Will the biggest disruption in health care be an Internet-based health care industry? We already know that more consumers get answers to their health care questions on a daily basis from the Internet than from their doctors. But do we think that online tools will evolve enough to allow consumers to organize and make sense of that information without trained professionals?

Will the trend toward “convenience care” (pharmacy- or mall-based walk-in clinics) have the greatest impact on how providers organize care delivery? Will they need to re-think the way they practice medicine to meet new consumer expectations?

Maybe CMS’s requirement that hospitals begin publicly reporting patient experience data in 2008 will forever change how hospital view patient-centered care. Will hospitals finally find that being truly patient-centered has a business ROI?

Will consumer control over their own health information via personal health records (PHRs) alter the historical information asymmetry and allow them to control their own health care lives? What needs to be done to make sure that PHRs actually fulfill their potential as a disruptive force given that personal health data availability by itself will have a marginal impact?

Will the evolution of electronic health records (EHRs) and a robust interoperable health information exchange dramatically change health care by increasing connectivity among systems, providers, and others? Or, will we just create a process for transferring 1’s and 0’s on top of poor models of health care delivery?

Will the boom in biomonitoring/wireless devices (the so-called “healthcare unbound” space) revolutionize health care by allowing consumers to access the health care they need anytime, anywhere, and any way they want it?

Maybe the answer lies in more ubiquitous technologies. Could expanded use of cell phones and the application of tailored automated telephony allow us to reach a broader audience more conveniently, thus increasing the likelihood that average consumers will be more activated about their health care needs?

Can we more effectively engage consumers in better managing their own health by learning from Hollywood or video games about how to draw people in through entertainment? By doing so, can we make health care “fun” or at least truly engaging?

Can we find new payment structures to eliminate the perverse incentives that plague our current health care delivery system? Or, will people find ways to game any new system we design…or will entrenched interests simply prevent new systems from coming into fruition?

Is there any hope at all for finding a way to cover the growing number of uninsured in the country given the politically changed environment in Washington?

What is the role of information therapy (Ix) in each of these potentially disruptive forces?

Which of these developments will have the biggest impact on health care? Beyond that, will any of them actually change a system that has so many challenges and problems?

Many of these questions will be tackled at our upcoming Ix conference October 8-10 in Park City (see http://guest.cvent.com/EVENTS/Info/Agenda.aspx?e=f586de48-3d6e-4064-8543-1c7037b58890 for the full conference agenda). I hope you’ll join us.

–Josh

There was an interesting piece in last Wednesday’s USA Today, “Communication now part of the cure“. They published a Letter to the Editor I wrote (Continue reading “Get an ‘Ix’ with a Rx” ») on July 27 (page 10A). Here’s the text:

Get an ‘Ix’ with a Rx

Joshua Seidman, president - Center for Information Therapy; Bethesda, Md.

USA TODAY’s article “Communication now part of the cure” about the importance of discussions between doctors and patients makes several good points (Life, Wednesday).

Since research shows that 40%-80% of everything a doctor tells a patient in the office is forgotten, taking along a patient advocate is a great strategy. Unfortunately, it is not always an option or sufficient. In order to ensure effective communication, every patient should leave the doctor’s office with an information prescription (Ix). This after-visit summary reinforces what transpired in the clinic and outlines the person’s next steps for self-management and interaction with the delivery system.

Providers that have implemented after-visit summaries — both in print form and available through a secure Web portal — have found that patients love them. The summaries provide something tangible to take home, guidance that is practical, and a bridge to the next visit or to a referral to another clinician.

Non-profit and government organizations such as the Center for Information Therapy, American College of Physicians and National Library of Medicine have been advocating information prescriptions for years.

Next time you go to the doctor, make sure to get an Ix with your Rx.