Memorial Hermann Physicians Go "High-Tech"

Memorial Hermann Health Network Providers, Texas’ largest physician association with 2,900 members, has adopted PhysicianLINK, which allows doctors and designated office staff to log onto a secure Web site from their homes or offices and instantly access a variety of online clinical results and resources.

The association adopted PhysicianLINK in October at the Practice Improvement via Office Technology, or PIVOT, Conference, which is held each fall.

"We have a nine-month deployment strategy to take PhysicianLINK to every doctor’s office within the Memorial Hermann Hospital network by the end of June 2002," says Memorial Hermann Health Network Providers’ Executive Director Scott Fenn. "Currently, we have about 500 users who are on PhysicianLINK."

Fenn says he wants to bring the service to a total of 1,400 physicians, and is anxious to get those additional physicians into the technology fold.

"The real users right now of PhysicianLINK seem to be the office staff," Fenn says. "Doctors use it for a lot of the clinical reference information and labs. We want our doctors to get more attuned to using the technology."

Of the 200 people who attended the PIVOT Conference, Fenn notes that most were medical office staff.

The months ahead are critical for new systems designed to improve the efficiency and security of medical data, he says, noting that the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 will influence how computer-based tools are used in health care. Congress passed the measure to establish national standards for how personal health information is used and distributed, and to set penalties for violating patient privacy. The act takes effect next year and will likely bring to an end the faxing of patient documents.

"The fax machine isn’t a secure tool, so we’re going to need this PhysicianLINK secure portal to replace the fax machine," Fenn says.

Dr. Jim F. Waldron, Memorial Hermann Health Network Providers’ president, says the Memorial Hermann Health Network Providers and Memorial Hermann’s Information Systems Division are very interested in handheld technology, particularly with wireless. They are participating in a pilot program where physicians can practice coding correctly. But until wireless technology is a more standard practice, it will not be ready for office use, he says.

"Our goal is for physicians to use this in their treatment rooms – that way patients can pick up any prescriptions at the front desk on their way out," he says.

Fenn encourages more practices to test-drive new features on PhysicianLINK so they can have a say in the site’s design.

"We have several doctors who volunteered to use MyCareLINK," he says, explaining that MyCareLINK is Memorial Hermann’s personalized online service that allows patients to communicate directly with their physician’s office."

An outpatient transcription program provided through PhysicianLINK is proving to be very popular among physicians, Fenn says, as well as a pilot program that delivers reports from the hospital electronically to doctors’ offices, where doctors can then review, make changes and sign the reports electronically, without having to go into medical records.

Fenn and Dr. Waldron are already planning the second PIVOT Conference next fall. Both say they expect the event to grow in popularity as they train more doctors and medical office staff.

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