e-Health -- doing it like Mother Nature...

Ajax, ON, Winter 2013

As I looked out my window after the Christmas 2013 ice storm, I was in awe at what Mother Nature had done -- wreaking havoc with most, if not all of our daily routines -- especially those we're accustomed to carrying out over the holidays.
For example, we were hampered by the fact that many of us had no power for an extended period of time!

Notwithstanding the above, what impressed me most about the storm was its resulting beauty and uniformity -- it's as if every tree was coated with ice in the exact same manner as its neighbor, and as I always love doing, I tried to relate the experience to everyday life in general, and something in particular -- that day it was our e-Health system.
Well, the brain cells scarcely had a chance to warm up before I was drawn to a radio commercial for the Humber River Hospital (HRH) redevelopment plan.
Apparently a brand spanking new hospital is being built that's like nothing we're accustomed to -- seems like they plan to reinvent patient care with the help of technology in terms of Electronic Health Records (EHRs) etc; here's a quote from their web site:

"A digital hospital utilizes the most current technologies possible to enhance all aspects of quality care delivery, improving efficiency, accuracy, reliability and safety. And currently no North American hospital is fully digital. There are systems interruptions in all of them that prevent full integration and full interoperability. We're going to be the first in North America to close that gap to automate all of our processes."

Hallelujah, I thought; however, even though these guys were singing my tune there was something about it that nagged at me; I soon had clarity -- you see, being the first also has its disadvantages.
I have no doubt they'll achieve their integration objectives internally, but how do you convince the other external healthcare providers (at least around the GTA) to mosey on up to the interoperability bar?
To my mind, that will be the challenge.

Someone has to throw down the gauntlet, and it appears HRH has done just that -- it'll be interesting to see what the effect will be after it opens in 2015.
I'm hoping it'll convince the Health Ministry here in Ontario that similar to Mother Nature, if just one tree gets a makeover, sure it'll be pretty initially, but all the others around it will just make it ugly again in no time.
I'd like to suggest you take a peek at their web site and support them if you can -- this sure looks like the direction health care should be heading.

Until next time, remember to practice your penguin moves before you tackle any ice patches on the walkways!

Ernest A. James

President and CEO
Regal Informatics Inc.