In 1999, Markle took aim at accelerating consumer use of information technology to improve people’s health and the quality of health care. This patient-centric vision and the widespread diffusion of technology was seen as essential to the realization of these goals, and continues to guide our work in this area.
KatrinaHealth was established to help Hurricane Katrina victims work with their health professionals to gain access to their own electronic prescription medication records. Through the KatrinaHealth.org portal, authorized pharmacists and doctors were able to get records of medications that evacuees were using, including the specific dosages. Such information helped evacuees renew their medications and helped health care professionals avoid prescription errors and coordinate care. Lessons From KatrinaHealth details the full story and provides recommendations in anticipation of future disasters.
Life on the Line combined the powers of television and the Internet to deliver powerful messages and encourage behavioral change with the goal of inspiring and enabling women to take control of their health. The television program engaged viewers emotionally through a dramatic story, while the Internet site provided practical information and personalized tools that encouraged proactive behaviors. The Life on the Line concept was developed by Markle in collaboration with WebMD, FACCT, Oxygen Media, and a team of health and media experts.
The Cambodia Telemedicine Clinic was a joint project of the Markle Foundation, American Assistance for Cambodia, Partners Telemedicine, and the Sihanouk Hospital Center of Hope. The Sihanouk Hospital Center of Hope sent a nurse to the remote Markle clinic once a month to examine, photograph, and measure the vital statistics of patients. The nurse’s reports were e-mailed to doctors at both the Sihanouk Hospital Center of Hope and Partners Telemedicine, who collaborated with doctors at the clinic to make diagnoses and develop courses of treatment. A Model for Remote Health Care in the Developing World summarizes Markle’s work and provides an overview of the project.
Supported by Markle, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Partners HealthCare System investigated the implications of strengthening communication between patient and doctor by creating access to medical records through an online portal. In partnership with FACCT (Foundation for Accountability), Brigham developed the report The Quality Case for Information Technology in Healthcare, which suggests that there are five key policy domains that need to be addressed: standards, incentives, security and confidentiality, professional involvement, and research, with financial incentives representing the single most important lever. Additional FACCT documents are available in the Markle Special Collection on PolicyArchive.
Understanding Healthcare by Richard Saul Wurman covers a wide array of health topics, including guidance on how to make effective use of the Internet and other technologies to improve personal health. The development of this book was supported by Markle, Johnson & Johnson, and the United Health Group. More than 60 prominent physicians, scientists, and healthcare professionals reviewed all sections of the book under the guidance of the Foundation for Accountability (FACCT).
The CHESS initiative was funded by Markle and the National Cancer Institute to evaluate the ways in which underserved women with breast cancer can use and benefit from a computerized patient support system. While previous research has demonstrated the positive value of CHESS among a variety of populations, this study examined the impact of the breast cancer module on the underserved by targeting women in rural areas of Wisconsin and inner city neighborhoods in Detroit.
