I came across this recent blog post by Peter Neupert, Corporate VP for the Health Solutions Group at MSFT, and something very obvious yet interesting caught my attention – “Individuals should be encouraged to create and manage their health data asset and to learn how to share it to achieve better outcomes and interactions with the health delivery system.”
I think Mr. Neupert brings up a very valid point, something that we at TrialX support wholeheartedly and have made this one of our primary goals to educate people about the benefits of having online health records. I compare the advent of the digital healthcare industry as the online banking 10 years ago. At that time, people were apprehensive and did not realize the value and flexibility of having their financial information online. A few years later, after the Paypal phenomena, online banking is as common and prevalent as can be. Imagine having to go to bank everytime you wanted to transfer money from one account to the other, or mailing in a check every month to pay off your credit card bills, can’t think of it any more right? It’s the same with your medical records – you are the owner, you should be in control of your own medical information. Think about the ease of moving from New York, Ohio or Idaho to London, Sydney, Delhi or Tokyo and not having to call up your doctor to fax or fedex your medical records half the world across. Furthermore, banking has become ubiquitous, and so should healthcare. We are eagerly waiting for the day when not only will we be empowered to control and manage our own medical information, but also will be able to use that information in a very constructive way to provide significant value added services.
We are setting up our “Learn and Educate” community section where people will be able to interact with each other, learn more about the benefits of clinical trials and electronic health records. They will be able to share their experiences about undergoing clinical trials for different diseases and ailments.
