What is the status of your ACO?

I would be interested to learn how many of you and your local ACO initiatives are similar to and different from what is illustrated in this video - In Search of an Accountable Care Organization (ACO)

The sad reality is that few health systems are developing, or even considering ACO solutions that are friendly to patients and physicians. Particularly, the currently available information technology solutions that are usually being considered are arguably hostile to both. This is a key reason SOAPware, Inc. has been working very hard to see that more patient-centric solutions will soon be available, and is the reason we are strongly collaborating with larger entities that can reach across the community in a fashion to best serve patients.
Our nation is on the verge of a dramatic change in how health information technology is utilized, how care is delivered, and how it is funded. Few understand the implications.

My Perspective on Smarter Healthcare

This is a cross-post linking to Building a Smarter Planet - A Family Doctor's Perspective on Smarter Healthcare.

Further commentary:
At SOAPware, we are pleased that IBM and ActiveHealth have publically announced a project that has been in the works for some time now. The Collaborative Care Solution is EMR/EHR agnostic. The intent is to make it as open-platform as is possible. It’s greatest value is likely to be that it is inclusive of any/all vendors that will adopt the Health Information Exchange (HIE) specifications defined in the solution. IBM is probably one of the only entities that can finally overcome some of the obstacles that have thwarted true interoperability.
The SOAPware Clinical Suite is an option, but not the only option, for sites and practices joining the collaborative who have not yet invested in an EMR. The intent in the CCS is to preserve the current, comprehensive EMR user’s choices where and when that is possible. Likewise, SOAPware Clinical Suite is being incorporated into other HIE initiatives. The future belongs to inclusivity and not the proprietary exclusivities of the past.

Digital Dr. Deliverables: Conquering Cost & Complexity in Healthcare

Guest blog: Dr. Paul Grundy, IBM Director of Healthcare Transformation








A major problem in healthcare is getting the right information in the right hands at the right time to make better decisions. Meanwhile, patients are becoming more active consumers and expect to receive real-time, accurate, timely insight. Today, the two biggest challenges with health technology infrastructure are cost and complexity.

However, healthcare is the latest industry undergoing a digital transformation (in terms of clinical use) applying technology and analytics to improve healthcare systems offering more effective, meaningful patient services.

Health analytics and clinical decision support provide the ability to lower costs, inform consumers, and deliver better patient care outcomes. IBM and ActiveHealth have brought together deep healthcare industry expertise to deliver a Collaborative Care Solution that marries the capabilities of deep clinical insight with IBM’s strength in technology. The new system works with SOAPware’s innovative EMR capabilities to deliver a comprehensive solution to give doctors what they need, when they need it.

Physicians can connect to the technology via the Web in a secure, private cloud-based service hosted by IBM. The solution sifts through the mountains of data with sophisticated mathematical models to distill what’s most important and relevant to treating each patient. For patients, it can help ensure they get better care. (Video)

Using a smart cloud-based computing model, healthcare organizations buy only what they need -- per physician per month – avoiding upfront costs and the challenge of updating systems when clinical guidelines or reporting requirements change or when patient loads grow.

This unique model combining the power of deep analytics and clinical decision support wrapped around SOAPware EMR technology provides an innovative approach to achieving the goals of patient centered medical home or accountable care.

This is an important step toward transforming our healthcare system.