Duke launches doctor-patient portal

Duke University has decided to streamline its relationship with doctors and patients, building a web portal which it intends to see become a central hub for such communications. Its "Healthview Portal" is designed to serve the roughly 400,000 to 500,000 patients using its three major hospitals and 100 outpatient clinics. The portal was developed by IBM, which used a SOA strategy for systems integration. It took about 14 weeks to complete the project, which was built on the IBM WebSphere Portal. While neither Duke nor IBM would disclose what the development effort cost, an outside analyst estimated that Duke spent as much as $1 million.

At the outset, Duke doctors will have access to basic clinical information and patient billing data. Patients--who must register to use the site--will be able to access personal health information, billing and insurance information and forms needed prior to medical visits, as well as pay their bills and schedule non-urgent appointments. In the future, Duke physicians will have access to clinical information, med lists, and e-prescribing functions, book operating suites and consult with other Duke specialists.

To get more information on the portal:
- read this Associated Press piece
- see IBM's press release

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