Press Releases
MEDSTAR HEALTH TO ADOPT HEALINX SECURE ONLINE COMMUNICATION SERVICES
One of the Nation's Largest Healthcare Systems Licenses Healinx Online Services To Ensure Efficient, Secure Internal Communications, Improve Patient Service, and Reduce Administrative Costs
Emeryville, CA, April 10, 2002 -- Healinx Corporation, the premier provider of Web-based,
doctor-patient communication services, today announced it will license online communication
services to the MedStar Health community of physicians and healthcare facilities, enabling
MedStar clinical staff to securely communicate with their patients and each other online.
With 4,000 affiliated physicians and seven hospitals serving the Baltimore, MD - Washington, DC area, MedStar Health is one of the nation's largest healthcare systems. MedStar Health hospitals consistently receive national recognition. In 2001, three MedStar Health hospitals were ranked among the best in the nation by U.S. News & World Report, which conducts a yearly review of 6,300 hospitals; and four MedStar Health hospitals were cited in the Top 100 Hospitals in the U.S. by HCIA and The Health Network, a national healthcare information company that compares more than 6,000 acute care and specialty hospitals nationwide.
Under the agreement, Healinx will develop a customized, co-branded version of the Healinx
secure messaging platform for MedStar Health. In utilizing this platform, MedStar Health providers
and designated staff members will leverage the role-based access and workflow features of the
Healinx service to secure and maximize the efficiency of internal communications, such as referrals
and consults. MedStar Health will also use the secure Healinx service to streamline administrative
communications with patients including prescription renewals, lab result reporting, and appointment
setting and reminders.
"With the Healinx messaging platform, MedStar Health will be in a stronger position than ever to foster patient and physician relationships through innovation," said Peter Basch, MD, Medical Director of MedStar's e-Health Initiatives. "It's a win-win situation. These new services will enable us to offer patients unprecedented convenience and access to the healthcare services they need, while reducing administrative costs and roadblocks that drain resources and focus from core activities."
"This agreement with MedStar Health, a healthcare organization of the highest caliber, represents a significant business development for Healinx, and for online clinical communication in general," said Giovanni Colella, MD, president and chief executive officer of Healinx. "We're confident that the Healinx messaging platform will quickly prove a key component of MedStar's e-Health strategy, and will reinforce the growing evidence that online health communications create significant value -- in terms of security, practice productivity, and satisfaction -- for patients and physicians alike."
MedStar Health selected Healinx based on an extensive evaluation of a number of online communication service providers. "Its success in providing advanced physician office workflow support for efficient message routing, triage, and practice management, combined with its considerable experience in a large medical group setting, makes Healinx an ideal fit for MedStar Health," said Basch.
Both physician and patient members of MedStar Health will have access to Healinx online communication services starting in April 2002.
About MedStar Health
MedStar Health is a not-for-profit, community-based healthcare organization comprised of 25
integrated businesses including seven major hospitals in the Baltimore/Washington area. The
hospitals, which include both teaching and community facilities, are Franklin Square Hospital
Center, Good Samaritan Hospital, Harbor Hospital, and Union Memorial Hospital in Baltimore
and Georgetown University Hospital, Washington Hospital Center, and National Rehabilitation
Hospital in Washington, D.C. MedStar Health is the third largest employer in the region with
22,000 employees and 4,000 affiliated physicians.
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.
