HEALTHSOUTH: Plans Web Upgrade Linking Doctors, Patients
To create a "more patient and physician friendly" Web site, Birmingham, Ala.-based HealthSouth Corp. is reorganizing and adding "powerful new features" to its site, the Birmingham Business Journal reports. Working with consulting firm Stonebridge Technologies, HealthSouth will restructure its site, allowing patients to schedule appointments, communicate with physicians and clinicians, keep personal health records and watch health care related videos online. Through the improved site, physicians will be able to schedule appointments at HealthSouth facilities, receive "personalized information" and view treatment and procedure results. Physicians also will be able to consult with other physicians and order supplies online. The Web site will be implemented in phases, with the completed site expected to go live in 12-18 months. Additional upgrades to the site, including online referrals and prescriptions, are already being planned. In a press statement, HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy said, "We are incorporating the online experience into our business in a way that redefines health care and moves it firmly into the 21st century." Stonebridge CEO Jim Sheriff said the partnership is important for the firm. "We've done similar sites, but this is the most ambitious, to approach physicians and patients. It's a bigger health care portal than we've engaged in before" (Park, Birmingham Business Journal, 10/2).
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