Google planning a PHR?

June 15, 2007

I’ve personally thought for months that Google was working on a medical search portal and mini PHR and some of those thoughts were confirmed when Fred Trotter sent me this link. Fred noted that Google became more specific regarding its healthcare plans and, in what should be surprise to no one, it sounds like they are planning a PHR.

  • Rick Chan M.D.
    Concept of PHRs is certainly very interesting and there seems to be a need for them in view of current disparate clinical systems everywhere. But is a private firm in a better position to provide that platform or is there a need for a nation-wide standardised platform? Or even a world-wide platform for that matter.......
  • There are different PHR's available for the needs of health care consumers. Record For Living puts out a PHR that can only be accessed over the internet if you export the information.

    In a likewise manner insurance companies, and health care groups are also creating PHR's, and wonder's about conflict of interests.

    I think google could provide some innovative clinical systems, that could benefit patients knowing that their health information is stored in someone else's portal. Sometimes having access to your healthcare information over the internet can prove to be lifesaving if you are in an emergency away from your usual health care providers. So the risk/benefit ratio for health care security over the internet needs to be applied on an indivdual system basis.
  • certainly google has the technical expertise to produce a robust, fast and easy to use product, but i worry about the privacy concerns. i know google's motto is "do no evil", but if they ever started being evil, they'd have a whole heck of a lot of information with which to do it with!
  • I'm not sure I would (or want to) trust Google with my personal health information. Am I the only one who is worried about all the information Google is collecting?

    Maybe I'm just overreacting. Another part of me thinks this would be great, as Google has the power to initiate and nurture trends, and our healthcare system would clearly benefit from better automation.

    Blogmaster of http://electronic-medical-record.blogspot.com/
  • As with Legal, a better informed consumer does better within a system. However, the filtering of good vs bad vs trusted information has a long way to go.

    AVVO.com stepped forward with creating a portal consumer(s) can actually rate a lawyer, you can imagine the uproar that caused.

    Google is watching for one reason, is there a need for a market specific vertical portal. The only two left are Doctors/Lawyers...
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