We’ve just been introduced to an interesting company: Doctations. This relatively new site aims to open communication channels and online services to turn any doctor’s practice into a web-based community.
The software, an Internet-based healthcare transaction interface, allows doctors to upload and save medical data, to share test results with patients, and to analyze information with their colleagues. Patients in this system can manage their healthcare, schedule appointments, request prescription refills, research medications, access articles, and communicate with doctors – all securely, quickly, and cost-effectively. Our question: Why aren’t systems like these in place everywhere right now?
Unfortunately, a combination of data security concerns and industry regulations such as HIPAA have made doctor-patient online communication – even via email – nearly impossible. Doctations’ data transactions are made secure through an encrypted database and a secure login and password. Voice identification processes are available, as well. These data security measures are compliant with all relevant industry regulations.
More than just a task manager, the interface allows physicians to access a messaging system that includes audio and video chats, kind of like Skype. Using this part of the service, physicians could conduct online consultations with their patients via webcam. It’s unclear whether the system would also allow homebound patients to send vital statistics such as weight and blood pressure to physicians automatically through the use of monitored devices, another trending topic in “telehealth“. Online consultations – and getting insurance companies to pay for them – have also been a subject of great concern to the American Medial Association, which has been lobbying for more modern billing practices for online consults since 2004.
Doctations has also expressed the goal of making physicians’ offices entirely paperless by moving source data (such as reports, faxes, and mail) and business processes online. The company has partnered with Sure Scripts and Quest Diagnostics to send prescription requests and order lab results. The company has also partnered with science and health publisher Elsevier to give patients access to important research materials and decision support alerts.
These are just a few noteworthy features we found while browsing around the Doctations website. The service appears to be full-featured for all aspects of a medical practice, from staffing and billing to patient-focused task management. The service is available on a subscription basis for healthcare providers.
Check out this CNBC interview with Doctations founder and neurosurgeon Dr. Louis Cornacchia:
Although many users would love the opportunity to have quicker, simpler, less expensive healthcare as well as greater access to their physicians, others still probably have concerns about the security of putting their most personal information online. On which side of the fence do you find yourself? And for our readers who are also medical doctors, would it make sense to implement such software in your own practice? What are the objections?
Let us know your thoughts in the comments. We’re going to switch on the webcam and see if we can get a doctor to look at this troubling mole.
