Boston-based Partners HealthCare has launched a five-year digital health initiative designed to improve the digital patient experience and engagement, while also enabling and scaling research and development.
The program, according to organization officials, will look to build upon Partners’ investments in data, technology and analytics and expand digital care projects to advance patient reach, impact and outcomes.
“We need to make healthcare easier for our patients,” said Gregg Meyer, M.D., chief clinical officer at Partners HealthCare. “Our patients want healthcare to operate like every other sector of our economy, and this initiative will help us to engage patients and ensure that they are getting the attention they need, when they need it.”
As it relates to improving the digital patient experience and enhancing engagement, the initiative focuses on proactively engaging consumers in their healthcare journeys, with the goal of providing them digital resources, services and solutions to improve their health and quality of life, officials stated. Some of the initial self-service programs will include:
- Online scheduling of appointments
- 24/7 video and text enabled anywhere virtual care
- Online access to medical records including OpenNotes
- Cost estimates for procedures and diagnostic imaging
- Aggregation of medical records for Partners and non-Partners sites
- Customized patient communication options, including text, email, call or direct mail
What’s more, the digital health initiative will aim to incubate innovative programs under development with the goal of expanding programs that show provider adoption and patient impact. The initiative will look to increase the reach and frequency of interactions with patients using novel technologies to deliver programs with proven outcomes to manage chronic conditions such as diabetes and hypertension.
“As a healthcare system with two leading academic medical centers and the nation’s largest research enterprise, our clinicians and researchers are developing digital tools and care programs that are transforming medicine,” said Alistair Erskine, M.D., chief digital health officer for Partners HealthCare. “This initiative will fuel early stage projects, provide the resources to test those projects and then more importantly, provide a structure to scale projects that allows us to expand access for patients across our healthcare system and beyond.”
