The FINANCIAL -- In response to customer demand for a better way to interact with patients in an increasingly self-service climate, GE Healthcare introduced Centricity Patient Online 13.

According to General Electric Company, centricity Patient Online is a flexible, scalable, and highly configurable patient portal designed for large healthcare organizations. By extending the provider workflow to the patient’s home with a range of easy-to-use self-service tools, Patient Online enhances patient communications, optimizes staff and provider productivity, and can help strengthen the provider’s market and competitive position. It helps customers meet Meaningful Use Stage 1 patient and family engagement criteria and prepare them for expected Stage 2 requirements.

In fact, during this this challenging time in healthcare, GE Healthcare’s Centricity Patient Online may be just what the doctor ordered. With Patient Online 13, patients can connect with their healthcare providers through the Web or their mobile device to schedule appointments, pay bills, manage health information, complete pre-visit forms, send secure messages, begin an eVisit and respond to alerts and reminders sent by the practice.

A key focus of healthcare reforms, including Meaningful Use, Patient-Centered Medical Home, and Accountable Care Organizations, is to ensure that individuals and families are engaged as partners in their care. The end goal is improved clinical outcomes, and, ultimately, reduced costs to the system as a whole. A tethered patient portal, such as Patient Online, is a key to the evolution of care.

A result of continual customer collaboration, Patient Online 13 offers the tightest connection of any patient portal with GE’s market-leading Centricity Business revenue cycle management solution and interoperability with virtually any standards-based Electronic Medical Record.

Healthcare organizations today are facing unprecedented fiscal challenges. To balance their budgets, many are now searching for cost-effective and efficient alternatives to budget-busters like postal mail for pre-visit forms, appointment and preventative screening reminders, and large call centers with long hold times, high drop rates, and non-stop telephone tag.

GE Healthcare will demonstrate the capabilities of Centricity Patient Online 13 at the HIMSS conference at the Venetian Sands Expo Center, Las Vegas, booth 2635.

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