How can the transfer of data between ophthalmologists and eye care diagnostic centers (known in Germany as Augen Diagnostik Centers) be improved? How can ophthalmologists gain quick and secure access to the centers’ findings and images? Siemens will present its networking concept for the exchange of treatment and billing information at the TeleHealth trade show. The fair takes place within CEBIT from March 3 to 8, 2009 in Hanover, Germany. In addition, Siemens will be present on the Healthcare Parcours FutureCare with an e-health citizen’s portal and a solution for drug therapy safety. Both applications improve patient services.

“The greatest potential for improving quality and saving money for the participants of the public healthcare sector lies in the consistent networking and integration of individual applications,” said Herbert Baumgartner, head of the business segment Healthcare at Siemens IT Solutions and Services. Using the example of the Federal Association of Eye Care Diagnostic Centers, Siemens will show at its stand what these networked structures can look like and what advantages they offer. Siemens’s “Integrated Care Monitoring” and “E-HealthRecord” applications make sure that patient and billing data is transferred securely and reliably. Integrated Care Monitoring provides the IT infrastructure and platform for exchanging information between doctors or hospitals and insurance companies. The system makes integrated healthcare arrangements more transparent with respect to therapies, patients and budgets. E-HealthRecord is a solution for the electronic patient file. Once all providers are networked, doctors can access a centrally maintained electronic file with all relevant data for common patients. 

At the FutureCare Parcours, Siemens IT Solutions and Services will be represented with its E-Health Citizen Portal and a solution for drug therapy safety. The Portal is a centralized, quality-controlled information platform. The main benefit: People can read about general health issues and get an overview of doctors, hospitals, rehabilitation centers and insurance companies. It also permits appointments to be made via internet and enables bank transfers and prescriptions to be sent electronically. The drug therapy safety solution is used to check all of a patient’s medications before the patients take them. Provided they have the patient’s consent, the solution lets doctors and pharmacists look at all of the patient’s medications and check for duplicate prescriptions, intolerance or medicines with potential interactions. 

Courtesy of Siemens