Health care reform is not only introducing 32 million more patients into our system--it is also requiring medical professionals to embark on new, more expanded collaborations with others across the continuum of care. At the same time clinicians are handling increased demand, they will also be asked to improve quality and document their results, engage patients and families, and ensure privacy while increasing the level of coordination among the different care areas.

Fortunately, MEDITECH is working with its customers to ensure that they have the strong I.T. foundation they need, in order to turn our industry's current challenges into positive and long-lasting change for their organizations.

"As we move closer to adopting Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) as our model for care delivery and reimbursement, it will be important to make sure all of the health care players are communicating and working together," says MEDITECH Vice President of Marketing Hoda Sayed-Friel. "Health care providers will be expected to work with others across the spectrum, which is why both integration and interoperability will be important parts of any successful I.T. solution."

Coordinating for Quality
MEDITECH is introducing several new initiatives to ensure that organizations can align with each other to meet future goals. One of the most crucial, according to Sayed-Friel, involves extending our customers' clinical reach by strengthening our home care and ambulatory offerings.

"In order to coordinate care effectively, we must erase the separation between the acute setting and the ambulatory setting," she says. "We shouldn't be reinventing the wheel whenever a patient enters a different care setting. One way we're addressing this is by working with Zynx on evidence-based and longitudinal care plans, which will ensure that all of our patients' information follows them throughout their lives, no matter where they are receiving care."

Sayed-Friel says that coordinating care will also involve more monitoring outside of the acute environment, to ensure that patients with chronic diseases are complying with their treatment regimens.

"Telehealth is key for these high-cost, chronically ill patients, in order to keep hospital readmission rates down," she says. "With our well@home product, physicians will be able to conduct remote consultations without having to see patients in their office. It's an especially good tool for rural communities, where a patient may live several hours away from his or her doctor."

Involving Patients, Improving Outcomes
Patient engagement is another area that is becoming increasingly important, as ACOs require health care organizations to assume responsibility for maintaining the overall health of populations.

"Patients and families must become involved in care processes. They cannot be left out," says Sayed-Friel. "Pushing information out to consumer devices, such as cell phones, will help us to reach out to those patients who may be in good health, but need to be reminded about check-ups and flu shots. This is to help healthy patients stay that way, and stay out of the ER."

MEDITECH's new Patient & Consumer Health Portal is another major way that caregivers can stay in touch with their patients. "This portal will provide a central, online location where patients can see their lab results, submit requests for prescription refills, and schedule appointments," says Sayed-Friel.

"Health care organizations can also customize this portal with their own logos and specific branding. It's currently being used by a 6.0 early adopter, and we expect that it will be up and running for MAGIC and Client/Server by the end of this year."

Development Vice President Michelle O'Connor adds that technologies which facilitate patient engagement are increasingly in demand by today's discerning health care consumers.

"More and more, patients are expecting their caregivers to offer them a better experience and more convenience," she says. "The patient portal will make it easier for patients to manage their own conditions, which will be essential for maintaining healthier populations moving forward."

Development Efforts for Today, and for the Future
When it comes to Meaningful Use, O'Connor says that her team is in great shape with the Stage 1 requirements, and is now ready to up the ante by ensuring that the functionality in the MEDITECH system also complies with Stages 2 and 3.

"We've listened to our customers, and now, we're delivering on the software they need to succeed," she says. "Now that all of the Stage 1 functionality is ready, we're not resting on our laurels. We now have 135 new reports in the works to comply with the higher stages of Meaningful Use."

"We've also been working on other projects designed to make care delivery easier and more efficient for clinicians over the long haul. For example, we've been working with mobile computing devices such as the iPad--making sure that the buttons are big enough for clinicians to use comfortably, and implementing more capabilities like e-Signature and graphing, so caregivers will be able to see and do more when they're on the go."

Partnerships for a New Age
As the health care industry moves forward, and the effects of health care reform become more clear, Sayed-Friel believes that a solid partnership between caregivers and their I.T. vendors will help to ease the transition.

"Quality doesn't just happen on its own, and neither does cost savings," she says. "Working closely with our customers, MEDITECH is making sure that our software fits the bill for these changing times."