SANTA CLARA, Calif., Aug. 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Sun Microsystems, Inc. , the creator and leading advocate of Java(TM) technology, and InstantDx, a pioneer in electronic prescribing (e-prescribing) services (the OnCallData system) for physicians, hospitals and healthcare organizations, today announced an initiative to jointly provide a revolutionary new physician-based electronic health record (EHR). This initiative is designed in support of the goals publicly declared by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services to adopt a nationwide interoperable health information network to create electronic health records for all Americans.
Based on the Sun Java Integration Suite, formerly the SeeBeyond ICAN Suite, and InstantDx's OnCallData secure electronic prescription service, the joint solution is designed to provide a complete electronic patient record that will enable the healthcare community (providers, payers, employers, physicians, insurers and patients) to take advantage of a real-time, Web-based point-of-care healthcare information network. With this combined solution, physicians can check drug and allergy interactions, patient eligibility, medication history and formularies at the point of care.
"Community pharmacy has long embraced e-prescribing and we applaud the launch of this physician-based national electronic health record," Craig Fuller, President and Chief Executive Officer of NACDS stated. "By providing the doctor and pharmacist with real-time access to the Sun / InstantDx solution, our members will be able to coordinate across the patient network and automatically monitor medication usage, dosing limits and allergic reactions between medications, while keeping a watch on the economics of the transaction to help drive down the costs of care delivery."
Sun along with InstantDx are delivering one of the first integrated solutions to address the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' National Health Information Network (NHIN) initiative in driving collaboration between the private and public sectors through data standards, interoperability, regional health information organizations (RHIOs), and the use of electronic health records with integrated e-prescribing. Combining a physician-based electronic health record with an enterprise master person index (EMPI) for a single-patient view and e-prescribing functionality to streamline physician workflow is a cornerstone of the industry's effort to help reduce medical errors and improve both patient and physician satisfaction while reducing care delivery costs.
"Real-time interoperability between the physician's practice management system and the e-prescribing system is an essential, yet all-too-often missing ingredient necessary to accelerate the adoption of e-prescribing programs," said Dr. Allan Weinstein, chairman and chief executive officer, InstantDx. "Sun's expertise in providing technology solutions to the healthcare market and the ability to create interoperable patient care records made it a natural fit and the next step forward for our RHIO and NHIN efforts."
The initiative also aligns with various mandates, such as the Department of Health and Human Services' National Health Information Network (NHIN) initiative, the Department of Defense Military Health System (MHS), the Veterans Health Affairs (VHA) division of the Veterans Affairs Department and the National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS) initiative for interoperable healthcare records. ICAN suite was reviewed against the PHIN mandates and system requirements and was found to meet PHIN standards.
"Not only does this partnership enable clinical transformation on scale with RHIO and NHIN initiatives, but Sun's experience in creating EMPIs, Single-Patient Views and Electronic Health Records for healthcare institutions around the world marries well with InstantDx's e-prescribing foresight to ensure the right patient care is delivered at the right time," said Wayne Owens, director of Integration Platforms, Sun Microsystems.
With an overarching objective of establishing a national network of interoperable systems for healthcare delivery, Dr. David Brailer, M.D. Ph.D., National Health Information Technology Coordinator, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services deems regional and national health information initiatives will be the driving force in the adoption of solutions such as unified single-patient views, longitudinal patient medical records and the electronic prescribing of medication.
The 2005 National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACADS) Pharmacy and Technology Conference is being held August 27-31 in San Diego, California. For more information about the conference, please visit www.rxconference.org.
About InstantDx, L.L.C.
InstantDx, L.L.C., located in Gaithersburg, MD., is a pioneer in e-prescribing, launching the first true electronic connection to pharmacy (Giant Pharmacies) and the first regional e-prescribing initiative (in Rhode Island with Lifespan hospitals and physicians).
InstantDx integrates its product OnCallData into multiple physician practice management systems (POMIS) and electronic medical records (EMRs), including NDCHealth's Medisoft, Lytec, and Concept, Companion Technologies, CMHC and others (representing over 165,000 physicians in the United States). For more information, go to http://www.oncalldata.com .
About Sun Java Integration Suite
The Sun Java Integration Suite, formerly the SeeBeyond Integrated Composite Application Network Suite (SeeBeyond ICAN Suite) is now the sixth suite in Sun Microsystems' Java(TM) Enterprise System (Java ES). As part of a mutual agreement between the two companies, Sun Microsystems Inc. has acquired the shares of SeeBeyond Inc. on August 25, 2005. With this acquisition, SeeBeyond Inc. is welcomed into the Sun Microsystems, Inc. family of companies ("Sun"). Over the next months, both companies will strive to reach full integration globally. Due to relevant country legal requirements, different timelines for completing that full integration may apply. The new technology suite is a result of Sun's recent acquisition of SeeBeyond. With nearly 1 million Java ES subscribers to date, the addition of the Sun Java Integration Suite will build upon Java ES's success and position it as the most complete software platform for building Service Oriented Architectures (SOA), Web services and composite applications. For more information on the Java Enterprise System please visit: http://www.sun.com/software/javaenterprisesystem .
About Sun Microsystems, Inc.
A singular vision -- "The Network Is The Computer"(TM) -- guides Sun in the development of technologies that power the world's most important markets. Sun's philosophy of sharing innovation and building communities is at the forefront of the next wave of computing: the Participation Age. Sun can be found in more than 100 countries and on the Web at sun.com. Subscribe to Sun newswire at http://sun.com/news .
FOR MORE INFORMATION Kristi Rawlinson Sun Microsystems, Inc. 214-373-1519 krawlinson@seebeyond.com
NOTE: Sun, Sun Microsystems, the Sun Logo, Java, and The Network Is The Computer are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc. in the United States and other countries.
Sun Microsystems, Inc.CONTACT: Kristi Rawlinson of Sun Microsystems, Inc., +1-214-373-1519, orkrawlinson@seebeyond.com
Web site: http://sun.com/
