White House Forum on Health Reform

The Obama White House is using technology to gather public opinion on what's needed for changing Health Care for all Americans. I posted my opinion and my solution online yesterday.

Medication noncompliance is costing the US over $200 billion annually. It is also one of the primary reasons that thousands of Americans wind up in hospitals, emergency rooms, and ultimately in nursing homes.

After serving as Director of Pharmacy Services for 18 years in a 400+bed skilled care nursing facility, I left active pharmacy practice in 1996 to develop simple, affordable technology-based tools to help patients manage medications effectively and reduce some of this unnecessary expense. My company is 100% self-funded and totally dedicated to helping Americans maintain their independence and achieve a much higher level of medication adherence than the current 50%.

Interestingly, there is no need to wait until a totally integrated health care and information system is in place. Our simple stand-alone solution can save millions of health care dollars right now. Provide patients the tools and technology to better manage their own care and everyone will save money in the process.

My suggestion is that inexpensive existing technology solutions should be considered when looking for affordable ways to reform health care. OnTimeRx is a mature, feature-rich medication reminder software program that works on multiple devices: Palm, PocketPC, and Windows Mobile hand-held computers and smartphones, Windows XP and Vista, and now on the BlackBerry smartphone. This reminder solution was launched on the Internet in 2000, and at that time, it was "ahead of its time". Even so, there are thousands of users worldwide who are now able to manage the most complex medication regimens easily.

This reminder software is patient-focused, extremely intuitive, and users of all ages are quite capable of utilizing it on their own. VA Caseworkers have purchased OnTimeRx software, and the necessary hardware, for several VA patients over the years. This is an especially helpful tool for VA patients with traumatic brain injuries, ADHD, and other memory problems. For only a small one-time purchase ($22.95 or $34.95/patient) a practical investment in patient-centric healthcare reform could provide a measurable ROI. This same helpful medication manager works for patients of all types and ages, many of whom are struggling daily to follow their doctor's orders. By empowering hundreds of thousands more patients with the tools to successfully manage their own medications, many of them could avoid going to nursing homes - a far more expensive alternative to home health care and aging in place.

As I continue to age, I am using more health care services; but I can personally attest to the value of using technology to manage and maintain my own health. I invite the White House Forum on Health Reform to take a close look at this very affordable option.

One final thought: The single-payer system is getting a lot of attention lately, and it is definitely needed to facilitate the economical delivery of medications. This would allow pharmacists to get back to being pharmacists instead of insurance claims processors. By adequately reimbursing pharmacists to deliver Medication Therapy Management services and patient counseling, health reform can elevate the practice of pharmacy to expand its role in providing better preventive care, which results in major savings in the long term. When pharmacists can concentrate on helping patients achieve medication compliance and better therapeutic outcomes, instead of chasing after insurance reimbursement, the entire health care system will be healthier.

Why Doctors Don't Give Patients Credit

We are not talking about a patient getting a "Credit" for unsatisfactory services rendered. I'm talking about patients not receiving credit for being capable of using technology in any of its many forms.

Au Contrare! There are thousands of "ordinary people" with extraordinary medical conditions and physical barriers who use OnTimeRx every day, and tell me they could not live without it.

Ron, a VA patient and long-time user of OnTimeRx software, called me recently to find out the latest news from OnTimeRx HQ. During our conversation, we were bemoaning the fact that most doctors move at a glacial pace when it comes to adopting new technology. He was especially frustrated because the VA has spent a lot of time and money developing the "My HealtheVet" website, but there are many other inexpensive and practical technology tools that could be used by veterans to ease their burdens and simplify their lives even more.

Ron said, " OnTimeRx works really well for me, and I've told all of my VA doctors about OnTimeRx repeatedly." He also wanted to know, "So why don't these doctors order a PDA with OnTimeRx for Traumatic Brain Injury patients - and others - to help them manage their medications and other treatments?"

Here's my theory:
Doctors in general consider themselves to be pretty smart people; and rightly so. IF they are using a PDA, smart phone, or BlackBerry, it's my guess that they probably had a lot of trouble getting it set up and working properly. So, that being the case, they just naturally assume that patients who have less education and compromised mental skills would probably never be able to handle it. This is absolutely not true, but it's probably why the doctors don't even consider an inexpensive laptop, netbook or hand held computer (PDA) as an Assistive Device or Prosthesis for their patients.

Maybe it's time for VA patients with any kind of memory problems to start requesting this OnTimeRx software/hardware adherence solution and save everyone a lot of time, money and heartburn. For $23-$30 worth of software and $100 -$400 (depending on the hardware selected), any patient could improve his or her adherence rate and live better, with less stress, by using the technology that is readily available everywhere.

That's not a theory - that's a fact!