Computerised tools that assist in prescribing and treatment only enhancethe outcomes for physicians says M Vennimalai, CEO, Aavanor Systems inconversation with Japneet Sabharwal, ENN

How do you perceive the market for HIS & HMIS in India?
With a number of state government hospitals commencing work on creating electronic medical records, there is increased pressure on private providers to utilise IT effectively in healthcare. The real game changer might however be mobile applications in the healthcare space which draw both patients and care givers into the usage of IT in healthcare. For mobile applications to move from the fringes (small apps for specific ailments or concerns) into comprehensive and effective health management, they will have to work off an integrated EHR and this will probably speed up in-depth adoption of HIS and EHR in healthcare.

What are the unique HIS/HMIS solutions you have designed for Indian healthcare?
Doc99 – a Patient Portal on a Mobile This is a comprehensive yet simple tool for the population to manage their clinical visits. It allows for
>>Scheduling / paying for appointments from the phone. l Completing pre-visit forms.
>>Viewing Doctors prescription on your mobile.
>>Receiving medication reminders and recording compliance with medication.
>>Viewing lab results on your mobile.
>>Completing forms monitoring health improvement and response to treatment.
>>Tele-consultations with Doctors, via text and voice messages aided by pictures and video.
>>Re-ordering of medicines online.
>>On-line payment for services, teleconsultations and medicines.

M Vennimalai
CEO, Aavanor Systems

“The 2014 market will demand analytic solutions that can be combined with powerful EHRs and are capable of extracting data from multiple repositories”

Patent- pending Paper View EMR
-It uses eBook technology to dynamically create medical records that look just like the paper records currently used in hospitals. Medical records captured through various forms in a computer application for medical facilities, are collected and published in a usable and familiar format. The caregiver is able to see the complete patient medical record, up-to-date with all information recorded at multiple places in the medical facility.
q…less Money- An innovative technology that allows a patient to request and pay for services using his/her mobile phone. Allows for cashless transactions in the hospital and allows system interaction to be centred on the patient rather than the transaction or department. Patients deposit money into their account and use it for all transactions such as pharmacy payments, consultation charges, lab charges, etc.
Business Intelligence Easy to use dashboards and dials help Management and other users keep track of the operations and to monitor Key Performance Indicators vital to the health of the hospital.

On the technology front, what are the new developments that have come up in this field?
The major development has been mobile centric technology, where every solution is now designed around a mobile experience.
Analytics and utive Dashboards (Big Data)- In the past, analytics and benchmarking was mostly reacting to prior months data manually compiledby department leaders. Compiling the data was labor intensive. The 2014 market will demand analytic solutions that can be combined with powerful EHRs and are capable of extracting data from multiple repositories.
Population Health Management (PHM): The definition of accountable care is basically a group of providers collectively working together managing a population of patients to improve outcomes and lower costs. Because EHRs were never built as care coordination tools, there is now a market for PHMs, which will manage the consumer side of accountable care. PHM solutions will act as large repositories storing information from various EHRs and health information exchanges to enable care coordination between providers and the population of patients for which they are responsible. Health Information Exchanges (HIEs): HIE and PHM sometimes get confused as they both provide ways to share data across multiple caregivers and healthcare stakeholder. Unlike the PHM, the HIE is typically structured as a solution that manages the exchange of data behind the EHRs and PHMs. Rarely will the end user interact directly with the HIE. Stage 2 of meaningful use will require a connection to an HIE.

How much investment is required for procuring HIS/HMIS solution for a hospital infrastructure?
Entry costs in purchase of software can be as low as `10 lakhs for a small hospital wanting to setup an EMR, and may go up to a few crores of rupees for the large facilities. Training costs for systems that are designed to be understandable and simple are lower than first generation systems that tend to be cumbersome and intimidating to users. Our design philosophy has always factored this into account and therefore the tag line Intelligently simple, Simply intelligent. But the cloud has brought about remarkable affordability for the EMR and users can start using our system on the cloud for as little as Rs.2000 per month. Apart from the low entry costs, users do not have to worry about servers, maintenance, etc.

What are the advantages the solution offers to the hospital caregivers?
The clear and long term benefit is that the caregiver is immediately able to take a holistic view of the patients health by viewing their entire record, rather than treating the episode purely in a crisis handling mode.
Good HMIS systems offer numerous tools to caregivers to enhance the level of care. Computerised tools that assist in prescribing and treatment only enhance the outcomes for physicians. These tools will grow in importance in the years to come.

With over decades of exposure and experience in healthcare, how do you visualize and uate the IT transformation?
I believe that the smart phone and tablet revolution that is sweeping our country will help achieve deep adoption within the country.
What was perceived as an intrusive technology by physicians is now becoming easier to use and people are more accepting of display devices being a part of a conversation. These subtle but significant changes are pushing IT adoption toward the tipping point in Indian healthcare.

How much do you think mHealth will contribute to healthcare?
The ease of use and convenience that mobile devices including smart phones and tablets provide, make it convenient, for the first time, to use IT in a care delivery setting. By sharing the responsibility of care with the patient using their smart phone, patients will take a greater role in managing their own health, again contributing to the improved efficacy of healthcare. There is no doubt that mHealth will revolutionize healthcare.

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