Institute For The Future

A step forward for Google Health

It's been a while since I have written about Google's efforts to become the home for people's personal health records (see this post, for example). So I am pleased to finally report some news on that front.

 

Google and the Cleveland Clinic have partnered to launch a pilot program that will store online personal health records for between 1,500 to 10,000 patients who choose to participate in the program. The Cleveland Clinic already uses an electronic personal health record (PHR) system. According to a press release,

The Google offering, not yet publicly available, will . . . create a new kind of healthcare experience that puts patients in charge of their own health information. . . . The ultimate goal of this patient-centered and controlled model is to give patients the ability to interact with multiple physicians, healthcare service providers and pharmacies.

 

Participating patients will be able to transfer their PHRs -- which include information such as prescriptions, allergies and medical histories -- to an online Google health platform. Patients will be able to access their Google health profiles, which will have password protection, through any computer connected to the Internet. They will also be able to manage any information entered into their PHRs and share the data with physicians and pharmacists.

 

Of course, this service will likely raise further concerns about big, bad, advertiser-driven Google having access to sensitive personal information. Although I share that concern to some extent, I am optimistic about the future of online PHRs. And I am inclined to agree with Toby Cosgrove, MD, President and Chief Executive Officer, Cleveland Clinic, and a member of the Google Health Advisory Council, who is quoted as saying, "'The partnership with Google is an example of true innovation in health care which brings value to patients and providers.'"