Assisted Living and Long Term Care facilities typically do not maintain electronic records and cannot exchange complete patient records with hospitals or other care providers. The solution proposed by presenters in an early April webinar conducted by Health and Human Services, is for these providers to join health information exchanges (HIEs) — which may take years to complete; MedKaz® solves this problem today.

Brownsville, VT (PRWEB) April 30, 2013

Many care providers and healthcare IT wonks have finally awakened to the fact that all care providers aren’t required to adopt electronic records or link their records together in a nationwide network as mandated for hospitals and physicians by the HIPAA, Stimulus and Affordable Care Acts. Among the most notable “missing” providers are assisted living, long term and other post-acute care facilities that, together, care for more than 20 million people.

When patients move to or from a hospital, the hospital’s clinicians can’t access patient records from these facilities, and these facilities can’t access the hospital’s records when their resident returns. Unless these patients’ records can be shared, patient records will be incomplete and these “transitions” will continue to cause serious problems for patients.

MedKaz solves this “transition of care” problem simply and easily. The patient owns their MedKaz and when they enter or return from a hospital, they give it to their provider. It contains their up-to-date records from all their care providers and facilities, whether their providers keep paper or electronic records. Providers, in turn, can electronically sort, search and read them, as needed, to ensure a smooth transition from one provider or facility to another. It also gives providers who keep paper records – and this includes most assisted living and long term care facilities – an application called Patient Record Manager (PRM). It’s an EMR-lite that enables them to electronically manage patients’ digitized paper records.

Commenting on this recent “awakening,” Merle Bushkin, Founder and CEO of Health Record Corporation, creator of MedKaz, says: “This is merely another serious flaw in the path we as a country are taking to create a nationwide health information network.”

“The issue isn’t how providers keep patient records or whether data fields match. It’s how they can access a patient’s complete up-to-date record in any format at the point of care. MedKaz is simple, easy to use by all providers and available today.”

“If they can’t access a patient’s complete record because our networking system can’t handle paper records, excludes records from important providers, or can’t ensure that patient records are secure, private and the correct patient’s records, it’s not doing the job and it’s time to look for a better more comprehensive approach – and one that won’t take years to implement! That won’t be easy because the government mandated initiatives have overwhelmed our system and providers, but it’s time we bell the cat! MedKaz is one such system and it works today!”

About MedKaz and Health Record Corporation:

The patented MedKaz is a revolutionary system that turns the conventional approach to healthcare IT on its head. It puts the patient at the center of their care by aggregating their lifetime medical record in one place, owned and controlled by them, where care providers can access them as needed. MedKaz is the only system that accepts records in all formats from all sources, overcoming record incompatibility; is secure from Internet breaches, easy to use, affordable, and available now; and doesn’t require government subsidies or the construction of extensive electronic networks to exchange records. It lives alongside care providers’ systems, whether paper or electronic, and fits seamlessly into their established workflow, enabling improved quality and coordination of care, elimination of mistakes and unnecessary testing, and cost savings. Medkaz is a product of Health Record Corporation, based in Brownsville, VT.

When employers offer MedKaz as a health/wellness benefit, employees enjoy better medical care, better health, fewer mistakes, tests, and sick days. Employers enjoy a happier, healthier work force, less absenteeism, fewer insurance claims, and reduced health insurance costs.

Brownsville, VT (PRWEB) March 30, 2013

Increasingly, employers across the country are offering health/wellness incentives to their employees in an attempt to improve employee health and productivity, and reduce the cost of health insurance. Frequently offered programs include paying employees to stop smoking, lose weight, and enroll in a fitness program at a gym. Some even provide on–site gyms and health clinics.

Health Record Corporation’s (HRC) patented MedKaz personal health record system is a unique solution to the problem of rising healthcare costs. HRC recently announced that it is offering MedKaz to employers to give as an employee benefit. By giving each employee their own MedKaz, employers can attack the problem at the point of care.

Their employee owns and controls the MedKaz and gives it to their care provider anytime, anywhere they require care. It contains copies of all their records — and their dependent family members’ records — from all their providers. When the provider accesses it, they can better understand their patient’s health issues, avoid costly mistakes and unnecessary tests, coordinate their care, and thereby reduce the cost of care. MedKaz is easy to learn and use; providers update it for their patients after each visit. There is no other system like it.

The cost of giving MedKaz to each employee is small; the returns to the employer can be very large. Avoiding a simple blood test or X–ray can have an ROI approximating 100%. Avoiding a CT or MRI scan, a day in the hospital or ICU, can yield an almost infinite return.

Merle Bushkin, HRC Founder & CEO, says ”I understand that MedKaz is new and that employers and their benefit consultants are hesitant because they aren’t familiar with it — but that’s all the more reason they should try it. When they do, they’ll find it to be the most rewarding health/wellness benefit they offer“.

”It unquestionably will save them money and increase productivity, but it will do much more. It will help them improve the health of their employees. That’s not only good business; it will enhance their reputation as a quality employer. It tells the world that they care about their associates“.

“We’re ready to help employers of all sizes in all industries evaluate and adopt MedKaz as a new benefit. And we’re ready to customize a package that meets each company’s unique needs.”

About MedKaz and HRC:

The patented MedKaz is a revolutionary system that puts the patient at the center of their care by aggregating their lifetime medical record in one place, owned and controlled by them, where care providers can access them as needed. MedKaz is the only system that accepts records in all formats from all sources, overcoming record incompatibility; is secure from Internet breaches, easy to use, affordable, and available now; and doesn’t require government subsidies or the construction of extensive electronic networks to exchange records. It lives alongside care providers’ systems, whether paper or electronic, and fits seamlessly into their established workflow, enabling improved quality and coordination of care, elimination of mistakes and unnecessary testing, and cost savings. Medkaz is a product of Health Record Corporation, based in Brownsville, VT.

“If you’re a provider who wants to improve the quality of care you deliver, avoid medical mistakes and unnecessary tests, and reduce the cost of care, you should embrace MedKaz for your patients.”

Brownsville, VT March 11, 2013

By Merle Bushkin

I’ve just returned from four days in New Orleans where I attended the Health Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) annual conference, I’d like to share my observations with you. They’re long but I hope you find them worth reading.

First, it was huge! 35,000 people attended, all involved with healthcare IT – from physicians to hospital executives to government staffers to patient advocates. More than 1,300 vendors showed their stuff in some of the biggest, most elaborate exhibits you can imagine. Two of the four keynote speakers were former President Bill Clinton and Healthcare IT National Coordinator, Farzad Mostashari, MD.

Second, important changes are happening that bode extremely well for healthcare in the US, for Health Record Corporation (HRC) and for our MedKaz® personal health record system (more on this later)!

Third, some background. With healthcare costs skyrocketing to $2.8 trillion, everyone agrees we must do something or healthcare will bankrupt the country.

Most agree that before we can seriously improve care quality and reduce care costs we must improve the flow and exchangeability of patient information. This will enable providers to deliver higher quality care, coordinate care and avoid medical mistakes and unnecessary tests which cause pain, suffering and even death for hundreds of thousands and cost hundreds of billions of dollars annually. It also will make possible a fundamental restructuring of the way healthcare is organized, care is delivered and providers are paid.

In a nutshell, we MUST improve healthcare IT if we want to improve care quality and reduce care costs. There are two aspects to the problem: how providers keep patient records, and how they can access a patient’s complete record at the point of care.

Fourth, where we are now. Since the 2009 HITECH Stimulus Act, attention has focused on getting doctors and hospitals to adopt electronic record systems. Accordingly, HIMSS conferences reflected this focus. But by the end of 2012 ONC had made great progress. 64% of healthcare professionals were using EMR systems to some degree, as were 70% of our hospitals. More have signed up. Through Jan 2013, the Federal Government dispensed more than $11.8 billion in subsidies to make this happen!

With this impressive level of EMR adoption, HIMSS13 was the first conference to focus on the second issue, how providers can access a patient’s complete record – and on the related issue of patient involvement in the care process. The keynote speakers were all over these issues as were many physicians attending the educational sessions.

At many educational sessions, physicians kept asking: how can they get access to their patients’ records from other providers. The answers weren’t very satisfying. They revolved around three things. Providers creating portals for their patients to see their records, health information exchanges (HIEs) and Blue Button, a mechanism that allows VA patients to download their records and Medicare patients to download their claims information. They all fall short.

Portals don’t help providers when their patient has one with each of several providers. Providers don’t have time to look at multiple portals or printouts; they want the complete record in one place.

HIEs face almost insurmountable security, privacy and patient identification problems, and they’re not financially sustainable. Few have been built; most don’t work. Records can’t be exchanged.

Blue Button, which is just getting started, doesn’t cover non-Medicare patients and the information it provides for Medicare patients is not the clinical information physicians need and want, such as progress notes and operative, discharge and lab reports.

Indicative of this problem, five leading and fiercely competitive EMR vendors announced that they have formed a consortium to facilitate the exchange of patient records among users of their EMR systems. When I asked the VP Development of one how they were going to solve the hugely difficult patient identification issue, he said they were working on it and hoped to have a solution that was 97% or 98% accurate. Personally, that’s not good enough. I’d be scared to death that they’d mix my records with the records of someone else who has the same name. John Smith, watch out!

Fifth, what does all this mean for HRC and MedKaz? Simply put, HRC’s patented MEDKAZ IS THE ONLY SYSTEM THAT SOLVES THE PROBLEM! If you want to be sure your providers can access your complete medical record anywhere, anytime, your only option is MedKaz. No other system comes close!

As I’ve said before – and it’s just as true today – MedKaz is the ONLY system that can aggregate a patient’s complete medical record from all their providers, irrespective of how the providers keep their records, whether paper or electronic. It is the ONLY system that can make that complete patient record – including copies of actual progress notes and operative, discharge and lab reports, etc. — available to ANY provider at the point of care, anywhere, anytime, and with only two or three clicks! Period.

So, if you’re a consumer/patient who wants to be sure any care provider you see, whether one of your regular physicians or a new one, at home or in another part of the world, get your MedKaz now! It’s yours. You own and control it. You carry it on your keychain or in your wallet, and you simply give it to any provider you see – and they or HRC update it for you. It’s easy to learn and use, inexpensive, and available today – you don’t have to gamble that something like it may be available in a few years. BTW, MedKaz is just getting started. You can’t imagine the enhancements we have planned!

If you’re a provider who wants to improve the quality of care you deliver, avoid medical mistakes and unnecessary tests, and reduce the cost of care, you should embrace MedKaz for your patients. It takes only a day to master! Moreover, if you sign up as a MedKaz Licensee (it’s free), HRC will actually pay you to update your patient’s MedKaz – so you’ll increase your income and benefit your patients at the same time. A typical PCP can earn more than $25,000 as a MedKaz Licensee!

If you’re a vendor who would like to become our strategic partner and integrate MedKaz with your products or services, give us a call.

Finally, if you’d like to invest in HRC and MedKaz and join us in changing healthcare as we know it, give us a call, too.

This not an offer to buy or sell securities.

When employers offer MedKaz as a health/wellness benefit, employees enjoy better medical care, better health, fewer mistakes, tests, and sick days. Employers enjoy a happier, healthier work force, less absenteeism, fewer insurance claims, and reduced health insurance costs.

Employers giving a MedKaz to their employees is an easy, low cost way to stop the pain and suffering that result from doctors not having access to patient records when they need them, and to stop the hemorrhaging of healthcare and health insurance costs

Brownsville, VT (PRWEB) February 13, 2013

Millions of Americans receive their health insurance and participate in wellness programs as employee benefits paid for by their employers. Accordingly, Health Record Corporation (HRC) has launched a campaign to introduce its unique and revolutionary MedKaz personal health record system to employers to give their employees as a new health/wellness benefit. It solves a serious and costly problem for both, and its returns can be huge.

Doctors rarely have all the information about their patients that they need to provide quality, coordinated care. This frequently results in medical mistakes, considerable pain and suffering, lost work, and unnecessary tests — all of which are costly to both employees and employers. Various studies put the dollar costs at $100 billion to $330 billion per year.

MedKaz is the only system that solves this problem. It puts a patient’s complete medical record in the hands of their doctor when and where they need it. It does so today — simply, easily, inexpensively. The multi–billion dollar government program intended to solve it, can’t today and isn’t scheduled to solve it for several more years, if then.

MedKaz contains copies of a patient’s medical records from all their providers, plus HRC’s patented MedKaz application to manage them. They give it to their doctors anytime, anywhere they need care — at home or away. Their doctors access it to avoid costly medical mistakes, unnecessary tests, and to coordinate their care; they update it after each visit.

Commenting on this new campaign, Merle Bushkin, HRC Founder and CEO, says; “Employers giving a MedKaz to their employees is an easy, low cost way to stop the pain and suffering that result from doctors not having access to patient records when they need them, and to stop the hemorrhaging of healthcare and health insurance costs.”

“The confusion surrounding the enormous changes to healthcare coming under Obamacare has caused many people — including doctors, patients, employers, insurers, government personnel — to take a step back and say ’I’ll wait until the dust settles.’ ”

“We think that’s a huge mistake. MedKaz can put an end today to medical errors, the pain and suffering they cause, and excessive costs. So why wait? It works with any record system today and will tomorrow, too. The benefits abound for both employees and employers! That’s why we’re urging employers to embrace it today.”

“Employees certainly won’t be sorry. They win big. For the first time, they’ll enjoy peace of mind knowing their records are secure and immediately available to any care provider at home or away. And they’ll enjoy better care, better health; fewer mistakes, tests, and sick days; lower costs, and they won’t have to fill out same forms and answer same questions over and over!”

“Employers won’t be sorry either. They win big, too. Their employees will be happier and healthier; productivity will go up; absenteeism will go down; insurance claims will go down and their health insurance costs will go down. The cost of a MedKaz as a benefit is small; the ROI can be huge.”

“We’re looking forward to helping employers of all sizes in all industries adopt MedKaz as a new benefit. We’re ready to design customized programs that meet each company’s unique needs.”

About MedKaz and HRC:

The patented MedKaz is a revolutionary system that puts the patient at the center of their care by aggregating their lifetime medical record in one place, owned and controlled by them, where care providers can access them as needed. MedKaz is the only system that accepts records in all formats from all sources, overcoming record incompatibility; is secure from Internet breaches, easy to use, affordable, and available now; and doesn’t require government subsidies or the construction of extensive electronic networks to exchange records. It lives alongside care providers’ systems, whether paper or electronic, and fits seamlessly into their established workflow, enabling improved quality and coordination of care, elimination of mistakes and unnecessary testing, and cost savings. Medkaz is a product of Health Record Corporation, based in Brownsville, VT.

Health Record Corporation’s MedKaz is the only medical record system that enables doctors to share records and coordinate their patients’ care. It is available today at a discounted introductory price under $100 at medkaz.com or amazon.com

Brownsville, VT (PRWEB) January 28, 2013

Anyone who gets sick on a business trip or vacation, sees doctors in different medical practices, hospitals or cities, or is responsible for the care of others, knows — or finds out too late — that their providers can’t share their records or coordinate their care. One doctor doesn’t know what the others are doing, the care they are giving, the illnesses they are treating, the meds they are prescribing, etc. This can lead to serious mistakes that cause unnecessary pain — even deaths, and result in unnecessary costs that by various estimates run into the hundreds of billions of dollars per year.

At this time when so much attention is focused on improving healthcare and reducing its cost, it is important for everyone to know that the revolutionary, patented MedKaz is the only medical record system that enables providers to share patient records and coordinate care. And it is the only system that equips patients to participate in their care decisions.

“The wonder of MedKaz is that it does what other systems can’t do. It enables care providers to share patient records and coordinate their care. And it does so today — easily, simply, and inexpensively.”

It aggregates copies of a patient’s records from all their providers in all formats, both paper and electronic, on a distinctive flash drive the patient owns, controls and carries on their key chain or in their wallet. When they require care — at home, away, in-network or out, they merely give it to their provider. It is secure, encrypted and HIPAA compliant.

In turn, their provider can instantly sort, search and read any or all records from other providers and coordinate their treatment and medications.

Several recent studies, including those from the Bipartisan Policy Center, the Institute of Medicine, and RAND Corporation, all report that the government-sponsored program intended to solve this problem doesn’t work, even though it has cost more than $10.3 billion to date. They report that doctors, including those who have adopted electronic medical record systems, still can’t exchange patient records.

Merle Bushkin, Founder & CEO of Health Record Corporation, creator of MedKaz, comments: “The wonder of MedKaz is that it does what no other system can do. It enables doctors and other care providers to share patient records in all formats and coordinate their care. Period. And it does so today — easily, simply, and inexpensively without disrupting the way doctors and hospitals keep records, and without expensive ’information exchanges’ or government subsidies.”

“In contrast, our government has dispensed more than $10.3 billion to solve the same problem but their solution — as of today — doesn’t work.
In fairness, they say it will take as many as six more years to achieve its goals, but many doubt it will happen even then.”

“Anyone who travels for business or pleasure, spends time in different cities, sees doctors in different practices or networks, or cares for those who do, should have a MedKaz. They’ll enjoy peace of mind knowing that their records are secure and will be available whenever and wherever they require care. They’ll also be able to participate in their care decisions and correct mistakes that, regrettably, occur in large numbers of patient records.”

“You can get your MedKaz or a Family Pack today at a discounted introductory price under $100 per MedKaz, our website, medkaz.com, or at amazon.com.”

About MedKaz and HRC:

The patented MedKaz is a revolutionary system that puts the patient at the center of their care by aggregating their lifetime medical record in one place, owned and controlled by them, where care providers can access them as needed. MedKaz is the only system that accepts records in all formats from all sources, overcoming record incompatibility; is secure from Internet breaches, easy to use, affordable, and available now; and doesn’t require government subsidies or the construction of extensive electronic networks to exchange records. It lives
alongside care providers’ systems, whether paper or electronic, and fits seamlessly into their established workflow, enabling improved quality and coordination of care, elimination of mistakes and unnecessary testing, and cost savings. Medkaz is a product of Health Record Corporation, based in Brownsville, VT.

Health Record Corporation announced today that its revolutionary, patented MedKaz® personal health record can now be purchased on line at Amazon.com as well as MedKaz.com, at sharply discounted introductory prices for both individuals and family groups.

Brownsville, VT (PRWEB) December 20, 2012

Health Record Corporation (HRC) is pleased to announce that its breakthrough, patient–focused MedKaz personal health record system is now available online at Amazon.com (just enter “MedKaz” in the Search box) as well as its own website, MedKaz.com. Both sites offer a MedKaz One–Pack for an individual, and Family Packs for two to four family members, at discounted introductory prices. By selling MedKaz on both sites, it is easier for consumers to locate and buy MedKaz for themselves and their families.

The revolutionary MedKaz aggregates a patient’s lifetime medical record on a distinctive flash drive. It contains copies of the patient’s records from all their providers, important personal information provided by the patient, and the patented MedKaz application with which to electronically manage these data. The patient owns and controls it; they give it to their care providers at the point of care.

“ Doctors have told us MedKaz enables them to ‘practice better medicine.’ And patients love it because it gives them control of their records, and they know they are secure and available to their providers anytime, anywhere. ”

When a physician logs on, they read important time–saving information waiting for them about their patient, treat their patient, and electronically sort and search their patient’s records as needed to understand their health issues. They update it at the end of the visit (for which HRC pays them an Update Fee.)

The MedKaz price includes two components: the device and an annual subscription to HRC’s Update and Support Services. The list price for both is $174.90: $99.95 for the MedKaz, $74.95 for the annual subscription. It also includes a free one year subscription to Norton Antivirus software, a $50 value.

The Introductory Sale price for a single MedKaz is only $124.90 — a $50 discount. Family Two–, Three– and Four–Packs are discounted as well. For example, an individual MedKaz in a Family Four–Pack is only $98.73 (including the Update Subscription and Norton Antivirus). After the first year, the annual cost is the $74.95 Update and Support subscription.

Merle Bushkin, Founder and CEO of HRC, explains: “By offering these discounted introductory prices, we hope everyone can afford a MedKaz so they can take control of their records and get higher quality, lower cost care.”

He adds: “Three factors make MedKaz particularly valuable to both patients and their care providers, and distinguish it from all other medical record systems. One is that it contains the important medical and personal information care providers need to treat their patient, coordinate their care and avoid redundant or unnecessary tests. Second, it is available instantly at the point of care. Third, it is available today so we don’t have to wait years to enjoy higher quality, lower cost healthcare.

“In short, with MedKaz, millions of us can avoid unnecessary tests and the pain and suffering that result from doctors not having the information they need to coordinate our care and avoid medical errors, and we can save the billions of dollars these errors and unnecessary tests cost. Other systems don’t compare!”

“Doctors have told us MedKaz enables them to ‘practice better medicine.’ And patients love it because it gives them control of their records, and they know they are secure and available to their providers anytime, anywhere. You just can’t beat that!”

About MedKaz and HRC:

The patented MedKaz is a revolutionary system that puts the patient at the center of their care by aggregating their lifetime medical record in one place, owned and controlled by them, where care providers can access them as needed. MedKaz is the only system that accepts records in all formats from all sources, overcoming record incompatibility; is secure from Internet breaches, easy to use, affordable, and available now; and doesn’t require government subsidies or the construction of extensive electronic networks to exchange records. It lives alongside care providers’ systems, whether paper or electronic, and fits seamlessly into their established workflow, enabling improved quality and coordination of care, elimination of mistakes and unnecessary testing, and cost savings. Medkaz was created and is supported and distributed by Health Record Corporation, based in Brownsville, VT.

When the HITECH Act was passed in 2009, many cheered. Healthcare was about to change. At long last, talk would be backed up with billions of dollars. Doctors and other providers finally would adopt electronic records. Electronic networks would enable them to access a patient’s complete medical record at the point of care. Care quality would go up, costs down. Pain and suffering from medical mistakes would be reduced if not eliminated. Patients would have access to their records, too, and receive better care. Their absenteeism from work would go down. Their productivity would go up. The total cost of healthcare would go down. Very lofty expectations, indeed.

They also cheered for practical reasons. An early McKinsey study, a later study from Rand Corporation and a newly released study from the Institute of Medicine, estimate that the annual financial cost of medical mistakes — about a third of which McKinsey estimates result from doctors not having access to patients’ records — range between $300 billion and $1 trillion. So, by giving docs access to patient records, we should be able to cut costs by some $100 billion to $330 billion! What could be simpler?

It’s three years later and eight since the Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) was established. Where are we? Are we better off than we were three years ago? Have we met any of our expectations?

On the surface, we’ve made considerable progress. Since 2008, the number of doctors who have adopted or signed up for electronic medical record (EMR) systems has increased from 17% to 34%, and hospitals from 12% to 40%. Through October 2012 ONC has dispensed more than $9.2 billion subsidizing these adoptions. Untold millions or perhaps billions have been spent by EMR vendors getting their systems “certified” and providers installing and learning how to use them.

But are these the right metrics to measure success? Has this program met our expectations? Can providers access a patient’s complete medical record when they need to? Can they easily coordinate patient care? Have we materially reduced medical mistakes and the pain, suffering and costs that accompany them? How much of the annual $100 billion to $330 billion in potential savings have we realized?

The answers are bleak. No. Most providers can’t access their patient’s records from other providers or more easily coordinate care. For $9.2. billion, we’ve created larger, more sophisticated electronic care provider silos but most of the networks, health information exchanges (HIEs) intended to link them together, don’t work. Very few doctors or hospitals can access a patient’s records outside their own networks. And instead of demanding that a patient’s complete record be available to their care providers, including copies of complete progress notes, we pat ourselves on the back that a patient, using an application called Blue Button, can print out summarized records from one provider and give them to another. Better than nothing? Yes. What’s needed and was expected? No.

And no. We probably have not materially reduced medical errors. It’s hard to prove a negative. But if the cost of healthcare is a measure of mistake reduction, the answer is no. Costs have continued to go up, not down — though the rate of increase has flattened.

And no, again. To the extent that access to patient records enables providers to avoid mistakes, we’ve probably not reduced the pain and suffering that accompany medical mistakes. All kinds of anecdotal evidence support this conclusion. In two high profile examples, both Dr. Farzad Mostashari, the National Coordinator of ONC, and Dr. John Halamka, chair of the ONC–sponsored HIT Standards Committee, recently reported how their mothers suffered serious mistakes in treatment that could have been avoided if their providers had had access to their mothers’ complete medical records. It’s safe to assume millions more have suffered unnecessarily as well.

And no, again. Our inability to provide access to patient records probably translates into little–to–no reduction in our targeted $100 billion to $330 billion in unnecessary costs.

Given these poor results, where’s our sense of urgency, anger, and outrage? Why is no one demanding better results, now? We have spent years and billions but little to show for it!

We casually accept that it will take a few more years at least to resolve these issues — by 2015 if we’re lucky, even though a three year delay will cost a staggering $300 billion to $1 trillion! And what about the pain individuals are suffering every day, the unnecessary deaths, the lost productivity? We should be clamoring for explanations, new approaches, and results now, but that’s not happening. The only real outcry has come from physicians and hospitals who are being pressed against their will to adopt EMRs — but no one appears to be listening.

In today’s political climate, some will try to turn these shortcomings into a political issue. It is not. It has nothing to do with Obamacare or insurance exchanges or who is covered by Medicare or Medicaid or Republicans versus Democrats. The closest it comes to being political is that it does seriously impact our federal budget. Saving hundreds of billions of dollars per year by reducing healthcare costs now rather than years from now would go a long way toward cutting our deficit and stimulating our economy. Think of it this way. Over ten years we could save an even more staggering $1 trillion to $3.3 trillion!

The real issue here is to define the problem correctly. Our narrowly–focused, single–minded approach has taken us down the wrong path. It has mistakenly combined two critical parts of the healthcare IT problem that can and should be resolved separately. In healthcare, delay translates into both pain and money, and our approach is costing us dearly.

The two issues are, first, how patient medical records should be kept. Second, how we get them into the hands of providers at the point of care.

I strongly support the use of electronic records and hope every doctor eventually will adopt them. But I also understand that 66% of physicians and 60% of hospitals apparently still find today’s EMR systems and Meaningful Use requirements problematic. They haven’t adopted them even though they would receive substantial government subsidies for doing so, and face severe financial penalties for not doing so by 2015.

It’s clear that the solution to provider–adoption of EMRs is complex, will take more time, and probably require the development of different types of EMRs. But this need not stymie or delay solving our second issue, namely, how to ensure that a patient’s complete medical record is available at the point of care.

Health Record Corporations’s MedKaz® solves this second problem — now. It already exists and is available today. It employs established technology, accommodates patient records in both paper and disparate electronic formats, is easy to use and affordable, and doesn’t require government subsidies.

If we embrace this or other new solutions now, we can begin to meet our expectations now. We’ll be able to reduce medical mistakes, provide better care, and reduce the cost of care — even though we will not yet have solved the problem of EMR adoption!

All we have to do is open our minds and broaden our approach. First, we must adopt a sense of urgency and stop tolerating delays. Delays permit great pain to continue for millions, and cost billions. Second, we must separate the problems and solve them as quickly as possible. Universal EMR adoption probably will take years, but we can ensure that patient records are available to providers now.

Overcoming today’s momentum will be very difficult. It will take a groundswell of anger and outrage to change direction. Ready to speak up?

Health Record Corporation (HRC) is pleased to announce improvements to its revolutionary, patented MedKaz® personal health record system. They make it easier to buy and use. It could be the most important holiday gift one can give – the gift of better, lower cost healthcare.

Brownsville, VT (PRWEB) November 30, 2012

These improvements – coming just in time for the holiday season — make it easier to buy a MedKaz online at HRC’s website, and for patients and care providers to use MedKaz.

With a patient’s MedKaz in hand, a provider can improve care quality, avoid costly mistakes, coordinate their patient’s care with their patient’s other providers, and reduce the cost of care.

“Now, a husband, wife, child or parent can give a MedKaz to a loved one suffering from poor health. It could be the most important gift they’ll ever give!”

Commenting on these improvements, Merle Bushkin, Founder and CEO of HRC, says: “They couldn’t have been timed better! They make an already easy-to-use system even easier to use, and make it easier to buy – just in time for the holiday season. Now, a husband, wife, child or parent can give a MedKaz to a loved one suffering from poor health. It could be the most important gift they’ll ever give!

“We all know the frustrations of seeing doctors. We have to fill out the same forms and answer the same questions over an over, and one care provider doesn’t know how others are treating us. And because they don’t have access to our complete record, they often make mistakes that make us sicker rather than better and require redundant or unnecessary tests.

“Well, MedKaz solves those problems. It is the only system that does. It gives the patient control of all their records from all their providers. They carry it on their key chain or in their wallet and give it to their providers when they need care. Their providers, in turn, can sort and search its contents to understand their patient’s health issues and needs.

“Everyone benefits: patients, provider, employers, insurers and government.”

For a detailed description of the MedKaz System and to buy one, go to the MedKaz website. If you like what you see, Like our site and tell or Tweet your friends – especially those whose loved ones aren’t well.”

About MedKaz and HRC:

The patented MedKaz is a revolutionary system that puts the patient at the center of their care by aggregating their lifetime medical record in one place, owned and controlled by them, where care providers can access them as needed. The MedKaz is the only system that accepts records in all formats from all sources, overcoming record incompatibility; is secure from Internet breaches, easy to use, affordable, and available now; and doesn’t require government subsidies or the construction of extensive electronic networks to exchange records. It lives alongside care providers’ systems, whether paper or electronic, and fits seamlessly into their established workflow, enabling improved quality and coordination of care, elimination of mistakes and unnecessary testing, and cost reductions. The Medkaz was created and is supported and distributed by Health Record Corporation, based in Brownsville, VT.

Health Record Corporation expands the scope of its revolutionary MedKaz® personal health record system to include the records of dependent family members, such as children and elderly parents, so their doctors have the records and information they need to provide better, lower cost care.

Health Record Corporation (HRC), creator of the patented MedKaz personal health record system, announced today that it has expanded the scope of the revolutionary MedKaz from serving a single patient to serving a family. This important improvement is included in a software update released today.

A MedKaz owner can now add records to their MedKaz of dependent family members unable to manage their own records or MedKaz, such as young children, elderly parents or other close relatives. And when they take their loved one to a doctor, the doctor has the records and information they need to coordinate their care with other providers, avoid mistakes and preclude redundant or unnecessary tests.

Announcing this important MedKaz software update, Merle Bushkin, Founder and CEO of HRC, said “We’re delighted to add family members to a patient’s MedKaz. Both young and elderly parents have wanted this capability. Now they have it.

“It’s a giant leap for the family member responsible for loved ones who are too young, too old or too sick to care for themselves. They now have the convenience of carrying their loved ones’ lifetime health records along with their own on their MedKaz — on their key chain or in their wallet. They simply give it to the doctor who, in turn, can electronically sort, search and read their child’s or parent’s records and provide better care. This added capability further distinguishes the MedKaz from all other personal health record systems.”

About MedKaz and HRC:

The patented MedKaz is a revolutionary system that puts the patient at the center of their care by aggregating their lifetime medical record in one place, owned and controlled by them, where care providers can access them as needed. The MedKaz is the only system that accepts records in all formats from all sources, overcoming record incompatibility; is secure from Internet breaches, easy to use, affordable, and available now; and doesn’t require government subsidies or the construction of extensive electronic networks to exchange records. It lives alongside care providers’ systems, whether paper or electronic, and fits seamlessly into their established workflow, enabling improved quality and coordination of care, elimination of mistakes and unnecessary testing, and cost reductions. The Medkaz was created and is supported and distributed by Health Record Corporation, based in Brownsville, VT. For more information, please visit http://www.medkaz.com.

Contact:

For MedKaz/HRC:

Merle J. Bushkin

802 484-0249 (office)

802-230-6178 (Cell)

mbushkin(at)medkaz(dot)com