The Pennsylvania Medical Society has long supported the use of eHealth technology and provided eHealth technology resources to Pennsylvania physicians.
In 2005, the Society founded the
Pennsylvania eHealth Initiative (PAeHI), an organization that brings together health care stakeholders from across the commonwealth to develop a consensus on health information exchange in Pennsylvania. PAeHI advises the Governor’s Office of Health Care Reform on its health information technology (HIT) initiatives.
The Society, in cooperation with the Pennsylvania Department of Health and the Department of Community and Economic Development, launched the ConnectTheDocs initiative in 2007. Funded through a state grant, the initiative seeks to expand broadband access to Pennsylvania physicians who either do not have access or have limited access. The broadband initiative is coupled with education and other resources to help physicians with selection, adoption, and implementation of HIT.
During the first phase of the broadband project, the Medical Society conducted a statewide survey of Pennsylvania physicians and medical practices to determine what improvements in Internet access and other telecommunications applications are needed in all regions of Pennsylvania. The survey was completed in May 2007 and the findings were published in June 2008.
The second phase will include an outreach campaign championing the use of broadband technology, especially in physician practices and other health care settings.
During the second phase, the State Society also will offer physicians and other health care stakeholders in northwest Pennsylvania and the Bucks County area the opportunity to improve their telecommunications services at a lower cost than they could obtain it on their own. This group purchasing arrangement, known as demand aggregation, was used successfully to provide high-quality broadband services to the commonwealth’s intermediate units.