Press Releases

Hill Physicians Medical Group Expands its Community Care Network

Secure Service from RelayHealth Corporation Allows Doctors to Improve Quality and Convenience of Care, Adding Value to 140,000 Participating Patients

San Ramon, CA, March 8, 2006 — Hill Physicians, California's largest IPA comprised of 2,600 physicians, continues to expand its internet technology strategies in pursuit of improving the experience of its patients. The number of secure online messages exchanged between the nearly 1,000 online physicians and more than 140,000 patients topped half a million this month, and Hill continues to expand its online network. Patients most frequently went online to request appointments and send notes to their physicians. Physicians and staff report having most often used RelayHealth for e-prescriptions, e-referrals, and delivery of lab results.

Hill partnered with secure online communication vendor RelayHealth to pioneer its vision for the future of healthcare by providing consumers with online access to their physicians and the ability to collaboratively maintain their Personal Health Records (PHR). Connecting consumers, physicians, health plans partners, and pharmacies on a single platform, Hill established one of the first progressive community care networks in Northern California.

"Connecting all parties in the delivery of care is the right thing to do. RelayHealth is the infrastructure that connects our EMR, our physicians, our patients, and the health plan formulary information. Sharing a common service allows for a community based approach; we can close gaps in care and make everyone more satisfied with their experience," explains Steve McDermott, Chief Executive Officer of Hill Physicians Medical Group. "Not to mention that it helps us drive better outcomes for our patients through increased access, improved safety, health education, and better service."

Using the RelayHealth e-referral, physicians can share patients' PHRs and prescription history in a data-secure environment with other physicians in the connected network. RelayHealth's eScript™ provides comprehensive formulary and patient prescription history at the point of care enhancing patient safety with interaction checks, and saving patients' money by presenting formulary preferred and generic alternative medications to prescribers. Many physicians report that having their offices online improves care coordination and results in higher patient satisfaction.

Patient satisfaction and coordinated care management are of significant importance to groups like Hill Physicians who has been acknowledged by its health plan partners for exceeding clinical guidelines, and has earned rewards in California Pay for Performance programs.

"As the industry places greater focus on the role that consumers play in managing their healthcare experiences, it is important to arm consumers with information to help ensure good decision-making," says Giovanni Colella, MD, president and chief executive officer at RelayHealth. "By integrating their EMR and secure online communication IT initiatives, Hill is demonstrating their commitment to keep the consumer connected to their healthcare. We are honored to be working with this excellent organization."

About Hill Physicians Medical Group
Hill Physicians Medical Group is Northern California's largest Independent Practice Associations (IPA), serving 380,000 patients between San Francisco, Sacramento, and Stockton. Hill Physicians is also a recognized leader in quality and innovation in healthcare. Committed to supporting healthy lifestyles, the company offers its enrollees extensive health education services including wellness classes, health screenings, and self-help through www.hillphysicians.com or via www.hillhealth.com, its online health information portal.

About RelayHealth Corporation
RelayHealth is the premier provider of secure, online healthcare communication services. The RelayHealth platform connects patients, clinicians, payers and pharmacies to improve clinical productivity, create administrative efficiencies, reduce costs and enhance patient satisfaction. Medical practices can quickly deploy RelayHealth to realize immediate results such as increased physician productivity and reduced phone volume. With the RelayHealth Interoperability Toolkit, practices can also integrate RelayHealth with most major commercial or custom electronic medical record and practice management systems. RelayHealth's robust suite of solutions for the medical office includes secure messaging featuring the webVisit, and end to end e-prescribing through eScript. The RelayHealth communications platform also enables care management and continuity of care through tools such as a Patient Health Record that interoperates with physician and payer clinical systems. For more information, visit www.relayhealth.com.