a heresy
cannot attract the best quality of ICT
one health service to another. Eventually
to propose that every health service
professionals. There is also a tendency
the PCEHR may address that, but it is only
should survey its consumers, as part of the
for some clinicians and managers to view
one element, it is not a silver bullet. For
planning, to understand what technologies
ICT as a third or fourth order priority, not
many health services, just as important
and services consumers want?
dissimilar to maintaining the telephone
or more so, are their own EMRs, new
lines and switchboard. That is the reality of
clinical applications, secure messaging and
the rainbow, eHealth planning becomes a
health services ICT.
electronic referrals between all providers
fascinating journey. And the journey’s goal
Amidst the incessant daily demands
etc., in other words their own eHealth
gets ever closer, the tantalizing pot of gold
of delivering healthcare, often on a 24x7
priorities suitable for their own particular
— a consumer’s coordinated care.
basis, the glitter of potential innovation
requirements.
and technical wizardry is not enough to accelerate the take-up of eHealth
How to follow the rainbow
initiatives. Something else is required.
So the challenge for every health service, is
14 Pulse+IT
It may sound hard and complex,
Like gazing at the colourful strands of
‘E-Health and ICT planning’ sounds
boring and difficult. Perhaps we should rename it — ‘Planning for a rainbow journey!’
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
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EDITORIAL
Enabling the Integrated Collaborative Healthcare System David Hancock
Head of Commercialisation Orion Health david.hancock@orionhealth.com
The promises of IT in healthcare, with a major part of
• Continued advancement in treatments, which has
this application known as eHealth, has had many false
led to greater medical specialisation and increased
dawns, but today we can see some real changes that
survival rates for many conditions that now have
mean Healthcare IT may at last be able to overcome
the characteristics of chronic disease — for example
the barriers that have prevented it from moving into
HIV and many cancers.
the 21st century.
In terms of IT maturity, Healthcare IT today is in
specialisation leads to a further increase in the
the same position that other industries were in 10 or 20
fragmentation in healthcare delivery, and an even
years ago. Proprietary/closed architectures still prevail;
greater co-ordination challenge.
many do not support open standards such as SQL
and the vast majority do not separate the application
to be supplied in completely different configurations
and data tiers. This makes sharing information with
with services delivered, not only in single healthcare
other applications extremely difficult, and lack of
facilities, but also now across multiple clinical
data transparency means there is no ‘plug and play’
organisations, outside of clinical settings and in the
interface for accessing or extracting data.
home, moving from episodic to chronic care.
However,
contemporaneously,
business
and
This has resulted in healthcare services needing
None of these issues are new. They have been the
clinical requirements of Healthcare IT have moved on
same for the last 15 - 20 years, but many of the barriers
substantially as a result of several impacting factors,
to change can be laid at the door of IT.
such as:
• Improved understanding of the scientific causes of
has continued to increase — despite acceptance that
diseases based on genomics and proteomics. • A rapidly ageing population and a decreasing number of healthcare workers. • Increasingly wealthy and empowered citizens in
Even as the proportion of GDP spent on healthcare
countries cannot afford to continue in this way — IT has not been applied at scale and with the participation and buy-in of patients, clinicians, policy makers and payers.
Governments see the cost of healthcare as a
developed/developing economies where lifestyles
tremendous drain on the economy contributing to very
have changed (become more unhealthy) and
large budget deficits and stifling economic growth in
expectations of their healthcare system are rising.
some countries. Facing such basic issues, Governments
• An epidemic in chronic conditions, particularly
now have the will, and often the political mandate,
Type II Diabetes, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary
to make the necessary changes to at last join up the
Disorder (COPD), Congestive Heart Failure (CHF),
fragmented islands of healthcare information and
Coronary Artery Disease and mental illness,
to provide integrated patient records accessible by
with patients increasingly having more than one
healthcare providers, patients and individuals within
condition.
their circle of care across the complete Patient Journey.
Author Info
And the corollary is that greater medical
David Hancock is Orion Health’s Head of Commercialisation. Since July 2010 he has been responsible for Industry Strategy and Product Marketing. Prior to his appointment at Orion Health, David worked at Oracle Corporation for 13 years focusing on Healthcare and Life Sciences. Orion Health is a leading healthcare software solution provider with expertise in clinical workflow and integration technology for the healthcare sector.
Orion Health is seeing Governments increasingly
considering how to implement this kind of Strategic Healthcare Management at large scale to obtain the necessary economies of scale and to achieve a step change in reducing costs and improving patients’ quality of life and safety.
In particular this includes population management,
in terms of optimising access to scarce healthcare
16 Pulse+IT
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
resources and supporting more self-care: large scale
maintaining the provenance and security of data
clinical workflow supporting end-to-end care processes across
primary
and
acute
care,
rehabilitation,
and complying with privacy programmes. 4. Improve adherence by healthcare providers to
community, remote and self-care while achieving economies of scale to do more with less.
evidence-based guidelines. 5. Remove the care-barriers between social, aged care
Disease management and citizen collaboration
and healthcare to better support those capable of
allows empowered patients and carers to make
independent living and reduce the heavy toll paid
informed choices about the healthcare services they
by the healthcare system of people not getting
use and to integrate them into the care team.
enough care for their needs consequently returning
Many countries have embarked on transformational
as frequent non-elective admissions.
Healthcare IT projects, including, for example,
6. Improve the productivity and outcomes of the
Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Denmark, England,
overall healthcare system through more effective
Netherlands, Singapore, Sweden and the US. While
utilisation of healthcare resources; such as
each country’s individual focus may be slightly different
transformative clinical workflows that support the
— each has a different starting point — they all have
pooling of resources to achieve economies of scale
similar objectives of improving cost-effectiveness of
in delivery, improving patient safety through the
healthcare services and improving patient care by
reduction in iatrogenic treatment and providing
better integrating the end to end care delivery process,
a platform for delivering more healthcare,
from the planning and commissioning of healthcare
for example through the use of telehealth or
services through to the shaping and delivery of care.
telemedicine.
Orion Health has identified seven key areas crucial
7. Improve the management of public health through
to developing an integrated collaborative healthcare
situational awareness with local and larger scale
system. In no order of priority, these are:
disease outbreaks.
1. Focus on the prevention and management of chronic disease.
At Orion Health, we see the move to integrated
collaborative
healthcare
happening
today.
This
2. Place the citizen at the centre of healthcare.
includes healthcare, social care and mental health
3. Secure sharing of clinical information within
to form a complete cross-care record supporting
facilities,
across
integrated collaborative care workflows. It is all about
regions, to alleviate issues resulting from the
between
strategic healthcare management, not just healthcare
fragmentation
interoperability and integration.
of
organizations healthcare
and
delivery,
yet
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Incrementally connecting healthcare. Poor information flow hinders decision making and care coordination. When care is uncoordinated, the risk of medical error increases 100-200%1. The iSOFT HIE solution offers a pragmatic and flexible approach to connecting eHealth systems for the standards based electronic exchange of health-related information. Integration capability is provided by the Viaduct integration engine. • Leverage existing eHealth systems • Achieve results with incremental implementations • Accelerate participation in the emerging connected national healthcare system • Connect iSOFT and third party solutions Visit http://www.isofthealth.com/ANZ-HIE.aspx to learn how the iSOFT HIE Suite can help you to achieve interoperability.
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The patient centred, connected eHealth ecosystem
Aged Care
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BITS & BYTES
IHTSDO meeting and showcase coming to Sydney in October
Clintel Systems certifies The Specialist for MacOS X Lion, expands claiming options
Clintel Systems, developer of ‘The
The International Health Terminology
and procedures. Ongoing priorities will be
Specialist’ practice software solution has
Standards
Organisation
defined through stakeholder consultation
announced product compatibility with
(IHTSDO) is holding its second major
and NEHTA’s assessment of benefits and
Apple’s recently released OS X 10.7 ‘Lion’
meeting for 2011 in Sydney in October.
capacity to support ongoing releases.
operating system.
Development
IHTSDO is an international not for
The five day event will comprise a three
Managing Director of Clintel Systems,
profit organisation that administers the
day meeting (10-12 October), followed
Nick Cuthbertson said that his company
rights to the Systematized Nomenclature
by a two day showcase (13-14 October),
was keen to maintain compatibility with
of Medicine-Clinical Terms (SNOMED
which is focusing on implementations
the evolving Mac platform, as well as other
CT), the clinical terminology selected
of SNOMED CT. The showcase will run
popular operating systems.
by the National
E-Health Transition
alongside a series of educational and
Authority (NEHTA) as the preferred clinical
poster sessions. This will be IHTSDO’s
committed to ensure that the Clintel suite
terminology for Australia.
first ever SNOMED CT Implementation
of software didn’t lag behind technology.
In IHTSDO’s own words: “SNOMED
Showcase, which will comprise an industry
Clintel’s other web based application,
CT is considered to be the most
exhibition with a range of local and
CareRight is compatible with most browsers
comprehensive,
international companies.
including
healthcare terminology in the world. Each
Firefox and Safari. It also runs on an Apple
year, avoidable deaths and injuries occur
of the showcase is to allow conference
iPad,” said Mr Cuthbertson.
because of poor communication between
delegates to interact with SNOMED CT
healthcare practitioners, or because busy
implementers from around the world
Systems has recently obtained a Medicare
practitioners forget or neglect to follow
and to share first-hand knowledge of the
Online ‘Notice of Integration’ for Bulk
their own criteria for best practices. The
challenges, benefits, and lessons learned
Bill Claims, Patient Claims and Eclipse
delivery of a standard clinical terminology
in SNOMED CT implementation.
in-hospital medical claims. Clintel’s first site
for
multilingual
clinical
According to the organisers, the aim
“As a long term Mac partner, Clintel is
Windows
Internet
Explorer,
In a separate development, Clintel
the
to implement the new functionality, a large
information systems can therefore make a
showcase is clinicians with an interest
independent billing service that provides
significant contribution towards improving
in structured clinical data for research,
billing services for a wide range of medical
the quality and safety of healthcare.”
quality improvement, clinical practice
specialists, went live at the beginning of
management
September.
use
across
the
world’s
health
SNOMED CT is now freely available for
The
target
audience
and
planning;
for
clinical
use in Australia, under NEHTA’s licensing
managers; clinical data managers; health
arrangements
International
information managers; health service
Services Manager indicated that the
Standards
managers interested in clinical and health
response from the site to the new claiming
Development Organisation. As SNOMED
business data futures; terminologists;
channels has been very positive, stating
CT does not provide total coverage of
clinical
project
that “the customer is looking forward to
all concepts and descriptions used in
managers; clinical information strategists;
the streamlined billing that is now available
the Australian healthcare environment,
clinical system developers, vendors and
to the clients that they serve”.
NEHTA is tasked with supplementing
commentators; and those with change and
SNOMED CT by developing specific
adoption interests.
Online function has been designed and
extensions and derivatives to cover local
The event will be hosted at the
developed within Clintel’s new Generation
clinical information requirements. The
Novotel, Brighton Le Sands, Sydney,
4 web-based platform, which is integrated
extensions and derivatives are anticipated
commencing
into the existing Specialist software.
to
Health
with
the
Terminology
information
on
system
Monday,
October
Julie Mulligan, Clintel System’s Business
Mr Cuthbertson said the Medicare
of
10 and running until Friday, October
terminology domains over time. However,
14. Further information, including a
adding further Generation 4 enhancements
initial priorities have been defined to
preliminary
to The Specialist, which will place our
cover areas such as medicines, allergies,
available from the IHTSDO website:
customers
adverse reactions, pathology, diagnosis
http://www.ihtsdo.org/index.php?id=818
technology in this space.”
cover
an
increasing
number
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
conference
schedule,
is
Pulse+IT 19
“Over the coming months we will be
at
the
forefront
of Web
BITS & BYTES
Sysmex prepares to link Clinical Data Repositories in New Zealand Sysmex, developer of the Eclair Clinical
functionality, including the ability to
Data Repository (CDR) solution, has
check if a pathology report has not been
announced plans to enable geographically
reviewed by the appropriate clinician in
dispersed installations of Eclair to be
an appropriate time frame. In the event
connected.
of such an oversight occurring, an alert
will be raised by the system, prompting
Rolled out as the centralised electronic
health
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the
someone else to attend to the result.
TestSafe project in Auckland and the
While not deployed across all regions yet,
TestSafe South project in Canterbury, the
this functionality is currently being used
Eclair CDR is being used to collect and
by Auckland City Hospital, which also
store pathology and radiology results sent
leverages Eclair’s ability to store pharmacy
from various healthcare organisations
dispensing information.
operating across multiple District Health
Board (DHB) regions.
kept asking for this piece of added
record
community doctors can look up a patient’s
system has also been made available to
record”, says Dr Ross Boswell, Clinical
pharmacists and authorised healthcare
Director at Counties Manukau DHB.
professionals in the community. It allows
“Our doctors can immediately see all
them to cross reference medications and
investigations relating to that patient:
treatment, check related lab results and if
community and hospital laboratory tests,
needed, phone the prescriber.”
radiology reports and more, no matter
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where in the Auckland region those
solution running in New Zealand. These
procedures were carried out. TestSafe
installations service Auckland, Canterbury,
means patients don’t have to be tested
Whanganui, Taranaki, Bay of Plenty, with
twice for a diagnosis, and it also means
two CDRs deployed in the Manawatu
they’re treated more quickly, on the
region.
basis of reliable, full information,” said Dr
Boswell.
South deployment in Canterbury has been
Go to the Best Practice website at www. bpsoftware.com.au to order your FREE Evaluation DvD, email sales@bpsoftware.com.au or phone (07) 4155 8800
implementation
hospital
“Clinical teams at Auckland hospitals
information,” says Dr Boswell. “The
The
TestSafe,
for
and
“Through
infrastructure
According to Sysmex, the TestSafe
TestSafe
particularly well utilised, the company
has not displaced traditional electronic
stating: “It provided a lifeline during the
methods of pathology and radiology
February earthquake in Canterbury, which
reporting for GPs, who still receive HL7
placed enormous pressure on health
reports for investigations they have
and emergency services in Christchurch.
referred themselves. It does, however,
Many patients needing essential elective
give GPs and other referrers more ready
surgery and care were urgently transferred
access to reports ordered by GPs in other
out of the devastated city to different
practices, as well as access to reports
hospital sites across the main centres
generated as a result of pathology and
of New Zealand. Urgent relocation of
radiology investigations originating from
patients meant there was little time to
within hospital settings.
arrange the transfer of medical records
In addition to the storage of pathology
from Canterbury. As well as this, many
and radiology results, the Eclair system
GP clinics were closed due to earthquake
can be configured to provide other
damage meaning patient records were
20 Pulse+IT
of
Sysmex has six instances of its Eclair
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
BITS & BYTES unavailable.”
CDRs and the existing jurisdictional health
boundaries make the federated approach
To enable authorised clinicians to
access information about patients from
a more viable proposition at this time.
other regions, Sysmex is developing a
‘federation’ capability into the Eclair CDR
reach of the system, Eclair’s security
which will allow secure access between
model is designed to ensure patient
Eclair CDRs. According to the company,
privacy is highly regarded at all times.
the federated CDR system will allow
Healthcare professionals that have been
one Eclair CDR to query another CDR for
authenticated to their local Eclair CDR
patient records. For example, when a
can view information about their patient,
clinician accesses a patient record in the
regardless of which regional Eclair CDR
Eclair CDR system in Canterbury, they
is hosting the data. All access to both
would be notified if there were records for
local and remote CDRs is logged for audit
that patient in the Eclair CDR in Auckland.
purposes, with patients having the choice
The clinician can then view the results and
to opt out of TestSafe if they do not wish
reports held in the Auckland Eclair CDR,
their health records to be shared.
from within the local patient record hosted
in Canterbury.
have been viewed and who viewed them,”
While modern IT infrastructure could
says Mr James Webster, CEO at Sysmex.
facilitate a completely centralised service,
“This adds confidence in the integrity of
the historical establishment of separate
system use.”
Despite the increasing geographic
“It is possible to monitor what records
Diagnostic Imaging Pathways now available as an iPad app The University of Western Australia’s
Pathways initiative, Professor Richard
Centre
(CSP)
Mendelson, said the app will help doctors
has released a new iPad application
more appropriately refer patients to
designed to help clinicians to choose the
imaging services.
most
for
Software
appropriate
Practice
diagnostic
imaging
“Thirty per cent of imaging requests
examinations in a wide range of clinical
are incorrect or inappropriate — the iPad
scenarios.
application ‘DipHD’ will help make sure
The
diagnostic
decision
support
that patients have the best chance of
tool and education resource has been
getting the most accurate diagnosis,” said
developed by CSP in collaboration with
Professor Mendelson.
the Department of Imaging Services at the
Royal Perth Hospital.
Glance said having the pathways available
on the iPad ensures that doctors will have
Originally released as a web-based
CSP Director Associate Professor David
resource, Diagnostic Imaging Pathways
ready access to this and future guidelines.
includes
more
than
130
pathways
“Imaging is the first step in future
covering all the major organ systems and
pathways that will also involve pathology
common clinical scenarios. The pathways
and clinical referral guidelines,” Associate
development was based on broad clinical
Professor Glance said.
consensus and best-available evidence,
with the pathways under continuous
DipHD app is available at the Diagnostic
review and development. The principle
Imaging Pathways website: http://www.
clinical lead behind the Diagnostic Imaging
imagingpathways.health.wa.gov.au
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
Further information and a link to the
Pulse+IT 21
BITS & BYTES Advantech upgrades patient infotainment system An upgraded and more cost-effective patient infotainment system has been
NPS releases MedicineWise medication list app for iPhone
released by Advantech.
The National Prescribing Service (NPS)
‘change log’ that automatically updates
Powered by Intel’s first dual core Atom
has released ‘MedicineWise’, an app that
itself as the user adds and removes
processor, the terminal supports full high
allows users to maintain a medications list
medications from their current medications
definition video, radio, games, VoIP, email,
on their iPhone or other iOS device.
list. As with the medications list, this
Internet services, nurse call capabilities and
The application, developed with the
change log can be emailed for review on a
emergency alarm functions.
assistance of Creative Licence Digital,
desktop computer by either the user, their
models,
allows users to track the brand, active
carer, or a health professional.
Advantech has reduced the size and weight
ingredients, strength and dosage of their
of the system, which the company says
medicines, including prescription, over the
app will be of benefit to a range of patients,
will permit lower-cost articulating arms to
counter and complementary medicines.
not just the technologically saavy.
be used to hold the terminal next to the
As well as capturing textual information,
bedside.
the app allows the user to take photos of
who take many medicines and need
In addition to the patient centric
each medication’s packaging, dispensing
to keep that information to tell their
applications, the terminals are designed
label, and the medication itself, with these
healthcare providers, so they don’t have
to be used by clinicians to access medical
photos categorised in separate fields
to remember all of those long, hard to
records at the patient’s bedside.
within each medication’s record.
pronounce names, or those who don’t take
MedicineWise prompts the user to
medicines regularly and don’t remember
clinicians is built around paper-based
enter their key demographics into the
to take them,” says NPS Clinical Adviser,
systems, or a mix of various portable IT
interface, which also contains fields for
Dr Danielle Stowasser.
systems. These platforms have a place
allergies,
for some applications, but as a general
and their usual GP and pharmacist. A
to use. It’s suitable for people who are
medical record, users are finding they are
list of predefined questions ‘to ask your
younger, or older, or if you’re a carer for
difficult to carry around. We’re finding that
health professional’ is included alongside
someone. So it’s suitable regardless of
many clinicians are leaving them back in
these demographics, featuring common
whether you are a new iPhone user or an
the nurses station and they’re not being
queries such as “Why do I need to take
old pro.”
used to their potential,” says Brad Waters,
this medicine?”; When should I take my
Advantech’s
Improving
“The
upon
current
previous
workflow
Medical
of
many
Product Support
emergency
contact
details
The NPS believes the MedicineWise
“The major benefit will be for those
“It’s designed to be intuitive and easy
NPS indicated it has plans to extend
medication and for how long?”; and “What
the MedicineWise app to include an
Manager.
do I do if I miss a dose?”. A free-text field
alarm designed as a medication reminder
“Going to a patient infotainment
also allows the patient to make a note of
system. Users will have the choice to tailor
terminal by the bedside enables the
any other questions they may wish to ask
both weekday and weekend alarms to
clinician to access medical records so they
their healthcare professional.
their needs. Further into the future, the
can update the charts of patients or view
Once the medications list has been
organisation intends to link the application
information from the system. It saves
compiled within the app, the user can
with the Australian Medicines Terminology
having paper, and it improves the efficiency
email it as PDF to themselves for printing,
(AMT) as well as other information
in managing the medical records and
or directly to a practice or pharmacy,
resources.
medical data.
if indeed the healthcare organisation
welcomes this type of correspondence.
program specifically with all of the
“We are seeing a huge push towards
having
infotainment
systems
by
“Next year we’re doing an antibiotics
the
The PDF medications list includes the
commonly used antibiotics pre-loaded.
bedside, and realistically the potential
patient’s name, emergency contact, the
The patient or consumer will get to
savings for a hospital are huge in
creation date of the list, allergies, and the
select their medicine, and it will tell them
that medical records will be available
questions the patient made a note of to
other important information about their
instantaneously, with accuracy far greater
ask their healthcare professional.
medicines, and link to websites with that
than possible when relying on paper.”
information,” said Dr Stowasser.
— Cara Sayer-Bourne
In addition to keeping a list of current
medications, MedicineWise maintains a
22 Pulse+IT
— Cara Sayer-Bourne
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
At we’d rather catch you than catch you out
At GPA they’re called Quality Accreditation Managers (QAM) QAM Job description:
Not letting you fall. Ever. Work in the interest of our clients from first contact to reaching accreditation. Support and guide our clients through every step of the process. GPA AccrEditAtion plus does things differently.
Accreditation doesn’t have to be the daunting process. As so many of GPA ACCREDITATION plus clients are happy to repeat “GPA’s process has changed what we thought was going to be a hardship into a rewarding experience.” From the beginning your own personal QAM steers you through the entire accreditation process at your own pace. The flexible GPA ACCREDITATION plus modular programs (online or paper-based) are designed to be user friendly, ensuring practices confidently prepare to meet the RACGP standards. We report back to you step by step, giving you the opportunity to make improvements along the way. “I was very happy with the modules – it allowed me to work slowly and consistently through the requirements and I felt supported at the same time.” When your Practice is ready, GPA ACCREDITATION plus will liaise with you to organise a survey visit conducted by experienced surveyors. “GPA ACCREDITATION plus surveyors were very helpful, which made everything run smoothly on the final stage of accreditation – there were no surprises!!” If that sounds different to the way you’ve been used to, call GPA ACCREDITATION plus and let’s get started. call us now on: 1800 188 088 or log on to: www.gpa.net.au
BITS & BYTES
Inala Primary Care deploys iPad for community health assessments Inala Primary Care (IPC) is using Apple
protective cover that incorporated a
iPads to mobilise its practice nurse
Bluetooth
workforce, enabling patients eligible for
however after trialling the
Medicare claimable Health Assessments
accessory, the nurses have reverted to
to undergo preliminary review in their own
using the iPad’s ‘on screen’ keyboard and a
home.
stylus for data entry.
Cathy Brown, CEO of the not-for‑profit
keyboard
into
its
“We’ve found that because of the way
innovative arrangements came about
a lot of the data entry is just ticking, so
in May of this year as a result of a lack of
instead of using the Bluetooth keyboard,
available consulting rooms on certain days
we use the on screen keyboard as required
of the week.
and a stylus, and it’s really fast.“
iPhone app
Practice nurses from IPC are typically
South Complex Diabetes Service and the
able to perform six or seven patient
place is just buzzing. Although we have
reviews in the community per day, which
11 consulting rooms, on Tuesday morning
Ms Brown says is providing greater insight
we have 12 bodies wanting to use those
into the patients living arrangements than
rooms. The solution? One of our practice
would be possible in a typical consultation
nurses goes on the road and completes
conducted in the practice.
the nurse component of the 75 year and
over Health Assessments in the homes of
and does these health assessments in
our patients using an iPad. She remotely
the home, which gives us a much clearer
connects into the practice and is able
picture of the patients’ conditions and
to complete all nursing aspects of the
surroundings as well.”
health assessment along with a follow up
appointment with the GP.”
picture of their patients’ healthcare
“Every Tuesday the nurse goes out
In addition to gaining a more complete
While there are numerous remote
requirements, Ms Brown believes the
access solutions that allow iPad users
convenience offered to patients is seen as
to connect to and control a desktop
a major benefit.
computer, IPC settled on PocketCloud
Pro, which is available for under $10 from
do not have to spend extended time in
the Apple App Store. Once logged in
the practice seeing the nurse and then
using the iPad, nurses from IPC are able
their GP after. For the elderly people we
to interact with the clinic’s installation of
have coming into the practice, for them to
Best Practice, despite the fact this clinical
come in and sit for 45 minutes with a nurse
software runs natively on Microsoft
and then to have to go back to the waiting
Windows platforms.
room and sit for another 15 minutes to half
“Patients just love this service as they
“I don’t know of any other practices
an hour, only to have to sit for 20 minutes
doing this. The GPs that I know that work
with a doctor, it’s just too long a day for
in other practices around us are amazed
them, especially as most have to catch
that we are using an iPad to link back to
buses to and from the practice just to be
software that isn’t running on an Apple
here. Under the new arrangements, the
platform,” says Ms Brown.
patients just pop in and see the doctor and
off they go again.”
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
NEW
third-party
Best Practice has setup their templates,
IPC purchased their iPad with a
SOMETHING
design,
practice in Brisbane’s South West said the
“On Tuesdays, we run the Brisbane
DISCOVER
Pulse+IT 25
Available on the
App Store or call 1800 800 629
EVENTS SEPTEMBER
OCTOBER
NOVEMBER
2nd Annual Clinical Audit Improvement Conference 8 September - 9 September Melbourne, VIC P: +61 2 9080 4300 W: www.iir.com.au
HISA NSW Educational Event 6 October Sydney, NSW P: +61 3 9326 3311 W: www.hisa.org.au/nsw
GPCE Melbourne 11 November - 13 November Melbourne, VIC P: +61 2 9422 2700 W: www.gpce.com.au
GP11 Conference 6 October - 8 October Hobart, TAS P: +61 3 8699 0533 W: www.gp11.com.au
Australian General Practice Network National Forum 2011 16 November - 19 November Melbourne, VIC P: +61 2 6228 0835 W: www.gpnetworkforum.com.au
3rd Annual National Cancer Centres Symposium 8 September - 9 September Sydney, NSW P: +61 2 9080 4300 W: www.informa.com.au 2nd Annual National Disability Summit 15 September - 16 September Melbourne, VIC P: +61 2 9080 4300 W: www.iir.com.au HIMAA National Conference 2011 20 September - 23 September Melbourne, VIC P: +61 2 9887 5001 W: www.himaa.org.au HIMSS AsiaPac 2011 20 September - 23 September Melbourne, VIC P: +65 9848 5259 W: www.himssasiapac.org WAGPN State Forum 20 September - 21 September Perth, WA P: +61 2 9472 2922 W: www.wagpnetwork.com.au Best Practice Group Training 20 September - 22 September Sydney, NSW P: +61 7 4155 8800 W: www.bpsoftware.com.au
IHTSDO Conference 10 October - 14 October Sydney, NSW P: +61 2 8298 2600 W: www.ihtsdo.org AAPM National Conference 18 October - 21 October Perth, WA P: +61 3 9095 8712 W: www.aapm.org.au
HINZ Conference and Exhibition 2011 23 November - 25 November Auckland, NZ W: www.hinz.org.nz
The 2nd Annual National Pathology Forum 24 October - 25 October Melbourne, VIC P: +61 2 9080 4300 W: www.informa.com.au
2nd Annual Healthcare Complaints Management Conference 28 November - 29 November Melbourne, VIC P: +61 2 9080 4300 W: www.iir.com.au
4th Annual Hospital & Healthcare Security & Safety Conference 24 October - 25 October Melbourne, VIC P: +61 2 9080 4300 W: www.iir.com.au
DECEMBER
2nd Annual Hospital Nutrition & Hydration Summit 26 October - 27 October Melbourne, VIC P: +61 2 9080 4300 W: www.iir.com.au
14th Healthcare Facilities Planning and Design Summit 27 September - 28 September Sydney, NSW P: +61 2 9080 4300 W: www.informa.com.au
PCI DSS Compliance Conference 27 October Sydney, NSW P: +61 2 9080 4300 W: www.iir.com.au/interestareas/ict
The 7th Annual Ageing Population Summit 28 September - 30 September Melbourne, VIC W: www.informa.com.au
Rural Medicine Australia 28 October - 30 october Alice Springs, NT P: +61 7 3105 8200 W: www.acrrm.org.au
26 Pulse+IT
ACEM 20 November - 24 November Sydney, NSW P: +61 2 9213 4000 W: www.acem2011.com
Successes and Failures in Telehealth 1 December - 2 December Brisbane, QLD P: +61 7 3876 4988 W: www.icebergevents.com/sft11 Dental Healthcare Policy Forum 1 December - 2 December Melbourne, VIC P: +61 2 9080 4300 W: www.informa.com.au 3rd Annual Reducing Medication Errors Conference 7 December - 8 December Melbourne, VIC P: +61 2 9080 4300 W: www.iir.com.au
Online Calendar
To view a comprehensive list of Health IT, Health, and IT events, visit the Pulse+IT website: http://bit.ly/gFr0Vk
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
AAPM SS C
PRACTICE MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE
NATIONAL CONFERENCE
PERFORMANCE
perfection Registration includes:
• • • •
Attendance at plenary and concurrent sessions Welcome Reception Happy Hour Gala Conference Dinner
For details of speakers and the program visit www.cdesign.com.au/aapm2011
Terry Hawkins Michael Licenblat Carmen Lawrence David Joske Wendy Wardell
Panel Discussion
The Future of Healthcare – PCRHR – What has it got to do with me? Sponsored by NEHTA, AAPM Platinum Sponsor Moderator: Gerry Gannon
Panellists: Marina Fulcher – AAPM, Marianna Kelly – AVANT, Vince McCauley – MSIA, Prof. Bernard PearnRowe – GP, Peter Szucs – NEHTA, Trish Williams – Edith Cowan University, Sue Kruse – Medicare
Optional Functions
• First Time Attendees Dinner • UNE Partnerships Graduation and Awards Ceremony
Keynote speakers:
• • • • •
✓
CONFERENCE CHECKLIST LIST
• • • • •
Michelle Ray Sue Kruse Justin Langer Peter Fleming Glenn Singleman and Heather Swan
• Dinner at Matilda Bay Sponsors and Exhibitors AAPM is grateful to all the sponsors and exhibitors. Visit the website to check out who will be exhibiting this year.
Pre-conference workshops – optional
• Benchmarking for General Practice • The Emotionally Intelligent Communicator • Fundamentals of Project Management two-day workshop (UNE Partnerships)
Workshops during the conference:
• • • • • • •
Pressure Proofing Excel Workshop Australian Medical Benchmarks Myers Briggs Leadership Lasseter’s Reef World Class Service Excellence Customer Service
Conference Secretariat Conference Design Pty Ltd 228 Liverpool Street Hobart Tasmania 7000 P: 03 6231 2999 F: 03 6231 1522 E: info@cdesign.com.au W: www.cdesign.com.au
Burswood Entertainment Complex Perth Western Australia 18 – 21 October 2011 Including workshops on Monday 17 and Tuesday 18 October, 2011
MSIA
Sharing the lessons learnt: A vehicle for engagement and fast tracking eHealth adoption
Dr Geoffrey Sayer BSc(Psychol), MCH, PhD President, MSIA president@msia.com.au
There is a lot of stock in the listening to the lessons of
failure. However, there is greater engagement and fast
along an effective eHealth agenda. Leadership
tracking of uptake of lessons when they are integrated
is different from management in that it inspires.
with the stories of success.
Leadership finds ways that no one else has thought of.
The software industry is full of optimistic people.
Leadership focuses on outcomes and strategies, how
They are excited about an evolving and changing
to get there with effective planning and consideration.
world. They often are working on developments that
Leadership is effective problem solving that uses
they can see benefit clinicians in the way they deliver
problem solving as part of the engagement process.
care, and for patients in how their care and health can
be improved. They are glass half full people. Some are
is Alexander the Great’s Art of Strategy by Partha Bose.
happy when even the glass is only a quarter full. They
Alexander’s leadership skills are unquestionable.
are still excited about opportunity when there is more
This book is a great read as it provides many lessons
air in the glass than actual refreshment.
in how to look at problem solving and strategy that
gives one the best chance of success. It speaks of
The Deloitte National E-Health Strategy in 2008
Leadership is the key lesson to moving Australia
One of my favourite business management books
gave the industry great hope with its talk of:
stories of success under great adversity and clear and
• “Market driven” projects and solutions
articulate leadership. It speaks of how, in conquering
• National infrastructure, legislation and standards
an empire larger than the Roman Empire was to
• A 10 year implementation roadmap: communicate,
become, Alexander the Great was actually great at
collaborate, consolidate
engaging, listening and respecting all opinions and
• An incremental and distributed approach to
ideas. This allowed his armies to be effective in quite
development and implementation of Individual
difficult situations where his forces were considerably
Electronic Health Records
outnumbered, and to achieve the unexpected. The
The National E-Health Strategy received further
focus was about a successful outcome, what would
endorsement in 2009 with the release of The National
prevent that, and how approaches could be used to
Hospital and Health Reform Commission Final
deliver the desired outcome. This made it clear to
Report. Significantly, Recommendation #123 from
his forces what they needed to d0, even when things
the report states: “There is critical need to strengthen
became tough.
the leadership, governance and level or resources
committed by governments to enable a National
Alexander’s exploits and at the end of each campaign
E-Health Plan.”
point it discusses how the strategy and approach
The author provides a good historical account of
provides us with valuable lessons in problem solving
Author Info
and achieving success. By engaging the reader into a As well as being President of MSIA, Geoffrey is Head of Operations, HealthLink. He has spent the past 20 years working as an epidemiologist. For the past 10 years Geoffrey has occupied senior management positions in medical software companies.
historical account — and quite a good story — it gives us lessons and inspires us to achieve greater things in our working lives.
The underlying premise of Bose’s narrative is to
challenge any proposed strategy and look at how that strategy could fail rather than listening to the people
28 Pulse+IT
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
who are only interested in why it will work.
shopping and exchanging ideas, arms
people to catch up when compared with
This is not a negative stance. Rather it is a
the participants to ‘go and do’. When
having them going along for the ride from
dose of reality, looking at how to mitigate
the lessons learnt process is to increase
the outset. Many documents speak of the
against the unexpected and often turning
participation amongst vendors to get to a
lessons learnt from the Health Connect
those into positives. It also allows one to
tipping point, lessons should show vendors
days. I always found it hard to get a simple
get a sense of success as you realise you
what is possible. It should excite the
list of those lessons and it was not until in
are now armed with greater tools and
market place which, to be honest, doesn’t
the last 12 months that something that
techniques than you previously were. It
need much to get excited. The lessons
sort of looked like a list surfaced. That is
builds a team through all the ranks. This
should show how easy successes can be
many years after the event. If we want
is particularly evident in Bose’s lesson of
achieved, while dealing with problems that
people to be engaged and firing by 1 July
listening to the local goat herders and the
can be resolved from working the problem
2012, we need to know the lessons as they
front line foot soldiers. This lesson tells us
over with like minded people.
are being learnt.
that listening to the Generals while sipping
tea in the tents well away from enemy
of the early lessons from the Health
right information at the right time. Many
lines does not give us the real valuable
Identifier developments in the field. While
electronic
insights into local conditions. Wasting
it is important to understand, for example,
designers talk about information ‘just in
resources at the frontline is uninspiring,
the value of a middle name field in clinical
time’ or real time. Yet when it comes to
and not many others will want to join the
software to improve patient identity
information about the PCEHR program it
frontline. Listening to those who know
matching, it is not that exciting, even to
seems that it is the wrong information at
the conditions gives a better outcome.
those who are glass quarter full people.
the wrong time.
Progress and success brings greater
To be successful in eHealth we want the
participation than failure.
market place to see the wave starting to
the more sharing of experiences, the
form. Let us not give them reasons to not
more likelihood that the strategy will
that were uninspiring, negative, complex
want to get involved.
be challenged and alternate favourable
and irrelevant to what we were interested
Lessons have to be timely when there
solutions and successes will be found and
in. These lessons do not inspire us to
is a heightened sensitivity and interest.
implemented. Remember, if you are part
change or participate. Being lectured
Leaving the lessons to some time down
of the solution you are much more likely to
at is uninspiring. White boarding, work
the track will make it harder to engage
implement the solution.
I am sure we all remember lessons
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Pulse+IT 29
24/08/2011 12:02:48 PM
NEHTA
Q&A with NEHTA Head of PCEHR, Andrew Howard Andrew Howard Head of PCEHR NEHTA
From 1 July next year, all Australians will have the opportunity to register for their own Personally Controlled Electronic Health Record (PCEHR). Andrew Howard is leading NEHTA’s PCEHR programme and it is all systems go. What difference will a PCEHR make to Australians?
program is the provision of two waves of funding for
A big difference. For the first time, all Australians who
and functional parts of the Australian health sector.
choose to participate will be able to see their important
The lead eHealth sites collectively will aim to enroll
health information, when and where they need it. They
up to 500,000 individuals. The lessons learned from
will be able to share this information with trusted
these sites will be incorporated into the national
healthcare providers.
infrastructure so that when we scale to a national level,
we are scaling the right processes.
A personally controlled electronic health record
twelve lead eHealth sites spanning different geographic
system will enable better access to important
information held in dispersed records around the
the core PCEHR system infrastructure. The Department
The team that I am leading is focused on delivering
country. It will mean that patients will no longer need
of Health and Ageing acts as the programme manager
to unnecessarily repeat their medical history every
and has engaged a number of partners, including
time they see a doctor or other health professional.
NEHTA. NEHTA is responsible for managing the requirements and high-level architecture of the PCEHR
How is the personally controlled electronic health record system being implemented?
system, managing agent for the delivery partners,
The PCEHR system is being built on the foundations
process.
and as well, supporting the standards development
developed by NEHTA such as the Healthcare Identifiers (HI) Service.
What is NEHTA’s role with these partners?
We act as a ‘managing agent’ of the PCEHR programme
The implementation of the PCEHR system will
be based upon a combination of ‘top down’ national
partners which include:
initiatives and ‘bottom up’ lead eHealth sites. This
• A Benefits Evaluation Partner responsible for
allows for tangible eHealth project outcomes on the
developing a benefits realisation and evaluation
ground, while at the same time ensuring a focus on
framework and assessing the ongoing progress
the central actions required to deliver a nationally
of the PCEHR system. The outcomes of the
interoperable system.
evaluation process will be used to help inform the
ongoing implementation programme and future
A key part of the bottom-up implementation
Author Info
investments. Andrew Howard is the Head of PCEHR at NEHTA. Previous to this he was the Head of Strategy and E-Health Architecture and the interim Chief Executive Officer with NEHTA, and the Chief Information Officer of the Department of Human Services in Victoria. Andrew has an extensive background in eHealth and 15 years international consulting experience as an Associate Partner with Accenture where he ran the Australia Post Commercial Systems Portfolio.
• A Change and Adoption Partner responsible for the strategic plan for driving adoption including the strategies for communications, engagement, training and adoption levers and providing change management support to adopters of the PCEHR system. As well, the change and adoption partner is responsible for ensuring the lessons learned by
30 Pulse+IT
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
our lead sites are incorporated into the national
the Commonwealth, states and territories. This has
programme
required ongoing collaboration with numerous peak
• A National Infrastructure Partner responsible for
bodies and industry associations as well as the analysis
delivering the infrastructure components of the
and adoption of substantial public comment through
PCEHR system.
the PCEHR submissions.
We are excited to have started working with the
We are navigating through a complex range of
partners to build a system that is tailored for our
viewpoints and advice to arrive at the most practical
national needs while taking on board lessons learned
outcome for the nation. We do this knowing that some
from international experience.
groups will continue to disagree with aspects of these decisions as we move towards a launch date for PCEHR
What does the 1 July 2012 deadline mean?
registration of 1 July 2012.
While all Australians will have the option of registering
for a PCEHR in July 2012, adoption of the PCEHR
Roxon, released the final concept of operations on
system capabilities by healthcare providers and their
September 14. The concept of operations documents
eHealth system suppliers will take time. Beyond July
how the PCEHR will work. The document is based on
2012, the government will work with consumers,
an initial draft concept of operations developed with
healthcare providers and the ICT industry to build upon
stakeholders in early 2011, followed by an extensive
the capabilities provided by the PCEHR system and
public consultation process and final review of policy
look to incrementally expand the breadth and depth of
positions by the minister.
The Minister for Health and Ageing, Nicola
adoption over time.
What is an individual’s personally controlled electronic health record and how is it being developed? Essentially it is an electronic record of an individual’s important health information, stored and shared in a secure network of connected systems.
PCEHR Snapshot Australians will have the opportunity to register online from 1 July 2012 to establish a PCEHR. Participation is voluntary and individuals will have a range of controls over the record.
People will have easy-to-access information
about a summary of their medical history — including medications, test results and allergies. In addition to
The system will be underpinned by rigorous governance and oversight to maintain its clinical integrity, utility, privacy and national standards and core national infrastructure.
the summary information, consumers and clinicians will have access to specific information related to health care events on their health journey. These may include
The system complements (but does not replace) existing records and clinical communications
event summaries, discharge summaries, specialist letters, test results and reports.
Consumers will be able to present for treatment
anywhere in the country, and give permission for health professionals to access their relevant history.
What consultation has been undertaken to get to this point? NEHTA has been involved in lengthy consultations
The record will bring key health information from a number of different systems together and present it in a single view. Information will be able to be accessed by the individual and their authorised healthcare providers. With this information available to them, healthcare providers will be able to make better decisions about health and treatment advice. The record will not hold all the information held in a doctor’s records but will complement it by highlighting key information.
with consumers, healthcare providers, the ICT software industry, and policy makers and these conversations continue. These discussions have built upon years of work and significant investment by
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
In the future, as the PCEHR becomes more widely available, individuals will be able to access their own health information anytime from anywhere in Australia.
Pulse+IT 31
FEATURE
Towards the PCEHR: An update from the Vendor Panel Simon James
BIT, BComm Editor, Pulse+IT simon.james@pulseitmagazine.com.au
Introduction
patients remains a point of contention.
In November 2010, the National E-Health Transition
Authority (NEHTA) called for proposals from clinical
consortia tasked with building the core PCEHR
software developers to support a series of eHealth pilot
technology — only recently named and awarded
projects being undertaken by three then-Divisions,
funding, any attempt to detail what the PCEHR
namely GP Partners in Queensland, Hunter Urban
will look like in practical terms and how healthcare
Division of General Practice, and the Melbourne East
providers and patients will interact with it after
General Practice Network. Collectively know as Wave 1,
its launch on 1st July 2012 would be somewhat
these localities were selected to serve as regions where
speculative, notwithstanding the availability of the
eHealth specifications could be tested in live settings
Draft Concept of Operations: Relating to the introduction
by practices and other healthcare organisations, with
of a personally controlled electronic health record system
a view to this process informing the development of
and the PCEHR System: Legislation Issues Paper. Over
the Personally Controlled Electronic Health Record
160 submissions were received in response to the first
(PCEHR) and ongoing eHealth specifications and
document, which is scheduled to be finalised and made
standards development. Nine additional pilot projects
public in September.
have since been enacted under the Wave 2 initiative,
however it is important to note that the work of
Partner consortia includes Accenture, Oracle, Orion
the software developers detailed in this article has
Health and Telstra, who have been awarded a total of
relevance and applicability that transcends both the
$77m to undertake their program of work.
Wave 1 and Wave 2 pilots, and indeed the PCEHR.
The Personally Controlled Electronic Health Record
With the National Infrastructure Partner — the
Announced in August, the National Infrastructure
In announcing the winners of the tender process,
Minister for Health and Ageing, Nicola Roxon, cited the group’s collective experience in Singapore as a major factor in their selection, referring to the fact that
While the terms used to describe the architecture vary
members of this consortia had built and ‘gone live’ with
depending on whether it’s being discussed by politicians
the first phase of the Singapore National Electronic
or software developers, the PCEHR will ultimately
Health Record in June this year.
manifest itself as a collection of repositories intended
to allow information from various clinical systems to
the Singapore project is likely to emerge as the basis
be aggregated together for the purpose of making this
of Australia’s core PCEHR infrastructure, Brad Cable,
information readily accessible to healthcare providers
Accenture’s Australian Health and Public Service
across the sector. Patients will also have the ability to
lead, acknowledged the differences between the
view and add information to ‘their’ PCEHR, however
Singaporean and Australian health sectors and the
the extent to which this opportunity will be pursued by
countries’ ambitions for their respective health record
While much of the underlying technology used in
projects.
Author Info
Simon James is the editor of Pulse+IT, one of Australia’s highest circulating health publication of any kind. Prior to founding the publication in 2006 he worked in the statistics division of a clinical research organisation, in an IT support capacity for various medical practices, for a clinical software developer, and subsequently for a secure clinical messaging developer.
“The health industry in Singapore is certainly a lot
different to the one in Australia. What we are doing in Australia is utilising our experience from Singapore, plus some other electronic health records projects we have been involved in globally. We’ll be using similar products in Australia, but again, using them in the context of what Australia wants to deliver, being a
32 Pulse+IT
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
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Personally Controlled Electronic Health Record.
intended to allow clinical software to more reliably
match electronic correspondence, minimising the risk
“Oracle and Orion Health will provide fundamental
products for this project, and these are what we
of clinical information being misfiled and overlooked.
use globally as well. Accenture also has significant
software assets ourselves, which bring all these pieces
associated with the project, namely:
of technology together. Whilst principally we use the
• Individual Healthcare Identifiers (IHI)
same basis, the health sectors are all slightly different
• Healthcare Provider Identifiers for Individuals
in the way they approach it, the way they implement it, with different clinical software packages feeding
There are three types of healthcare identifiers
(HPI-I) • Healthcare Provider Identifiers for Organisations
the health records to consider as well. Conceptually
(HPI-O)
the same, but they are all unique and have their
differences,” said Mr Cable.
that may ensue in the event of a mismatched clinical
The Vendor Panel
Given the serious patient safety consequences
document, software developers are required to submit to two levels of third-party testing before they can
As the National Infrastructure Partner works on the
interact with the Medicare Australia‑run Healthcare
mammoth task it has been assigned, what will be
Identifier Service.
more immediately relevant to clinicians and the people
working with them in private practice settings is the
is designed to test basic communication between
project being undertaken by the Vendor Panel. This
a clinical software package and the Healthcare
group is made up of six software companies tasked and
Identifier Service. Dr Frank Pyefinch of Best Practice
funded by Government to incorporate specific pieces
Software described this process as “quite simple”,
of functionality into their clinical software, with some
notwithstanding the few days that were required to
parcels of development already completed.
work through the various testing scenarios.
The initial Vendor Panel comprised of Best
The first, dubbed the ‘Notice of Connectivity’
A more rigorous and costly testing process
Practice, iSoft, Medtech Global and Zedmed. Two
overseen by the National Association of Testing
additional vendors, Genie Solutions and Communicare
Authorities (NATA) is also required to be undertaken
Systems were added to the Vendor Panel after its
by software developers looking to interface their
initial formation, purportedly in reflection of the fact
solutions with the Healthcare Identifier Service. This
that customers of these companies were expected to
process, performed by a NATA accredited testing
be important to the viability of several Wave 2 pilot
laboratory, requires the software developer to hand
projects.
over their software to be functionally tested, a process
Scope of Work
that takes around five to seven days according to most of the vendors on the panel. During this process, the
The work being undertaken by members of the
testing laboratories were required to perform over 100
Vendor Panel has been divided into three project
practical tests to ensure the clinical software safely and
milestones, imaginatively named Release 1, 2 and
appropriately handles any interaction the software has
3. The priority order of the pieces of development
with the Healthcare Identifier Service or healthcare
within these Releases has allowed some of the early
identifiers stored within the software.
software enhancements to be piloted by practices located within the Wave 1 geographic catchments,
Clinical Document Architecture
however only minimal details about the rollout of these
The second parcel of work within Release 1 requires
enhancements have started to emerge.
members of the Vendor Panel to enable their software to display electronic Discharge Summaries and
Release 1
Specialist Letters. While most modern Australian
Healthcare Identifiers
clinical software can already display incoming
The first component of Release 1 requires that
electronic correspondence, much of this existing
healthcare identifier functionality be incorporated
functionality is built upon the HL7 v2 standard and not
into the vendors’ clinical software. In broad terms,
the Clinical Document Architecture (CDA) specifications
the widespread adoption of healthcare identifiers is
being advocated by NEHTA.
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
Pulse+IT 35
In a logical combining of the aforementioned
Release 3
healthcare identifier functionality and the required CDA
Intended for completion in early 2012, Release 3
capabilities, the vendors’ software needs to be able to
requires that Vendor Panel members deploy a range
match incoming CDA documents to the appropriate
of functionality, namely the Australian Medicines
patient and clinician using the Healthcare Identifiers
Terminology (AMT), SNOMED CT, Event Summaries,
embedded in the CDA message.
and Electronic Transfer of Prescription features. With
The deadlines for the delivery of the Release
Vendor Panel members mostly consumed with the
1 work has now passed, with all six Vendor Panel
requirements of Release 2 at this time, few had turned
members having successfully completed the requisite
their attention to the specifics of Release 3, limiting
development.
the amount of available information about the specific requirements of this final project stage.
Release 2 To be delivered by the end of October, Vendor Panel
Funding
members are required to enhance their software to
To defray some of the development and deployment
allow it to generate Electronic Referrals and Health
costs associated with the work being undertaken
Summaries in CDA format, and then transfer these
by the Vendor Panel, members are to receive fixed
using a Secure Message Delivery (SMD) carrier. For
price payments varying from around $15,000 to
a comprehensive overview of SMD, see [Pulse+IT
$30,000 for each of the various pieces of functionality
Magazine, July 2010, pp20], however in essence, the
described above. In addition, per site payments for
technology is designed to allow secure messages
each healthcare organisation that deploys software
to be sent from one clinical software package to
containing the updated functionality will also be
another, regardless of which messaging capability the
made to the corresponding member of the Vendor
sender and receiver have selected. Secure messaging
Panel, however it is unclear whether such payments
solutions are plentiful in Australia, however few if any
will apply only to healthcare organisations within the
are compatible with offerings from competing vendors,
Wave 1 geographic catchments, or additionally include
effectively requiring that both the sender and receiver
healthcare organisations operating in the Wave 2
of secure electronic correspondence are using the
localities.
same system.
While the intent of the SMD initiative is laudable,
members of the Vendor Panel, presumably to subsidise
there are several pieces of infrastructure that have
the costs associated with the collaborative process
not yet emerged, the ongoing absence of which
members of the panel are contractually required to
would stifle any large scale attempt for messages to
undertake.
be sent between competing messaging carriers using
A ‘sign-on bonus’ has also been afforded to
SMD. However notwithstanding the need for the
Updates from the Members
ongoing development of shared SMD infrastructure
With the Release 1 deadline now passed and with all
components, the funding of CDA development for
software developers on the panel working on Release
Electronic Referrals should remove many of the
2, interviews with the companies involved have yielded
electronic clinical document compatibility issues that
the following progress updates. Note that due to space
have hampered adoption, particularly by general
restrictions and the similarities between the work being
practice, the vast majority of whom do not generate
undertaken by each vendor, only a small selection of
Electronic Referrals.
each vendor’s progress has been highlighted in this
article.
The Health Summaries produced by the software
are ultimately intended to be passed along to the
36 Pulse+IT
PCEHR, however such documents could just as easily
Best Practice
be sent to other healthcare providers directly. These
As a result of the Release 1 development work, Best
summaries would typically contain information about
Practice users will soon be able to download and verify
allergies, medications, demographics, adverse drug
patient IHI’s from the Healthcare Identifier Service from
reactions, immunisations, pathology results, and a past
the demographics screen in the software. As will be the
history list.
case with other clinical software, this feature requires
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
that a first name, last name, date of birth, and either
Medicare numbers so that it will be an easy transition
a Medicare or DVA number be accurately recorded for
for users. In the same way as we have developed our
the patient.
existing Medicare Online functionality, we display
While it is technically possible for a patient’s
colour coding over the healthcare identifier number to
address to be used in the matching process, the wide
indicate whether it has been validated or not,” said Ms
variety of ways to record an address has meant some
Tudehope.
vendors, including Best Practice under advice from
NEHTA, have steered away from this approach to
the Vendor Panel project will not be unfamiliar to
matching at this time.
Communicare Systems, the company having already
participated in a range of shared electronic health
Best Practice has allowed users of its software to
The work associated with later Releases of
easily check if patients displayed on the appointment
records initiatives.
screen have valid healthcare identifiers stored in the
Best Practice database. If they do, a green flag will be
not in the same format exactly, we already do a similar
shown adjacent to the patient’s name, and if not, a red
thing with the Northern Territory Shared Electronic
flag will be displayed. In the event of a patient having
Health Record and another shared record product
a red flag next to their name, the receptionist would
called RecordPoint, developed by Extensia,” said Ms
endeavour to check the key demographics for the
Tudehope.
“While the deliverables for the Vendor Panel are
patient and subsequently download the patient’s valid healthcare identifier into the Best Practice database.
Genie Solutions
In support of the Wave 1 initiative — a part of which
Genie Solutions received notice that the healthcare
involves the large‑scale importation of healthcare
identifier components of its software had been
identifiers into clinical software — Best Practice
successfully tested in mid-August. As the company
worked with Health Industry Exchange to allow its ‘HIE
produces software for both Apple Macintosh and
Sync’ software to perform batch lookups of healthcare
Microsoft Windows operating systems, independent
identifiers in Wave 1 sites using Best Practice.
testing was necessary for both versions of the software.
Communicare Systems
Customers of Communicare Systems will first have
complete, users of the software will have the option
access to functionality developed as part of the Vendor
to download or verify healthcare identifiers from
Panel process with the impending release of v11.3.
within the patient demographics screen. A date field
This build of the software is intended as a general
and colour coding system has been incorporated to
release for all Communicare customers and will feature
indicate the amount of time that has elapsed since the
additional enhancements not directly related to
last verification has taken place.
healthcare identifiers and CDA.
Heidi Tudehope of Communicare Systems indicated
company’s software will be rolled out to users of Genie
that the company’s work with the Healthcare Identifier
v8 within the Wave 1 catchment, but this will expand
Service will be familiar to users, many of whom are
over time as part of the existing rollout the company is
using the somewhat similar Medicare Online Patient
undertaking with the latest version of its software.
Verification features of the product.
messages, the functionality having been added to the
“In a lot of ways we’ve mimicked the user
functionality that we already had for referencing
With the healthcare identifier functionality now
Dr Paul Carr of Genie Solutions indicated that his
Genie has long had the ability to display CDA
software in response to previous NEHTA initiatives.
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
Pulse+IT 37
iSoft
to v16. This version was made available to all practices
Due to the large number of products developed by
running Zedmed in late August, with Dr Andrew Pascoe,
iSoft that will need to interact with the healthcare
Zedmed’s Clinical Lead, highlighting the important role
identifier service, Byron Phillips indicated that his
healthcare identifiers will play in connecting healthcare
company’s approach to the Vendor Panel has been
organisations electronically.
mindful of the need to ensure any code produced can
be utilised throughout a range of iSoft products.
toward achieving a comprehensive approach to
“The introduction of HI’s is one of the first steps
“One of the things we’re reasonably proud of is
eHealth. GPs need software capable of delivering
that we were first to be certified through the third
this seamless communication of reliable healthcare
party independent labs. We were first to market with
information between individuals, healthcare providers
the enablement of our GP product, which is nice. The
and other provider organisations. We have a solution
reason, partially, for that is we’ve always maintained
that is ready and available in the market right now,”
that we would do this development as external to the
said Dr Pascoe.
applications as we can, so that we can reuse it, not
just across our GP platforms, but our patient systems,
subsequent release of the software (v17) will follow
our ED systems, our clinical systems, our pharmacy
in October, which is expected to incorporate the
systems and so on. However it was the first test where
additional features being developed by the company
we had to put something on the ground and get it
as part of Release 2.
independently tested,” said Mr Phillips.
iSoft has indicated that they are applying this
According to Simonne Norton of Zedmed, a
Conclusion
approach to their work with SMD.
With the support of NEHTA, members on the Vendor
“Again, that’s a component that we’re building
Panel are charged with delivering a large parcel of
agnostic of the application, which is really important
software development in a very aggressive time
to us. We have a large set of applications in the acute
frame. In fact many members on the Vendor Panel
market that we obviously need to have enabled
have indicated that other, more customer-centric
through a similar approach.”
development priorities have had to be put on hold to meet the agreed contractual deadlines of the process.
Medtech Global
Having completed the development work associated
undertaken, it is evident that there is acceptance of
with Release 1, Medtech Global has been testing its
the process by members of the panel, and a belief
healthcare identifier functionality in a selection of the
in the benefits the project will yield as specifications
clinics using its software in the Wave 1 geographic
and standards are rolled out in mainstream Australian
regions. Notably, one such healthcare facility in the
clinical software. Summarising this sentiment are the
Hunter Region of NSW has a database with over
words of a Vendor Panel member: “This whole project
250,000 patients.
is about putting NEHTA’s work into some actual real
Reflecting on his company’s range of clinical
life applications. Until Government decided to pay to
products, Rama Kumble of Medtech Global noted that
have it done there was no real incentive for any of the
a conscious decision was made to develop the requisite
vendors to actually do it. It was a lot of work and users
healthcare identifier functionality as an independent
weren’t crying out for it, and to be honest, everyone
module.
had pretty much come up with ways to get it done
However despite the additional workload being
“We’ve produced a reusable component. We’ve
anyway. Pathology, radiology and discharge summaries
made only minimal changes to MedTech32 and nearly
have been flowing between hospital and doctors and
everything is in a component which we can pick up
labs for years, so there was no huge imperative to get
and use in other MedTech products, such as MedTech
some of these NEHTA specifications in place because
Evolution and Rx,” said Mr Kumble.
they weren’t really going to add anything to the functionality that users had already. But, at the end of
38 Pulse+IT
Zedmed
the day, they make it all a hell of a lot easier and a lot
Zedmed users will be able to interact with the
more standardised, which, from our point of view, will
Healthcare Identifier Service once they have upgraded
be good in the long term.”
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
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FEATURE
Social networking in healthcare – security and privacy implications Alberto Tinazzi
IT Security Consultant eHealth Security Services atinazzi@ehealthsecurity.com.au
The Internet is in constant evolution and while most
cause of embarrassment to their employer.
users find this exciting, it also introduces a series of
new threats and a range of new opportunities for cyber
accidentally post sensitive information on public
criminals. New technologies such as social networking
websites, forums and blogs. Even the publishing
tools are rapidly growing in popularity, including
non‑sensitive information may have a considerable
amongst healthcare professionals.
impact on security. In fact any personal information
A growing number of organisations have jumped on
posted may be used by cyber-criminals to develop a
the social networking bandwagon as a means to extend
detailed profile of the employee and help them to build
the reach of their business. Tools like Facebook, Twitter,
a trusting relationship with their victims for malicious
LinkedIn and MySpace and many other blogging sites
purposes.
are an excellent way to promote products and services
and keep in touch with customers, or patients in the
information
case of the health sector. However, social networking
information published on a blog for example. This
tools could also pose some serious security threats to
phenomenon is known as ‘inference’. Similarly, two
businesses if not wisely used.
or more pieces of non-sensitive information may
Employees need to be extremely careful not to
An individual may be able to discover sensitive deduction
from
non-sensitive
According to a study conducted by Medical
increase their sensitivity when they are put together.
Observer in 2010, 79% of Australian doctors use
This phenomenon is know an ‘aggregation’ and is very
Facebook. Most of them use social networking tools
common on blogs and online forums, where multiple
for social purposes but there is a growing number of
individuals discuss a common topic.
doctors that use social networks to provide healthy
lifestyle advice and education to patients.
aggregation as individuals can access a great volume
Some doctors may find themselves in an awkward
of information from multiple sources over a long
situation when their patients add them as ‘friends’
period of time and then correlate all the gathered data.
on Facebook and wish to discuss their medical
Healthcare workers should be trained and aware of the
issues. Health professionals need to be aware of the
risks posed by aggregation and inference.
professional and legal issues introduced by using social
media to interact with their patients.
University of Pennsylvania revealed that 56.8% of blog
Another problem related to the use of social
authors provided sufficient information to reveal their
networking tools, from a security point of view, is the
own identity and in 42.1% of these blogs individual
leakage of confidential information. Staff discussing
patients were described. 16.6% of the blogs contained
work related issues on social networking sites may
enough information for patients to identify their
inadvertently disclose confidential information about
doctors or themselves.2
the business, a competitor, a customer or patient, or
may make inappropriate comments which may be a
making
1
It is very difficult to prevent inference and
A review of 271 medical blogs carried out by the
There have been cases in Australia of doctors inappropriate
confidential
Author Info
by
Alberto Tinazzi is a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP). He works as an independent information security consultant specialised in the healthcare sector. He has 16 years experience as an IT professional, specialised in information management and security. He has spent the last 10 years working within the health sector covering a number of different roles within the Division of General Practice Network.
statements
information
on
or
social
discussing networking
media. Doctors need to be very careful when posting comments or other information on the Internet as it can more than likely become very public very quickly, potentially having serious consequences on their reputation and career.3
The Australian Medical Association in collaboration
with three other peak medical bodies has developed
40 Pulse+IT
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
Social Media and the Medical Profession, a guide to
use of social networking tools. However the employer
online professionalism for medical practitioners and
can obviously exert no technical controls over what
medical students. This document provides advice
employees do outside business hours, or during
to health professionals and medical students about
business hours using their own Internet connected
preserving their personal integrity and reputation when
devices. Confidential or embarrassing information
using social networking media. One of the first pieces
involving the organisation may still be leaked. It is
of advice provided by this guide is an invitation to
therefore advisable that organisations have a policy
doctors to search for their full name on popular search
covering the use of social networking tools and provide
engines such as Google and consider whether they are
them with adequate information and training on the
comfortable with the results.
topic.
4
It is also important to understand that on the
The social networking phenomenon continues to
Internet, where users go, cyber-criminals follow. They
grow and has started playing quite an influential role on
have in fact developed many techniques that leverage
the political landscape in many countries. We only need
social networking tools to steal users identity, to
to look at recent events in Egypt, Libya and Algeria,
gather personal information and confidential data
where social media has assisted in driving political
and to infect their victims’ computers with malware.
changes. In January 2010 Facebook had 350 million
These techniques include, for example, hijacking users
active users however, just a year later the total of users
accounts, spreading fake applications, setting up fake
had exceeded 640 million, half of which connect to the
accounts, contacting users as Facebook itself and
service daily.5
more.
Most
malware
can
propagate
via
Social networking is impacting on all industries
popular
and the healthcare sector will not be immune.
social networking tools. New malware that has
Providers and the organisations they work for may be
been specifically engineered to take advantage of
required to adopt such technologies in order to remain
vulnerabilities of social networking media has started
competitive. The risks are surely always going to be
to appear. For instance the Koobface worm, which
there but these can be mitigated through the use of
after infecting a computer, spreads itself by sending
the technologies in an informed manner.
messages to friends of Facebook users. Koobface also works with Twitter, MySpace and other popular
References
social networking tools. Consequently the information
1. Brill D. Social networking: facing the facts. http://
gathered from users’ accounts such as names, age and
www.medicalobserver.com.au/news/social-
job titles, for example, can be used to impersonate the
networking-facing-the-facts (accessed Aug 2011).
individual and to send emails containing malware on
2. Tara Lagu, MD, MPH, Elinore J. Kaufman, David
their behalf.
A. Asch, MD, and Katrina Armstrong, MD,
MSCE. Content of Weblogs Written by Health
Organisations should have a social networking
policy that regulates the use of social networking tools
Professionals. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/
in accordance to the organisation’s objectives. An
articles/PMC2533366/ (accessed Aug 2011).
organisation may decide to provide unrestricted access
3. Rose D. Warning to doctors on Facebook. http://
to social networking sites in which case it is advisable
www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/breaking-
that users are trained about the risks posed by the use
news/warning-to-doctors-on-facebook/story-
of social networking tools. Or an organisation may
e6freuyi-1225963359472 (accessed Aug 2011).
decide to allow for restricted use of social networking
4. Australian Medical Association et al. Social Media
tools by limiting access to specific employees or to specific hours of the day. This arrangement can be implemented through a web content filtering
and the Medical Profession. http://www.ama.com. au/socialmedia (accessed Aug 2011). 5. Browser Media. 2011 social media statistics
application or the administration interface of many
show huge growth. http://www.browsermedia.
modern routers.
co.uk/2011/03/30/2011-social-media-statistics-
show-huge-growth (accessed Aug 2011).
Other organisations may decide to totally ban the
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
Pulse+IT 41
FEATURE
Big results come from taking small steps Rachel de Sain
Director Flaxworks rdesain@flaxworks.com.au
At the time I was working in Finland in the late 90s,
Nokia was in the process of releasing a new type of
rollout of eHealth tools such as the Personally
mobile phone that could connect to the Internet. The
Controlled Electronic Health Record (PCEHR) here in
Internet was already a must have tool for connecting
Australia. I do believe the PCEHR is a very important
you to the people, places and information you needed
first step on the journey to a more sustainable patient
through your computer, and the thought of having
centred model of care, but one of many. Perhaps given
the possibility to connect whenever from wherever
the very short time frames to its launch on 1 July 2012
you were using the device in your pocket was pretty
and the massive development work needed to just
exciting.
simply get the clinical system in building A to talk to
the clinical system in building B, maybe we should just
A short time later I returned to London and told
I worry that a similar path is unfolding for the
my friends about this amazing new thing called WAP,
start small?
which I believed was going to revolutionise the way
we lived. However most of them really didn’t care, it
to avoid pain, costly time off work, and further
didn’t mean much in their lives at that point in time,
procedures. I have, over the years, learnt to understand
the phones were out of their price range and they
my body but also seek out more information from both
didn’t see the value. They were more interested in
the medical and patient world to help me help myself.
the slide functionality of the prototype Nokia 7110 I
had brought back with me — which made a cool noise
for me, the patient, to help me manage my health
as it flipped back and forth — than the possibilities
through an online portal of applications and services
an Internet connected mobile phone could bring.
designed to support me in making decisions about my
Although a decade later they are all now happy iPhone
health needs. It would be a way to migrate us from a
and Android owners who wouldn’t leave home without
provider centric model of care to the patient centric
their precious smart phones.
system where consumers are empowered to take more
responsibility for their own health and play a more
Soon after I returned to the United Kingdom I
As a patient with a chronic disease, I am motivated
Initially I thought the PCEHR would be a tool
started seeing major print, outdoor and TV advertising
active role in their healthcare dialogue.
run by BT Cellnet — the major carrier in the UK at the
time — asking you to come and surf the BT Cellnet.
document which talks about the need to reform
The advertising campaign featured a slick silver
healthcare delivery to ensure a sustainable future
avatar surfing down through a multicoloured tube of
for all. Using Microeconomic reform to deliver patient
light, giving you the impression you could get all this
centred care highlights the need to migrate more of the
information at your fingertips at lightening speed. The
care away from the ‘mainframe’ model where people
reality at 9kb/s was more like teletext than television.
come in to a healthcare facility to seek help, towards a
The Business Council of Australia has a brilliant
system where tools and support for people is provided
Author Info
closer to, if not in, their own homes. Cost effective Rachel consultants on digital strategy, is part of the clinical leads & consumer reference forum at NEHTA, she is a board member for HISA (Health Informatics Society of Australia) and previously held positions on the board at AIMIA Victoria and Vic ICT for Women.
systems are needed to support a more prevention-led environment for managing health rather than today’s reactive model focused on the delivery of medical care.
We are not the only ones to be focusing on this
migration. The Health 2.0 summit taking place in San Francisco in late September will bring together
42 Pulse+IT
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
key stakeholders from health, industry
don’t need to try and remember the exact
care for me. The patient apps and services
and patient advocacy groups to discuss
details of a surgery performed over 10
are important and we need to ensure the
the opportunities modern technologies
years ago. I can’t imagine what it must be
PCEHR is designed for their integration,
present. I believe this event will provide
like for someone twice my age or suffering
but they can come later.
significant insights into the barriers to
from cognitive issues.
change and ideas about how to drive the
The PCEHR is not the patient portal
is needed most: primary care. GPs will be
adoption of eHealth in Australia.
I thought it was initially — it is even more
on the frontline of rolling this out and this
For my own healthcare needs I have
important. It is the secure space where my
is where the health conversations already
created a medical folder with sections for
care team — regardless of where they are
happen, so let us work on making it right
all my test results and medical information,
or what system they use — can access the
for them to begin with, while still ensuring
as well as notes and questions from articles
right information when they need it, and in
that we meet the patient privacy and
or conversations conducted online with
turn provide me with the best care.
security concerns.
other patients. I take this with me to all of
my various appointments so that I know
in the cloud. The clinicians I choose to care
the foundations in first, the PCEHR is
my care team are all on the same page
for me will be able to access this service
no different. I am really pleased NEHTA
with current medications, tests, allergies,
to retrieve the most important health
has and continues to bring together all
previous history and I don’t waste our time
information about me.
4 corners — Consumers, Clinicians, ICT
repeating all this information. Another key
I want the PCEHR to be a digital version
and Policy to talk about the design and
advantage is as a memory aid, my blue
of my little blue folder. I want to feel safe
roadmap, but for 1 July 2012 — let us keep
folder ensures in those moments when I
that the most important information about
It will be initially a blank folder sitting
HealthLink/Medinexus HalftoPage x 120 am in pain or just having a stressful day I my health is available those I180 choose to
Let us start by focusing on where this
When you build a house you put
it simple and ensure we don’t over promise
Puse IT Mag and under deliver.
connecting healthcare
www.pulseitmagazine.com.au
Pulse+IT 43
Cerner Corporation Pty Limited
Advantech Australia AAPM
P: 1800 196 000 or +61 3 9095 8712 F: +61 3 9329 2524 E: headoffice@aapm.org.au W: www.aapm.org.au The Australian Association of Practice Managers (AAPM) represents Practice Managers and the profession of Practice Management. Founded in 1979, AAPM is a non-profit, national peak association recognised as the professional body dedicated to supporting effective Practice Management in the healthcare profession. The Australian Association of Practice Managers: • Represents Practice Managers and the profession of Practice Management throughout the healthcare industry. • Promotes professional development and the code of ethics through leadership and education. • Provides specialised services and networks to support quality Practice Management.
Advantech’s medical computing platforms are designed to enhance the quality and efficiency of healthcare for patients and users alike. All products match the performance of commercial PCs and tough medical safety ratings like UL60601-1 and EN60601-1; adding to this they are all IPX1 certified dust resistant and come with water dripproof enclosures. Advantech offers long term support and a proven track record of reliability. The medical range extends through: • Point-of-Care Terminals. • Mini-PC and Medical Imaging Displays. • Mobile Medical Tablets. • Patient Infotainment Terminals.
The Australasian College of Health Informatics is Australasia’s Health Informatics professional body, representing the interests of a broad range of clinical and non-clinical e-health professionals. ACHI is the community of Health Informatics thought-leaders in Australasia. ACHI is committed to quality, standards and ethical practice in the Health Informatics profession. More information is available at: www.ACHI.org.au Join the ACHI Info email list at: www.ACHI.org.au/List
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P: +61 7 4155 8800 F: +61 7 4153 2093 E: sales@bpsoftware.com.au W: www.bpsoftware.com.au Best Practice sets the standard for GP clinical software in Australia offering a flexible suite of products designed for the busy GP practice, including: • Best Practice Clinical (“drop-in” replacement for MD) • Integrated Best Practice (clinical/ management) • Top Pocket (PDA companion software for Pocket PC)
Cerner is a leading supplier of healthcare information systems and our Millennium suite of solutions has been successfully installed in over 1200 sites across the globe. Cerner’s technology has been designed so that it can be adapted to meet the needs of the very different healthcare delivery systems that exist, with a universal framework that allows clinician workflow to seamlessly span role and venue. Our innovative leadership is allowing us to push boundaries by: • Leveraging clinical and pharmaceutical data for new discoveries in Condition Management and Personalised Medicine • Connecting the community with personal and community health records • Seamlessly connecting the patient record across the continuum of care
cdmNet
P: +61 3 5335 2220 F: +61 3 5335 2211 E: argus@argusconnect.com.au W: www.argusdca.com.au
P: +61 412 746 457 F: +61 3 9569 9449 E: Secretary@ACHI.org.au W: www.ACHI.org.au
Best Practice
Advantech is also an official distributor of Microsoft Windows Embedded software across Australia & New Zealand.
Argus
Australasian College of Health Informatics
P: +61 2 9900 4800 F: +61 2 9900 4990 E: AsiaPacific@cerner.com W: www.cerner.com.au
P: 1300 308 531 F: +61 3 9797 0199 E: info@advantech.net.au W: www.advantech.net.au
Argus provides and supports Argus secure messaging software; a popular electronic solution that enables healthcare practitioners to exchange pathology, radiology and specialist reports, hospital discharge summaries, referrals and clinical data securely and reliably. Argus interfaces with most clinical software applications sending directly from within your letter writing facility or word processor and runs virtually invisibly in the background. Documents sent using Argus can be automatically added to electronic patient records; thus avoiding the need to scan or manually file them. Argus is the messaging solution chosen by 65 Divisions of General Practice through the ARGUS AFFINITY program. With over 12,800 users Argus continues to grow in popularity by delivering a highly secure message, reliable product, backed by outstanding customer service all at the lowest cost possible.
T: +61 3 9023 0800 F: +61 3 9614 2650 E: info@precedencehealthcare.com W: www.precedencehealthcare.com cdmNet is an online service specially designed to manage the entire life cycle of a patient’s chronic disease. cdmNet delivers best practice chronic disease management, including creation of GPMPs, TCAs and Reviews. In addition, collaboration with your care team is quick, easy and ongoing. cdmNet minimises the bureaucracy, eliminates the paperwork, and ensures compliance with Medicare requirements for chronic disease management. cdmNet optimises patient care, simplifies care team collaboration and minimises administration & paper work. Find out more about how cdmNet can assist you and your practice by typing cdm.net.au/info into your browser address bar. cdmNet: Chronic Disease Management just got a whole lot easier.
Clintel Systems
P: +61 8 8203 0555 E: info@clintel.com.au W: www.clintel.com.au The Specialist: A complete solution for your Appointments, Billing including Online Claiming and Clinical requirements in an intuitive scalable solution. Clintel provides systems to Specialist and Day Surgeries nationally. Powerful, highly configurable and easy to use, our systems mirror the needs and workflow of your practice and individual specialty. Our industry standard SQL database enables a true “paperless” practice. Our leading edge architecture is future proof, it is designed to meet changing requirements and offers first class reporting and analysis of clinical and business data. Standalone or networked multi-site installation which runs on both Mac OSX and Windows operating systems. Our support is first class, our philosophy is “whatever it takes”.
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Direct Control
CH2 (Clifford Hallam Healthcare) P: 1300 720 274 F: 1300 364 008 E: marketing@ch2.net.au W: www.ch2.net.au
Clifford Hallam Healthcare (CH2) is today Australia’s largest pharmaceutical and medical healthcare service provider with a catalogue of over 30,000 products servicing metro, regional and rural customers across Australia. Supported by a National Network, CH2 utilises local knowledge and local people to provide pharmaceuticals, medical consumables and equipment products to the healthcare market. CH2 is represented by a National Sales Force as well as a local Customer Service team in each state. CH2 understands the value of quality data and are committed to implementing the GS1 system throughout our business and with our partners. The use of EANCOM standard messages, Global Trade Item Numbers (GTIN) for product identification, Global Location Numbers (GLN) for location information and Serial Shipping Container Code (SSCC) labels are paramount to our industry moving forward. CH2 are passionate supporters of these philosophies and believe the uplift in quality systems will result in improved patient safety. CH2 are currently working with partners to implement the National E-Health Transition Authority (NEHTA) National Product Catalogue. “Our aim is to be a great company to do business with. The right product, at the right price, at the right time.” WardBox® is CH2’s direct to ward distribution system. It is a just in time replenishment system where orders are created in a theatre or ward area and then transmitted electronically to one of CH2’s warehouses using SOS or an EDI interface. The service incorporates barcode scanning technology, direct delivery to individual wards or departments, monthly invoicing and comprehensive reporting. WardBox® is designed to assist our customers in reducing purchasing and supply operating costs. This valuable service increases supply chain efficiencies, improves service delivery models and assists in achieving economies of scale. WardBox® distribution is used for pharmaceuticals, medical, surgical and general supplies at numerous healthcare facilities.
Communicare Systems
P: +61 8 6212 6900 F: +61 8 6212 6980 E: sales@communicaresystems.com.au W: www.communicaresystems.com.au Established in 1994, Communicare Systems have built an enviable reputation for delivering results, supported by excellent service based on mutual respect, mutual trust and mutual benefit. Communicare is the electronic medical records and practice management system of choice for Aboriginal Health Services employing multidisciplinary holistic healthcare, featuring: • Ease of use for all providers • Shared electronic health records • Standards based electronic messaging • Comprehensive easy to use automated reporting • Scalable from small service to multi organisational enterprise • Multi axial security and access logging
dbMotion
P: +61 2 8011 4885 E: info-aus@dbmotion.com W: www.dbmotion.com dbMotion’s connected healthcare solutions for shared electronic health records (Shared EHRs) and health information exchange (HIE) transform healthcare, empowering physicians and revolutionizing patient care for healthcare organisations. The service oriented architecture (SOA) based dbMotion™ Solution gives caregivers and information systems secure access to an integrated patient record composed from the patient’s medical data maintained at facilities that are otherwise unconnected or have no common technology through which to share data, without replacement of existing information systems. Healthcare organisations using dbMotion have realised benefits in a wide variety of areas, ranging from patient safety, quality, efficacy, and IT agility.
Digital Medical Systems P: 1300 865 977 F: +61 3 9753 3049 E: inform@dgs.com.au W: www.dgs.com.au
Easier ICT is a technology partnership with DMS — we make I.T. work for you. DIGITAL MEDICAL SYSTEMS has provided ICT solutions and services to medical practice clients across Australia since 1990. We have specialist expertise and experience in the installation and support of leading medical software applications. DMS is a Business Partner for IBM, Lenovo, HP and Microsoft. Other leading ICT brands include Trend Micro, Symantec, CA, Cisco, Toshiba, Canon, Epson, Kyocera, Fujitsu and Brother. Accreditation is easier with the customised DMS IT Systems Documentation. Ensure your practice has the best quality IT policy, security and maintenance program that meets and exceeds the standards guidelines from the RACGP and AGPAL and GPA. World leading DTech provides 24x7 near Real-Time Monitoring and Management that alerts and enables our engineers to quickly troubleshoot and solve problems of security, network, Internet, Server and software remotely on almost any client computer system or device. Medical IT systems are automatically maintained by DTech to the most highly available status to minimize downtime by preventing problems from occurring or reducing their impact. Proactive, Flexible, Consistent, Reliable, Audited, and Affordable — for even the smallest practice. Call DMS for: • Systems Analysis & Consulting • Solutions Design • Procurement & supply of hardware, software, network and peripheral products • Installation & Configuration • Support Services inc Help Desk • DTech Monitoring, Maintenance & Management • Disaster Recovery solutions • Fully managed & automated Online Backup customised for clinical data Easier IT — we make I.T. work for you.
P: 1300 557 550 F: +61 7 5478 5520 E: support@directcontrol.com.au W: www.directcontrol.com.au Direct CONTROL is an affordable, intuitive and educational Medical Billing and Scheduling application for Practitioners of all Disciplines. Seamless integration with Outlook, MYOB or Quickbooks. Direct CONTROL’s Clinical Module manages Episodes of Care and includes State, Federal and Health Fund Statistical Reporting for Day Surgeries/Hospitals. Direct CONTROL facilitates Medical Billing Australia-wide and overseas. Included is all Medicare, DVA, Work Cover, Private Health Insurance fee schedules with built in rules relevant to each medical discipline (allied health, general practice, surgeons, physicians, anaesthetists, pathologists, radiologists, day surgeries/hospitals). Ideal for the single practitioner or the multidisciplinary Practice. Direct CONTROL supports ALL your Business needs letting you and your staff get on with earning a living doing what you enjoy most … Patient Care.
eHealth Security Services
P: 1300 399 116 / +61 2 9016 5378 F: +61 2 9016 5379 E: info@ehealthsecurity.com.au W: www.ehealthsecurity.com.au eHealth Security Services (eHSS) specialises in the provision of security as a service and offers an extensive range of Managed IT Services including IT Support for small to medium businesses in the health sector. eHSS’ MediAccess® service provides comprehensive and cost-effective managed security and remote access solutions. eHSS has thorough knowledge and understanding of IT matters in the health industry and its regulatory aspects. eHSS has extensive experience reviewing and assisting with organisational policies and procedures and technical implementations against applicable standards.
CH2 recently won the “SAP Best Business Intelligence with Channel Partner” award at the SAP Customer Awards of Excellence 2011. CH2 are also sponsoring the 2011 Victorian SCLAA awards.
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Emerging Health Solutions P: 02 8853 4700 F: 02 9659 9366 E: mail@emerging.com.au W: www.emerging.com.au
Emerging Health Solutions (EHS) is a web-based Clinical Information System for hospitals that is patientcentric capturing and providing appropriate, timely, clinical information in a secure and auditable environment. to assist clinicians deliver effective, quality care. Our prestigious clients include St Vincents & Mater Health Sydney and the Government of South Australia Department of Health. EHS has integrated Sabacare’s Clinical Care Classifiaction (CCC) System, a diagnosis framework integrated in SNOMED CT. EHS’ extensive list of modules work seamlessly with other systems via our integrated interface engine which accepts HL7 and other accepted Health IT standard protocols complying with the Australian Technical Specification: ATS 5822:2010 eHealth Secure Message Delivery.
Extensia
P: +61 7 3292 0222 F: +61 7 3292 0221 E: enquiries@extensia.com.au W: www.extensia.com.au Extensia links healthcare providers, consumers and their communities to deliver better and more efficient health care outcomes. The products used to do this can be custom branded for all Organisations and include: • RecordPoint – a proven Shared Electronic Health Record that links all clinical systems, hospital settings, care plan tools and any other sources of information available. It provides a secure means of sharing critical patient data in a privacy compliant and logical structure. • EPRX – an Electronic Patient Referral Exchange and Directory. It streamlines the process of selecting a provider and completing a referral. Patient information is transferred seamlessly from clinical software, then the most relevant providers, services and products are presented instantly and referral documents are created automatically and sent electronically.
Equipoise (International) Pty Ltd Totalcare
Totalcare is a fully integrated Clinical, Office and Management software suite. Totalcare is stable, scalable, customisable and easy to learn and use. From a small practice to a distributed, multi site, multi disciplinary corporate entity or hospital, Totalcare can provide a solution for your needs.
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P: +61 2 9906 6633 F: +61 2 9906 8910 E: hcn@hcn.com.au W: www.hcn.com.au
Global Health
P: 1300 723 938 F: +61 3 9675 0699 E: sales@global-health.com W: www.global-health.com Global Health is a leading provider of e-health solutions that connect clinicians and consumers across the healthcare industry. Global Health’s portfolio consists of: • ReferralNet - a cloud-based secure message delivery system for the exchange of information between healthcare providers. • MasterCare® - a suite of health information systems that provides tools to collect, manage and access clinical and patient information at the point of care. • LifeCard® - a personal health management system for keeping all your important medical information in ONE secure location. With LifeCard® you can maintain a personal health record, access emergency health information and be rewarded for looking after your health.
P: +61 7 3870 4085 F: +61 7 3870 4462 E: info@geniesolutions.com.au W: www.geniesolutions.com.au Genie is a fully integrated appointments, billing and clinical management package for Specialists and GPs. Genie runs on both Windows and Mac OS X, or a combination of both. With over 2200 sites, it is now the number one choice of Australian specialists.
HCN focuses on improving patient outcomes by providing evidence based software tools to health care professionals at the point of care. Market snapshot: • 17,000 medical professionals use Medical Director • 3,600 GP Practices use PracSoft • 800 Specialist Practices use Blue Chip and • 2,100 Specialists use Medical Director • Leading suppliers of Knowledge Resources to Australia’s major hospitals
P: +61 3 9388 0555 F: +61 3 9388 2086 E: hisa@hisa.org.au W: www.hisa.org.au
P: 1800 188 088 F: 1800 644 807 E: info@gpa.net.au W: www.gpa.net.au
Genie Solutions
Health Communication Network (HCN) is the leading provider of clinical and practice management software for Australian GPs and Specialists and supplies Australia’s major hospitals with online Knowledge resources.
Health Informatics Society of Australia
GPA
P: +61 7 3252 2425 F: +61 7 3252 2410 S: skype.totalcare.net.au E: sales@totalcare.net.au W: www.totalcare.net.au
Equipoise International Pty Ltd (EQI) is the developer and supplier of the ‘Totalcare’ clinical and office management system. Used since 1995 by health care facilities across Australia including General and Specialist practice, Radiology, Day Surgery and Hospitals.
Health Communication Network
GPA ACCREDITATION plus has given general practices a reliable alternative in accreditation. GPA is committed to offering a flexible accreditation program that understands the needs of busy GPs and practice staff. GPA assigns all practices an individual quality accreditation manager to support practices with their accreditation. Choose GPA for more support, improved service and greater choice.
The Health Informatics Society of Australia is a membership based not-for-profit organisation which has been supporting and representing Australia’s health informatics and e-health community for almost 20 years. HISA aims to improve healthcare through the use of technology and information. We: • Provide a national focus for e-health, health informatics, its practitioners, industry and a broad range of stakeholders • Support, promote and advocate • Provide opportunities for networking, learning and professional development • Are effective champions for the value of health informatics HISA members are part of a national network of people and organisations building a healthcare future enabled by e-health. Join the growing community of organisations and individuals who are committed to, and passionate about, health reform enabled by e-health.
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InterSystems
P: +61 2 9380 7111 F: +61 2 9380 7121 E: anz.query@InterSystems.com W: www.InterSystems.com
Health Information Management Association Australia P: +61 2 9887 5001 F: +61 2 9887 5895 E: himaa@himaa.org.au W: www.himaa.org.au
The Health Information Management Association of Australia (HIMAA) is the peak professional body of Health Information Managers in Australia. HIMAA aims to support and promote the profession of health information management. HIMAA is also a Registered Training Organisation conducting, by distance education, “industry standard” training courses in Medical Terminology and ICD-10-AM, ACHI and ACS clinical coding.
InterSystems Corporation is the worldwide leader in breakthrough solutions for connected care, with headquarters in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and offices in 23 countries. InterSystems TrakCare™ is a Web-based healthcare information system that rapidly delivers the benefits of an Electronic Patient Record. InterSystems Ensemble® is a seamless platform for integration and the development of connectable applications. InterSystems HealthShare™ is a strategic platform for healthcare informatics, providing capabilities for sharing of clinical information, comprehensive advanced analytics, building clinician and patient Web-based communities, and quickly filling informational and functional cross-system “gaps.” InterSystems DeepSee™ is software that makes it possible to embed real‑time business intelligence capabilities in transactional applications. InterSystems CACHÉ® is a high performance object database that makes applications faster and more scalable.
Australia’s and New Zealand’s largest effective secure communication network. • Referrals, Reports, Forms, Discharge Summaries, Diagnostic Order and Reporting • Provider of Secure Messaging Delivery (SMD) services • Fully integrated with leading GP and Specialist clinical systems • Robust; Reliable and Fully Supported Join the network that more than 70 percent of GPs use for diagnostic, specialist and hospital communications.
P: +61 2 8251 6700 F: +61 2 8251 6801 E: company_enquiry@isofthealth.com W: www.isofthealth.com iSOFT is one of the world’s largest providers of healthcare IT solutions. We work with healthcare professionals to design, develop and implement healthcare solutions that deliver administrative, clinical and diagnostic services to ensure continuity of care across all care settings. iSOFT provides flexible and interoperable solutions to the whole spectrum of providers, from single physician practices through to integrated national solutions supporting thousands of concurrent users. Our capacity to embrace change and keep abreast of emerging new directions in healthcare has allowed our clients to explore the exciting potential of new technologies while securing their existing investments.
ISN Solutions
P: +61 2 9280 2660 F: +61 2 9280 2665 E: info@isnsolutions.com.au W: www.isnsolutions.com.au ISN Solutions is a Medical IT company that specialises in the design, setup and maintenance of computer networks for medical practices and private hospitals. We manage IT services, we are dedicated to the medical industry. We know that if you are consulting then you need a quick response. Our support model is designed to minimise the interruptions to the doctor specially. We are familiar with most medical software applications in Australia. We have strong industry references. Some of our solutions include, but are not limited to:
MEDITECH Australia
P: +61 2 9901 6400 F: +61 2 9439 6331 E: sales@meditech.com.au W: www.meditech.com.au A Worldwide Leader in Health Care Information Systems MEDITECH today stands at the forefront of the health care information systems industry. Our products serve well over 2,300 health care organisations around the world. Large health care enterprises, multi‑hospital alliances, teaching hospitals, community hospitals, rehabilitation and psychiatric chains, long-term care organisations, physicians’ offices, and home care and hospice agencies all use our Health Care Information System to bring integrated care to the populations they serve. Our experience, along with our financial and product stability, assures our customers of a long-term information systems partner to help them achieve their goals.
Medtech Global Ltd
P: 1800 148 165 E: sales@medtechglobal.com W: www.medtechglobal.com
P: +61 427 844 645 E: ceo@msia.com.au E: president@msia.com.au W: www.msia.com.au
For over 27 years, Medtech Global has been a leading provider of health management solutions to the healthcare industry enabling the comprehensive management of patient information throughout all aspects of the healthcare environment.
With the increase in government e-health initiatives, the MSIA has become increasingly active in representing the interests of all healthcare software providers.
Medtech’s Medtech32 and Evolution solutions improve practice management and ensure best practice for electronic health records management and reporting.
The MSIA is represented on a range of forums, working groups and committees on behalf of its members, and has negotiated a range of important changes with government and other stakeholders to benefit industry and their customers. It has built a considerable profile with Government and is now acknowledged as the official ‘voice’ for the industry.
Clinical Audit Tool integrates with Medtech32 and Evolution providing fast, efficient and secure analysis of patient data enabling practices to identify and deliver services, which address health care priorities across their population.
Medical Software Industry Association
HealthLink
P: 1800 125 036 (AU) P: 0800 288 887 (NZ) E: enquiries@healthlink.net W: www.healthlink.net
iSOFT
Join over 100 other companies across all areas of medical IT/IM so your voice can be heard.
Medtech’s ManageMyHealth patient and clinical portal enables individuals to access their health information online and engage with their healthcare provider to support healthy lifestyle changes.
• Cloud based computing tailored to medical industry • Medical voice recognition • Capped cost medical support and maintenance plan • Ability to consult remotely • Medical application support
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MIMS Australia
P: +61 2 9902 7700 F: +61 2 9902 7701 E: info@mims.com.au W: www.mims.com.au MIMS Australia is built on a heritage of local expertise, credibility and adaptation to changing healthcare provider needs. Our information gathering, analysis and coding systems are proven and robust. MIMS information is backed by MIMS trusted, rigorous editorial process and constantly updated from a variety of sources including primary research literature. Our database and decision support modules are locally relevant, clinically reviewed and updated monthly and compatible with a host of clinical software packages. Indeed, the majority of Australian prescribing packages and many dispensing applications are supported by the MIMS medicines data base. MIMS is delivered all the ways you need – print to electronic, on the move, to your patient’s bedside or your consulting room desk. Whatever the format, MIMS has the latest information you need.
Pen Computer Systems
Mouse Soft Australia Pty Ltd
P: +61 3 9888 2555 F: +61 3 9888 1752 E: sales@medicalwizard.com.au W: www.medicalwizard.com.au Medical Wizard saves time and money through greater efficiency and comprehensive integration. Throughout its 17 year history, Medical Wizard has led the way with innovative solutions. We are constantly evolving Medical Wizard to meet the challenges of the medical profession for today and tomorrow. A software of choice for discerning Specialist practices, notably Gastroenterologists, Cosmetic Surgeons, Ophthalmologists, General Surgeons, IVF Centres and Day Hospitals amongst others. All aspects of practice management from appointments, billing, clinical, theatre management and compliance reporting are covered and backed by a dedicated local support team.
P: +61 2 9635 8955 F: +61 2 9635 8966 E: enquiries@pencs.com.au W: www.pencs.com.au
Nuance Communications
P: 1300 550 716 F: +61 2 9434 2301 E: Vicki.Rigg@nuance.com W: australia.nuance.com W: newzealand.nuance.com Nuance (NASDAQ: NUAN) is a leading provider of speech and imaging solutions for businesses and consumers around the world. Its technologies, applications and services make the user experience more compelling by transforming the way people interact with information and how they create, share and use documents. Every day, millions of users and thousands of businesses utilise Nuance’s proven range of productivity applications which include Dragon NaturallySpeaking (speech recognition), OmniPage (OCR), PaperPort (document management) and PDF Converter Professional (PDF creation and conversion).
Feature Rich. Dynamic. Innovative.
Established in 1993, Pen Computer Systems (PCS) specialises in developing information solutions for National and State eHealth initiatives in Primary Health that deliver better Chronic Disease outcomes. PCS expertise extends to: • Chronic Disease Prevention and Management • Population Health Status, Reporting and Enhanced Outcomes • Decision-Support tools delivered LIVE into the clinical consult • Web-based Electronic Health Records (EHRs) • SNOMED-CT and HL7 Standards Frameworks Our Clinical Audit Tool (CAT) for example delivers an intuitive population reporting and patient identification extension to the leading GP systems in Australia. CAT delivers enhanced data quality and patient outcomes in general practice.
Orion Health NEHTA
P: +61 2 8298 2600 F: +61 2 8298 2666 E: admin@nehta.gov.au W: www.nehta.gov.au
MITS:Health
P: 1300 700 300 E: info@mitshealth.com.au W: www.mitshealth.com.au Managed IT Services for the Health Industry MITS:Health provides a full range of IT services specifically tailored for medical centres, GPs and specialists across Melbourne. • • • • • •
Equipment supply and installation Remote monitoring and support Data backups Networking Internet Website Development
The National E-Health Transition Authority was established by the Australian, State and Territory governments to develop better ways of electronically collecting and securely exchanging health information. NEHTA is the lead organisation supporting the national vision for eHealth in Australia.
P: +61 2 8096 0000 / +64 9 638 0600 F: +61 2 8096 0001 / +64 9 638 0699 E: enquiries@orionhealth.com W: www.orionhealth.com Orion Health is a world leader in the e-health industry. We specialise in electronic health record (EHR) solutions, disease management, clinical decision support, and hospital administration tools. More than 300,000 clinicians in 30 countries use Orion Health products. Our EHR solutions have been widely adopted across Canada, Europe and the USA to enable secure crossorganisational and regional sharing of patient information, resulting in improved patient care. Our Rhapsody Integration Engine, a healthcare dedicated and standards based Integration hub, is used by customers to easily create interoperability between existing healthcare information systems. Our solutions are designed to support emerging health IT trends and standards, we work closely with our customers, clinicians, government bodies and other industry leaders to deliver intuitive solutions to meet your current and future needs.
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Medilink
from Practice Services P/L
P: +61 3 9819 0700 F: +61 3 9819 0705 E: Sales@practiceservices.com.au W: www.practiceservices.com.au Medilink Practice Management Software • 21 years young, large user base • Medilink = Intuitive ease of use • Solo Drs up to Hospitals in size • Claiming via integrated EFTPOS àà and/or integrated HICAPS àà and/or Medicare Online àà and/or ECLIPSE • Many standard features • Many optional modules • Links to many third party packages and services • Cut debtors and boost cash flow • 17 years as an Authorised Medilink Dealer, selling, installing & training • Fixed Cost Support, Onsite or Remote
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Spellex
P: +61 2 8014 4573 E: info@spellex.com.au W: www.spellex.com.au Spellex has been the leading provider of comprehensive medical dictionary enhancement software to thousands of the world’s most prominent healthcare companies for 21 years. Our easy-to-use Australian medical spell checking software integrates fully with all Microsoft programmes, Web-based applications, and popular platforms. Spellex Medical is available for end-users to ensure the medical accuracy of documents and to enhance their productivity. Spellex software development kits can also be integrated with developer’s custom programmes and Web sites. Whether you’re an individual transcriptionist or you need to provide greater medical documentation accuracy across an entire hospital or campus, Spellex has a solution that’s right for you. For a free trial of Spellex software, go to spellex.com.au and click the Free Trial tab.
Sysmex New Zealand
Stat Health Systems (Aust) has built a progressive and resilient system that introduces a new level of stability and flexibility to the medical software market. Stat is an integrated clinical and practice management application which has embraced the latest Microsoft technology to build a new generation solution. Fully scalable and the only medical software application to incorporate a multi-functional intuitive interface, Stat is at the forefront of computing technology. Stat Health provide a premium support service, clinical data conversion from existing software and tailor made installation and training plans for your practice.
P: 1800 061 260 E: sales@tg.org.au W: www.tg.org.au
Sysmex New Zealand is a market leader in the development and implementation of health IT products and services for clinical laboratories, hospitals and healthcare organisations. We offer the following health IT solutions: • Delphic LIS – a market-leading laboratory information system for hospital and community laboratories with a strength in providing multi-lab solutions. Specialised modules manage workflows in the anatomical pathology, haematology and microbiology work areas. • Eclair – an advanced clinical data repository (CDR) which stores patient data from a range of systems including laboratory, radiology, pharmacy and clinical document sources to create a secure patient-centric record. Eclair provides complete electronic ordering functionality.
Real Outcomes Real Productivity Minimising Waste
Stat Health Systems (Aust)
P: +61 7 3121 6550 F: +61 7 3219 7510 E: carla.doolan@stathealth.com.au W: www.stathealth.com.au
Therapeutic Guidelines Ltd
P: +64 9 630 3554 F: +64 9 630 8135 E: info@sysmex.co.nz W: www.sysmex.co.nz
Trend Care Systems
P: +61 7 3390 5399 F: +61 7 3390 7599 E: support@trendcare.com.au W: www.trendcare.com.au A national and international award winning solution recognised for its ability to provide real benefits in the acute and sub-acute health care settings. TrendCare is an international leader for e-health solutions excelling in all of the following: • Patient dependency and nursing intensity measures. • Projecting patient throughput and workforce requirements. • Rostering and work allocation. • Efficiency, productivity and HRM reporting. • Discharge analysis, bed management and clinical handovers. • Allied health registers with extensive reporting. • Clinical pathways with variance reporting. • Patient assessments and risk analysis. • Diet ordering and reporting. • Staff health tracking and reporting.
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Therapeutic Guidelines Limited is an independent not-for-profit organisation dedicated to deriving guidelines for therapy from the latest world literature, interpreted and distilled by Australia’s most eminent and respected experts. These experts, with many years of clinical experience, work with skilled medical editors to sift and sort through research data, systematic reviews, local protocols and other sources of information, to ensure that the clear and practical recommendations developed are based on the best available evidence. eTG complete Incorporates all topics from the Therapeutic Guidelines series in a searchable electronic product, and is the ultimate resource for the essence of current available evidence. It provides access to over 3000 clinical topics, relevant PBS, pregnancy and breastfeeding information, key references, and other independent information such as Australian Prescriber (including Medicines Safety Update), NPS Radar, NPS News and Cochrane Reviews. eTG complete is available in a range of convenient formats – online access, online download, CD, and intranet access for hospitals. Multi-user licences, ideal for a practice or clinic, are also available. It is widely used by practitioners and pharmacists in community and hospital settings in all Australian states and territories. Updated three times per year, eTG complete meets the criteria for ‘key electronic clinical resources’ in the Practice Incentives Program (PIP) eHealth Incentive. Therapeutic Guidelines was awarded ‘Best eBook Publisher’ for eTG complete in 2009 by The Association of Learned and Professional Society Publishers. miniTG The mobile version of eTG complete is miniTG, offering the convenience of having vital information at the point of care and designed for health professionals who practise and consult on the move. It is supported on a wide range of mobile devices, including Apple®, Pocket PC®, and selected Blackberry® devices.
Vensa Health
P: +64 9 522 9522 F: +64 9 522 9523 E: website@vensahealth.com W: www.vensahealth.com The next time you receive a text message mobile reminder or an alert from your doctor, hospital or physio you now know its done by Vensa. Vensa Health is a mobile health (mHealth) provider in the health care sector offering eHealth integrated mobile solutions, enabling text-messaging for patient communications for applications such as appointment reminders, medication reminders, test results alerts, recalls for screenings such as mamograms, immunisations and more. Vensa has invested substantially into developing products and services that offer communication solutions to better content providers with patients, including mobile text-messaging, voice, mobile sites and Telehealth services delivery.
Zedmed
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Pulse+IT 49
Kelvin’s eHealth Journey
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Greeted by medical centre receptionist Lucy Black, the receptionist is logged into her computer and Kelvin is then added to the waiting list by Lucy.
Kelvin is on holiday in far North Queensland Kelvin lives in Croydon, Victoria with his wife Betty. He is reasonably healthy, only suffering from hypertension that is well controlled with medication. He has an allergy to Penicillin. Over a period of three weeks he develops cramps and pain in his abdomen when he eats fatty food.
Kelvin’s IHI number is retrieved from the HI service electronically and seamlessly added to the local practice record. Kelvin takes a seat in the waiting room.
He is under the care of Dr Adam Jones at his local GP Practice.
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GP consultation
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Dr Grant opens Kelvin’s medical record on his PC which now also includes his Healthcare Identifier. Kelvin complains to Dr Grant of cramps in his stomach, especially after eating pizza and fish and chips which he has suffered from for about three weeks.
Kelvin presents to a medical centre While on holidays his condition gets worse and he presents to a medical centre in the town he is staying.
National E-Health Transition Authority
Dr Grant performs an examination and makes a provisional diagnosis of gallstones. He then orders an ultrasound which confirms the presence of gallstones. After discussing with Kelvin, Dr Grant refers to a General Surgeon: Dr James Brecker at Bay Hill Hospital. The referral is sent electronically via secure messaging.
Kelvin’s eHealth Journey is brought to you by the National E-Health Transition Authority (NEHTA). NEHTA is the lead organisation supporting the national vision for eHealth in Australia.
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Specialist consultation
Pharmacy Kelvin takes his prescription from Dr Brecker to a Community Pharmacy. The pharmacist scans the prescription barcode. The prescription is retrieved from the PES (Prescription Exchange Service) and dispensed.
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Dr James Brecker receives the e-referral. Frank is booked in for an appointment by his GP’s staff. Dr Brecker reviews Kelvin’s ultrasound, performs an examination and determines that Kelvin needs surgery to remove the gallstones.
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Pathology As per the recommendations on Kelvin’s discharge summary, he has a follow-up blood test for liver function done on the day he is to return home from holiday. The GP has requested that the pathology test results be copied to Kelvin’s usual GP.
Admission to hospital for surgery Kelvin is admitted to the General Surgery ward. Kelvin then undergoes surgery by Dr Brecker, and he makes an uneventful recovery. Kelvin is discharged three days later, much improved and is referred back to his GP for follow up. An e-discharge summary is sent to Dr Adam Jones, his local GP.
For more information about NEHTA visit www.nehta.gov.au For more information about eHealth including the Healthcare Identifier (HI) Service visit www.ehealthinfo.gov.au
9 Returns from holiday Kelvin goes home without receiving his results but on his return home he goes to his usual GP who has received the blood test results and a copy of the discharge summary. After consultation with Kelvin, Dr Jones confirms that the blood tests are normal.
What a wonderful outcome!