Comments on: Cloud based EHRs – a response to PracticeFusion http://thehealthitblog.com/2009/09/25/cloud-based-ehrs-a-response-to-practicefusion/ Healthcare Informatics and Technology Wed, 02 Nov 2011 09:57:44 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.com/ By: Medical Data in the Cloud | Bob on Medical Device Software http://thehealthitblog.com/2009/09/25/cloud-based-ehrs-a-response-to-practicefusion/#comment-73 Thu, 01 Oct 2009 15:56:38 +0000 http://gershater.wordpress.com/?p=292#comment-73 [...] commentary on these posts:  Cloud based EHRs – a response to PracticeFusion. Sphere: Related [...]

]]> By: jgershater http://thehealthitblog.com/2009/09/25/cloud-based-ehrs-a-response-to-practicefusion/#comment-66 Tue, 29 Sep 2009 16:53:29 +0000 http://gershater.wordpress.com/?p=292#comment-66 Robert
thank you for the response
On the “Health Information Exchange and Business Intelligence (HIE/BI)” LinkedIn group there is a discussion on cloud computing for HealthCare. This news item was referenced: http://www.easylink.com/industry-solutions/healthcare.php in addition to a discussion of ‘internal’ clouds: http://www.wellsphere.com/healthcare-industry-policy-article/beth-israel-deaconess-medical-center-using-an-internal-cloud-for-virtualized-electronic-health-records-for-private-physician-g/639961

Please join the discussion…

Jonathan
p.s. And I was alerted to this article

]]> By: Robert Rowley, MD http://thehealthitblog.com/2009/09/25/cloud-based-ehrs-a-response-to-practicefusion/#comment-65 Sat, 26 Sep 2009 05:09:10 +0000 http://gershater.wordpress.com/?p=292#comment-65 Thank you for your commentary (by the way, we’re looking into why you couldn’t respond on our blog, as some other comments have made it through). You raise good questions. Let me try to respond:
1. Broadband bandwidth has become ubiquitous and inexpensive. One does not need extremely-high bandwidth to work with Practice Fusion, mainly because of the design of the user interface (it is written in a language that runs in a Flash player, so that small data exchanges occur with the server, once loaded and running, and the response time is very fast). A simple DSL line will suffice – it even works with cell-phone data cards (like Verizon or T-Mobile data card plug-ins to a laptop).
2. Assurance of internet connectivity is the one residual potential points of failure for cloud-based systems. The points of failure of local server crashes, power outages, etc, which can happen with local installs is not present. We recommend solid connectivity with failovers to alternative connections – a DSL or cable-internet primary with a cell-phone-data device as backup, for example. We are currently working with a hardware and connectivity vendor to address these kinds of particulars, so that the doctor doesn’t have to “re-invent the wheel” each time.
3. Care coordination – such as inter-practice messaging and chart sharing – are possible with practices using the Practice Fusion cloud. The issue of data exchange with other, legacy systems remains daunting – that is the purpose behind the whole effort to build an HIE infrastructure (regionally and nationally). These efforts are still preliminary, and no significant use of such interoperability has actually been seen in the “real world.” Once such exchanges are in place, functioning, and actually being used by practices with their legacy systems (1000 practices = 1000 points of integration), then Practice Fusion can connect with them as a single-point-of-integration. In the meantime, Practice Fusion will build its in-system HIE-like connectivity, since referral to non-Practice Fusion offices would simply mean a quick, five-minute sign-up (remember, that Practice Fusion is free) and then, voila, you’re connected (even side-by-side with your legacy system, if you want).

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