Here's a "software solution" that actually solves something, keeps people alive, and could save hospitals millions of dollars now spent on redundant tests and malpractice suits. It's called W3EMRS, and it allows physicians in one hospital to instantly access patient records from another.
Developed by W3Health, a Boston, Massachusetts, concern founded by doctors Peter Szolovits of MIT and Isaac Kohane of Harvard, the system could sell extremely well in a market analysts and health-care execs estimate will reach between US$1 billion and $4 billion over the next few years.
If the utility and value of W3EMRS seem obvious (and overdue), few would argue the point. The medical profession is widely regarded by its own as a new economy laggard, due in part to the multitude of standards that complicate data transfer, as well as concerns about medical-record privacy. W3EMRS overcomes these barriers by integrating disparate systems with a simple Web browser, while running a sophisticated security protocol. This link was first put to use by a student of Szolovits', John D. Halamka of the Harvard Medical School, for whom the project was a personal crusade and his master's thesis.
Since completing the project, Halamka has returned to the emergency work he loves, while Szolovits and Kohane have opted to pursue the business opportunity, retaining W3Health CEO Albert Wenger and developing a prototype for the US Department of Defense.
This article originally appeared in the May issue of Wired magazine.
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