Physicians’ Foundations Choose DocSite Products for Program to Encourage IT Adoption by Small Practices

DocSite®, LLC, announced today that the Physicians’ Foundations, after a year-long review, chose to make DocSite’s product suite the cornerstone of an important technology and quality initiative for small and solo physician practices. The Physicians’ Foundations are making a $2.6 million program-related investment in DocSite.

Cary, NC (PRWEB) August 3, 2006 -- DocSite®, LLC, announced today that the Physicians’ Foundations, after a year-long review, chose to make DocSite’s product suite the cornerstone of an important technology and quality initiative for small and solo physician practices. The Physicians’ Foundations are making a $2.6 million program-related investment in DocSite.

Solo and small group practices are the source of ambulatory care to nearly half the U.S. population, but they generally lack the technical infrastructure, capital and skilled personnel necessary to select, implement and support complex health information technology.

Through this collaboration with the Physicians’ Foundations, DocSite will enhance its existing clinical technology, further expanding its web-native applications. Intended enhancements include self-registration tools, web-based education modules and one-button reports, providing the physician a powerful tool for population management not possible in today’s paper-based environments. The Physicians’ Foundations funding will also enable DocSite to bundle other technologies in order to provide physicians a simple migration path from paper to a fully electronic office at a highly affordable price.

John Haughton, MD, chief executive officer and medical officer at DocSite, said, “We are pleased the Physicians’ Foundations evaluated and chose DocSite to help in the important work of spreading affordable and reliable health technology and improving the delivery of healthcare quality for small and solo physician practices.”

Jack Lewin, MD, president of the Physicians’ Foundations and chief executive officer of the California Medical Association, said this program is one of the foundations’ cornerstone commitments. “Even though the spread of health IT has become a national priority, the cost, difficulty and disruption of deploying traditional electronic medical record (EMR) systems has been a significant barrier to entry for the practicing physician. With this program we are joining with DocSite to create a model that will help fulfill the promise of HIT as a means to improve patient care and safety in a practical fashion for physicians.”

According to Terrence Hardcastle, president of DocSite, “It has always been DocSite’s goal to offer a low-cost, easier-to-understand, easier-to-implement modular system to address quality and office workflow needs as an alternative to the all or none EMR systems now in the marketplace.”

Haughton said, “The Physicians’ Foundations program is making it possible for DocSite to offer a product suite that’s designed for easy integration into everyday care, even in offices that might not consider themselves ‘IT-ready.’ Fitting technology into physician workflow, instead of the other way around, will help solve the lost-productivity-cost problem.”

Physicians will use DocSite’s web-based registry for point-of-care decision support, communication, referrals, and clinical quality reporting. They can expand to paperless note writing through EMR and e-prescribing (ERx) products, specially bundled with the registry to promote quick installation and ease of use.

As a web-native system, the DocSite offering requires no technology in the office beyond an Internet connection and a web browser. In fact, the registry can even generate paper decision-support and visit planning tools that have been shown to improve care in offices with just a single computer at the front desk.

About DocSite

DocSite offers a portfolio of low-cost, web-based tools focused on improving the quality of patient care. These include its highly-regarded PatientPlanner® point-of-care decision support and reporting patient registry / EHR tool as well as EMR, ERx and patient education applications. DocSite’s products are particularly useful for managing the care of patients with chronic conditions. They give physicians ready access to nationally recognized care guidelines and help physicians track and adjust the course of treatment. DocSite’s products also help physicians demonstrate the quality of their care to payers who have instituted pay-for-performance and other quality incentive programs. For more information, go to http://www.docsite.com.

About the Physicians’ Foundations

The Physicians’ Foundation for Health Systems Excellence (PFHSE) and the Physicians’ Foundation for Health Systems Innovations (PFHSI) seek to advance the work of practicing physicians and improve the quality of health care for all Americans. The three mission priorities of the Physicians’ Foundations are: 1) improvement in patient safety, 2) physician education and 3) quality improvement in physician practice. The Physicians’ Foundations are fueled by funds derived from 2003 settlements in class-action lawsuits between physicians, 19 state medical societies and major payers, including Aetna, Inc. and CIGNA. PFHSE, a grant making foundation with assets of $98 million, devotes its resources to helping practicing physicians improve the care they deliver to their patients. In 2005, PFHSE made its first round of grants totaling $16 million to nonprofit organizations across the country dedicated to improving quality health care. PFHSI, like its sister organization, is committed to supporting improvements in the delivery of practice-based care by physicians and to encouraging physicians’ use of health information technology. For more information, go to http://www.physiciansfoundations.org.

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