EHR, or EMR, as we call it, was 600 companies not so long ago. As of 2019, the count was down to 400 or so. Developing SyncMD, we found our neighborhood specialists were receiving records from 100 different systems. The average cancer patient at my hospital starts with about 5 docs, each on a separate system. Naturally, the lack of connections, known as interoperability, and the inability of them all to find a single standard format, led to the widespread use of this 80s tech: Send the records by FAX, receive them as paper, scan the paper into the electronic record. Note that fax, or facsimile, is in and of itself an electronic format, but, never mind. Our cancer center had folks employed to do this fax/paper/scan shuffle, TRYING to coordinate care for a single patient. Even in 2020, my own cancer patients’ records were dictated into a microphone, transcribed into a paper document, printed, folded, enveloped, and mailed by USPS to my office, typically 2-6 weeks after the service. And this for cancer care, which is supposed to be high tech!
Now, these systems have consolidated, and Epic dominates approaching a 40% marketshare. But did you know that it was started by its current CEO in the 1980s using MUMPS as its operating system? Everything since then has been built on that original platform. 45 year old tech dominates healthcarea
One day, a new patient came in to get established. A young tech worker. New job at Amazon, moved from Madison WI. Now, I knew that Epic was there, so I queried, “Where did you work in Madison?” “Epic.” “So why did you move here to Amazon?” “I got sick and tired of working in obsolete technology.”
Yup. True story. You might have MyChart. I do. I can now schedule my own appointments with my doc, although not my eye doctor, and I can get lab results, messages, etc. I don’t have much, it’s just an abstract, but it’s an improvement over time for sure. And, I keep the wheat on SyncMD, and toss the chaff. I curate my own medical records, and only store the important stuff. You could, too!
Research shows that about 85% of any Medicare patient’s care is confined to one hospital and roster of physicians. Today that might be close to integrated around one EHR, usually Epic, or Cerner, MediTech, Athena, or smaller-yet players. What about the other 15%? What about traveling outside of your home base? What about travel out of the country, say, on a cruise ship with NO internet access, or little, except perhaps in port? What about the next time YOUR system is shut down due to another ransomware attack????
Every outsider wonders why the system is still using fax. Why aren’t the records integrated around a PERSON, instead of owned by the healthcare system? Shouldn’t it be built around a person?
You have health records. Maybe you travel. When is your next accident or illness? No one knows! You have health insurance, but you don’t have access to your own records, and if you do, are they on paper?
I’d love to hear the barriers! Why don’t you have your records on syncMD like I do? What provoked you to get your records at all, if you did? Comments, please!! Hint: syncMD.comEHR, or EMR, as we call it, was 600 companies not so long ago. As of 2019, the count was down to 400 or so. Developing SyncMD, we found our neighborhood specialists were receiving records from 100 different systems. The average cancer patient at my hospital starts with about 5 docs, each on a separate system. Naturally, the lack of connections, known as interoperability, and the inability of them all to find a single standard format, led to the widespread use of this 80s tech: Send the records by FAX, receive them as paper, scan the paper into the electronic record. Note that fax, or facsimile, is in and of itself an electronic format, but, nevermind. Our cancer center had folks employed to do this fax/paper/scan shuffle, TRYING to coordinate care for a single patient. Even in 2020, my own cancer patients’ records were dictated into a microphone, transcribed into a paper document, printed, folded, enveloped, and mailed by USPS to my office, typically 2-6 weeks after the service. And this for cancer care, which is supposed to be high tech!
Now, these systems have consolidated, and Epic dominates approaching a 40% marketshare. But did you know that it was started by its current CEO in the 1980s using MUMPS as its operating system? Everything since then has been built on that original platform. 45 year old tech dominates healthcarea
One day, a new patient came in to get established. A young tech worker. New job at Amazon, moved from Madison WI. Now, I knew that Epic was there, so I queried, “Where did you work in Madison?” “Epic.” “So why did you move here to Amazon?” “I got sick and tired of working in obsolete technology.”
Yup. True story. You might have MyChart. I do. I can now schedule my own appointments with my doc, although not my eye doctor, and I can get lab results, messages, etc. I don’t have much, it’s just an abstract, but it’s an improvement over time for sure. And, I keep the wheat on SyncMD, and toss the chaff. I curate my own medical records, and only store the important stuff. You could, too!
Research shows that about 85% of any Medicare patient’s care is confined to one hospital and roster of physicians. Today that might be close to integrated around one EHR, usually Epic, or Cerner, MediTech, Athena, or smaller-yet players. What about the other 15%? What about traveling outside of your home base? What about travel out of the country, say, on a cruise ship with NO internet access, or little, except perhaps in port? What about the next time YOUR system is shut down due to another ransomware attack????
Every outsider wonders why the system is still using fax. Why aren’t the records integrated around a PERSON, instead of owned by the healthcare system? Shouldn’t it be built around a person?
You have health records. Maybe you travel. When is your next accident or illness? No one knows! You have health insurance, but you don’t have access to your own records, and if you do, are they on paper?
I’d love to hear the barriers! Why don’t you have your records on syncMD like I do? What provoked you to get your records at all, if you did? Comments, please!! Hint: syncMD.com