Apple in talks to transfer US veterans' medical records to iPhone

Comments

• Reply 1 of 7

  chasm Posts: 3,296member

  November 21, 2018 4:27AM

  A great gift for vets.

  
• Reply 2 of 7

  kenaustus Posts: 924member

  November 21, 2018 5:15AM

  This can be a. important feature for Vets of all ages.  I'm from the Vietnam era, but there are older Vets than me.  For some from WW II and Korea the system would  support the older Vets, or their family/care giver.
  
  Since the VA is one of the longest running computer based health records system it may end up having some very large health records,  That might need to be looked at when looking at, say, the flu in 1952.
  
  Several needs I see would be the ability to reorder Rx's (just like you do on your computer) and use of Finger Print or Face ID to log in. Same with Secure Messaging ,in the VA System.
  
  I believe that the VA Health System is looking at updating their health systems.  If so I would hope that Apple can help influence them in various areas.

  
• Reply 3 of 7

  GeorgeBMac Posts: 11,421member

  November 21, 2018 12:30PM

  There is a fatal flaw in these 'portable' health records:  The assumption that they are accurate.

  
  

  As a healthcare professional on the inside, and as a caregiver and patient on the outside, I can assure you that they are anything but accurate. 
  

  
  

  Physicians record things for multiple purposes -- but most often to justify diagnostic tests and treatments to insurance companies in order to get reimbursement.   So, because your record has a diagnosis of some condition does not mean that you actually have or have ever had that condition.

  
  

  An example is:  A couple months ago I visited a new PCP -- but spent the bulk of the appointment debunking various historical diagnosis (such as a heart arrhythmia) he was seeing in my electronic records. 
  

  Another example was as a nurse treating a patient with a diagnosis of schizophrenia when he actually had zero symptoms of that condition -- but instead had a clear case of CTE.  But since insurance didn't recognize CTE, he was diagnosed with something that they could recognize and pay for.
  

  I could provide many, many more examples.
  

  
  

  I make a practice of keeping written records of all of my diagnostic tests and treatments -- and provide them to new physicians as necessary.   They are far, far more accurate than my electronic medical record.

  
  

  And, it is not just an academic problem:   misdiagnosis is a leading cause of incorrect and improper treatments -- which can be harmful and even deadly.
  

  
• Reply 4 of 7

  applesauce007 Posts: 1,698member

  November 21, 2018 5:42PM

  GeorgeBMac said:

  There is a fatal flaw in these 'portable' health records:  The assumption that they are accurate.

  
  

  As a healthcare professional on the inside, and as a caregiver and patient on the outside, I can assure you that they are anything but accurate. 
  

  
  

  Physicians record things for multiple purposes -- but most often to justify diagnostic tests and treatments to insurance companies in order to get reimbursement.   So, because your record has a diagnosis of some condition does not mean that you actually have or have ever had that condition.

  
  

  An example is:  A couple months ago I visited a new PCP -- but spent the bulk of the appointment debunking various historical diagnosis (such as a heart arrhythmia) he was seeing in my electronic records. 
  

  Another example was as a nurse treating a patient with a diagnosis of schizophrenia when he actually had zero symptoms of that condition -- but instead had a clear case of CTE.  But since insurance didn't recognize CTE, he was diagnosed with something that they could recognize and pay for.
  

  I could provide many, many more examples.
  

  
  

  I make a practice of keeping written records of all of my diagnostic tests and treatments -- and provide them to new physicians as necessary.   They are far, far more accurate than my electronic medical record.

  
  

  And, it is not just an academic problem:   misdiagnosis is a leading cause of incorrect and improper treatments -- which can be harmful and even deadly.
  

  
  You do not understand how Apple’s system work. 

  
• Reply 5 of 7

  GeorgeBMac Posts: 11,421member

  November 21, 2018 8:49PM

  applesauce007 said:

  GeorgeBMac said:

  There is a fatal flaw in these 'portable' health records:  The assumption that they are accurate.

  
  

  As a healthcare professional on the inside, and as a caregiver and patient on the outside, I can assure you that they are anything but accurate. 
  

  
  

  Physicians record things for multiple purposes -- but most often to justify diagnostic tests and treatments to insurance companies in order to get reimbursement.   So, because your record has a diagnosis of some condition does not mean that you actually have or have ever had that condition.

  
  

  An example is:  A couple months ago I visited a new PCP -- but spent the bulk of the appointment debunking various historical diagnosis (such as a heart arrhythmia) he was seeing in my electronic records. 
  

  Another example was as a nurse treating a patient with a diagnosis of schizophrenia when he actually had zero symptoms of that condition -- but instead had a clear case of CTE.  But since insurance didn't recognize CTE, he was diagnosed with something that they could recognize and pay for.
  

  I could provide many, many more examples.
  

  
  

  I make a practice of keeping written records of all of my diagnostic tests and treatments -- and provide them to new physicians as necessary.   They are far, far more accurate than my electronic medical record.

  
  

  And, it is not just an academic problem:   misdiagnosis is a leading cause of incorrect and improper treatments -- which can be harmful and even deadly.
  

  
  You do not understand how Apple’s system work. 

  I do understand it.  Its a straight import from the provider with no way to screen out or correct bad information.
  
• Reply 6 of 7

  kruegdude Posts: 340member

  November 21, 2018 11:52PM

  GeorgeBMac said:

  applesauce007 said:

  GeorgeBMac said:

  There is a fatal flaw in these 'portable' health records:  The assumption that they are accurate.

  
  

  As a healthcare professional on the inside, and as a caregiver and patient on the outside, I can assure you that they are anything but accurate. 
  

  
  

  Physicians record things for multiple purposes -- but most often to justify diagnostic tests and treatments to insurance companies in order to get reimbursement.   So, because your record has a diagnosis of some condition does not mean that you actually have or have ever had that condition.

  
  

  An example is:  A couple months ago I visited a new PCP -- but spent the bulk of the appointment debunking various historical diagnosis (such as a heart arrhythmia) he was seeing in my electronic records. 
  

  Another example was as a nurse treating a patient with a diagnosis of schizophrenia when he actually had zero symptoms of that condition -- but instead had a clear case of CTE.  But since insurance didn't recognize CTE, he was diagnosed with something that they could recognize and pay for.
  

  I could provide many, many more examples.
  

  
  

  I make a practice of keeping written records of all of my diagnostic tests and treatments -- and provide them to new physicians as necessary.   They are far, far more accurate than my electronic medical record.

  
  

  And, it is not just an academic problem:   misdiagnosis is a leading cause of incorrect and improper treatments -- which can be harmful and even deadly.
  

  
  You do not understand how Apple’s system work. 

  I do understand it.  Its a straight import from the provider with no way to screen out or correct bad information.
  

  Too bad Apple hasn’t thought of this. 

  
• Reply 7 of 7

  GeorgeBMac Posts: 11,421member

  November 22, 2018 6:35PM

  kruegdude said:

  GeorgeBMac said:

  applesauce007 said:

  GeorgeBMac said:

  There is a fatal flaw in these 'portable' health records:  The assumption that they are accurate.

  
  

  As a healthcare professional on the inside, and as a caregiver and patient on the outside, I can assure you that they are anything but accurate. 
  

  
  

  Physicians record things for multiple purposes -- but most often to justify diagnostic tests and treatments to insurance companies in order to get reimbursement.   So, because your record has a diagnosis of some condition does not mean that you actually have or have ever had that condition.

  
  

  An example is:  A couple months ago I visited a new PCP -- but spent the bulk of the appointment debunking various historical diagnosis (such as a heart arrhythmia) he was seeing in my electronic records. 
  

  Another example was as a nurse treating a patient with a diagnosis of schizophrenia when he actually had zero symptoms of that condition -- but instead had a clear case of CTE.  But since insurance didn't recognize CTE, he was diagnosed with something that they could recognize and pay for.
  

  I could provide many, many more examples.
  

  
  

  I make a practice of keeping written records of all of my diagnostic tests and treatments -- and provide them to new physicians as necessary.   They are far, far more accurate than my electronic medical record.

  
  

  And, it is not just an academic problem:   misdiagnosis is a leading cause of incorrect and improper treatments -- which can be harmful and even deadly.
  

  
  You do not understand how Apple’s system work. 

  I do understand it.  Its a straight import from the provider with no way to screen out or correct bad information.
  

  Too bad Apple hasn’t thought of this. 

  I suspect that they approached it from the medical provider side -- where the provider owns the data and has no real incentive to make it accurate.  Its main purposes are:

  1) Justify billings

  2) Defend against lawsuits

  3) (as a distant third):  Provide a patient history

  
  

  As an analogy:

  Financial professionals warn you to check your credit report periodically and correct any inaccuracies.  Healthcare professionals should be advising the same on your EHR's because they are far more likely to contain inaccuracies -- unfortunately there is often no way to make those corrections and you actually only get to see a subset of the record anyway.