Press Releases
STANFORD UNIVERSITY, STANFORD MEDICAL CENTER,
AND SEAGATE TECHNOLOGY JOIN PILOT TESTING
HEALINX ONLINE DOCTOR-PATIENT COMMUNICATION SERVICE
Pilot Study Assessing Effects Of Online Communication
Emeryville, CA, February 12, 2002 -- Stanford University and Seagate Technology are among several leading Silicon Valley employers to recently join a pilot of the Healinx webVisit™ online consultation; Stanford University Medical Center has also joined the pilot as a provider organization. Spearheaded by the Silicon Valley Employers Forum (SVEF), an affiliate of the Pacific Business Group on Health (PBGH), the pilot is testing the effects of online doctor-patient communication on employee and provider satisfaction, absenteeism, and healthcare costs. The pilot is also testing a unique physician reimbursement methodology for online communication.
Stanford University, Seagate Technology, and other Fortune 100 companies join existing pilot program members Adobe Corporation, Cadence Design Systems, Cisco Systems, NEC Electronics, and Oracle Corporation. The pilot was launched in July 2001 and will run for approximately one year. More than 700 employees are currently participating in the pilot program.
"Using this technology, Seagate employees will be able to securely communicate with their doctors even when they're traveling," noted Tracey Shore, Benefits Manager for Seagate Technology. "Doctor-patient communication can occur wherever an Internet connection is available - time and distance no longer need be barriers to effective healthcare delivery."
"We believe the Internet has the potential to improve patient access to physicians and could prove to be a very valuable benefit for our faculty and staff," said Susan Cunningham, Stanford University's benefits program manager.
Aetna, Blue Shield of California, and two other national health carriers are reimbursing physicians for each webVisit® conducted with a participating patient. Physicians from San Jose Good Samaritan Medical Group, Santa Clara County IPA, and now Stanford University Medical Group are participating in the pilot.
"Stanford University Medical Center has a long tradition of leading and pursuing advances in medical care," said Joseph Hopkins, M.D., chief of family practice at Stanford Medical Center. "If used correctly, we believe the Internet has the ability to enhance existing patient-physician relationships. In order for a communication platform to be acceptable, it must offer security, clinical structure and reimbursement - all of which are components of the Healinx platform."
About webVisit
The webVisit® begins with the patient logging onto the
Healinx service. Patients describe their symptoms using interactive interview technology that
transforms the patient's communication of symptoms and problems into a complete, concise narrative
-- an important differentiation from other e-mail based doctor-patient communication systems.
Complete with the patient's health profile, the Healinx service additionally offers self-care
information and provides physicians with customizable treatment options, a triage mechanism,
and a prescription feature. With all of these tools, physicians can efficiently respond to
patients with an appropriate course of action.
About Healinx
Healinx Corporation is the premier provider of Web-based, doctor-patient communication services.
The Healinx service enables secure, clinically structured, and auditable communications among
doctors, patients, pharmacists, and other healthcare constituents. Healinx also helps doctors
address their need to recoup income while providing efficient, secure online services to
their patients. At the same time, Healinx offers patients convenience and access -- the convenience
of communicating directly with their doctors at anytime from anyplace. By streamlining the
patient-doctor relationship, Healinx enables all stakeholders in the health care delivery
process to improve customer satisfaction and reduce exposure to rising health care costs.
For information, visit www.relayhealth.com.
