REDMOND, Wash., Aug. 21, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Microsoft
Corp. and TracFone Wireless on Thursday announced a collaboration
that will bring the benefits of smartphone technology and services
to underserved and high-risk populations through a new mobile
health management solution offered through providers and insurers.
This approach expands on Microsoft's commitment to healthcare and
TracFone's telecommunications expertise as the largest Lifeline
provider and prepaid wireless leader. Microsoft and TracFone will
work with Health Choice Network (HCN), a Miami-based company that manages and connects
a network of community health centers with more than 760,000
patients in 17 states, to conduct a pilot project where HCN will
provide smartphones to diabetes patients to help them better manage
their care.
Building on the success of TracFone's short message service,
text and phone programs, the new solution will be offered on a
Windows Phone and feature Microsoft's familiar suite of services
and solutions, such as Microsoft Office 365, Microsoft HealthVault,
Microsoft Dynamics CRM and a variety of smartphone applications. It
will combine enterprise-grade security and privacy features to
allow security-enhanced, HIPAA-enabled email and messaging
communications to patients regarding their health and regimens. In
addition, it will provide appointment reminders with calendar
functionality and remote device management that is standard with a
Windows Phone.
"Putting existing technologies to use for today's patients will
help improve healthcare, coordination and outcomes, as well as
better manage costs," said Lee
Stevens, director of Health Information Exchange Policy and
Interoperability, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
"Combining the power of a smartphone with a personal health record
platform that brings disparate data together in a secure
environment is an important step toward the goal of providing
better patient engagement and more mobile healthcare in the
U.S."
Windows Phone already has built-in enterprise-grade safety and
security features, as well as the ability to offer
security-enhanced, HIPAA-enabled communications through Office 365.
These features help patients, health providers and insurers retain
control over important personal health information.
"With over 500,000 subscribers through SafeLink Health
Solutions, we have seen firsthand the benefits of technology and
the association between great health and a better quality of life,"
said F.J. Pollak, president and CEO,
TracFone. "We are excited to begin this program with Microsoft and
HCN by bringing this innovative solution to market and helping our
customers achieve their healthcare goals."
Patients participating in the HCN pilot will receive a Windows
Phone with TracFone's prepaid services that will help them improve
their engagement and manage their disease. The pilot's goal is to
demonstrate how access to mobile technology can help improve
patient compliance, education and ultimately disease-related
outcomes. HCN will develop a customer application to help
participants provide consent, deliver and receive reminders, ensure
treatment plan understanding, and aid in disease self-tracking for
blood sugar levels and other vital health information. Patients
will also have access to a variety of apps, including several that
are specific to diabetes care, and other mobile devices connected
to HealthVault to ensure the personal health records are pulling
information from any devices they regularly use to help monitor
important health information.
Because the solution will also be running on the Windows Phone
8.1 operating system, the mobile health solution will benefit from
emerging Microsoft technologies such as Cortana personal assistant,
which can help set reminders based on time, location, individual
habits and preferences. For example, Cortana can remind patients to
fill a prescription the next time it senses that they are near the
pharmacy, or it can remind them to talk to a doctor about a
specific concern the next time a doctor's call or email is
received.
"For several years, our patients with chronic health conditions
like diabetes have benefited from access to their personal health
record in HealthVault," said Kevin
Kearns, president and CEO, HCN. "We are excited to include a
mobile smartphone to extend the platform for patient engagement and
enhance our ability to provide, connect and utilize the tools to
drive better outcomes. This is particularly timely as we focus on
the tremendous growth in the Medicaid and individual market, whose
enrollees traditionally are at higher risk for chronic disease and
benefit most from patient engagement."
"This solution brings together the strength of Microsoft's
comprehensive platform and productivity tools in an evolving
mobile-first, cloud-first world," said Michael Robinson, vice president, U.S. Health
and Life Sciences, Microsoft. "Combined with TracFone's strong
presence in the Lifeline mobile marketplace, we have a unique
opportunity to provide our joint insurer, provider and Medicaid
agency customers with the platform and tools to enhance patient
engagement and meet the requirements necessary to succeed in
today's healthcare marketplace."
More information is available at
http://www.microsoft.com/healthplans, http://www.microsoft.com/hhs,
this Mobile Health Management Solution data sheet and the Microsoft
in Health Newsroom.
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq "MSFT") is the worldwide
leader in software, services, devices and solutions that help
people and businesses realize their full potential.
Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20000822/MSFTLOGO
SOURCE Microsoft Corp.