After my last post about how Walgreens rolled up their sleeves and developed a program to help community members who have been laid off with free health care treatment, I began thinking: “Who else is working on re-imagining this old and failing system of health care?” Sure enough, there are quite a few people who are investing their ideas and energy into creating.
One organization that has been creating buzz for several months is the revolutionary Hello Health. This new way of having doctors interact with their patients through new communication technologies such as IM, text and video chat, is the brain child of Dr. Jay Parkinson. Imagine not having to go through the hassle of medical insurance and actually being able to talk to a doctor about your needs. Not only that, but the doctor understands the technologies that make life easier and wants your life/visit with them to be easy as well. The image below from their site pretty much sums up what Hello Health is about -
This week, the Health 2.0 conference is taking place in Boston, MA with some great demos and speakers discussing innovations in healthcare – Myca/Hello Health is on the roster. For a glimpse into the mind of Dr. Parkinson, check out this video that Health 2.0 co-founder Matthew Holt produced on location at the Hello Health Brooklyn site.
Jay Parkinson, Hello Health from Health 2.0 on Vimeo.
Don’t forget to check out the most recent Fast Company issue where Dr. Jay Parkinson is highlighted in “The Doctor of the Future” article.
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Andre, this is so crazy! I just wrote Dr. Parkinson a letter today. Richard met him at the ICIS conference in MN and said his presentation was amazing. I love the idea of doctors going back to the old house call and black bag routine. That’s how it should be. Dr. Parkinson also likes health games so I’m automatically a fan.
Fascinating video about communicative medicine, thanks. With 50% of interactions taking place online as Dr. Parkinson states and over 60% of follow-ups taking place online through email, chat or video, I wonder if the hope for this movement is thought about more as an exception rather than the norm of healthcare? Or whether certain parts of medicine would be more receptive and conductive to this social media form of medicine, and others not. Especially in light of dropping rates of primary care doctors and souring visits to emergency departments. And although this movement seems highly productive and innovative, I still worry about the individual, the actual body being cared for when it is seen in the flesh 50% of the time and how treatment from afar is possible when illness is not just about physical pain but also social, emotional and spiritual…Essentially, how is this form of communicative medicine making a difference in changing health beliefs and communication practices in the field of medicine? And what sorts of things are being redefined as social media continues to meet healthcare?
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