The Wild Wild Web
Governments aren't the only entities disturbed by the anarchic flow of information on the Internet. Healthcare professionals are equally wary of the potential mayhem that this vast storehouse of information can create among users lacking the acumen to separate legitimate content from dodgy data. The practice of healthcare in the era of the empowered, knowledge-rich citizen was one of the topics that galvanized discussions during EUCOMED's recent annual assembly in Berlin.
Addressing attendees at a session devoted to e-business and the medical device industry, Roberto Benetello, general manager of e-health company Planet Medica, referred to a survey revealing that 75% of general practitioners in the UK acknowledged that their patients search the Internet for information on their medical conditions. The emergence of the "empowered patient syndrome," to borrow a phrase from EUCOMED director general Michael Baker, is only the beginning of a profound shift in the patient-and-physician relationship. It's not impossible that citizens will soon demand access on their palm-held device to health information that used to be jealously guarded within the sanctity of the doctor's office, pointed out David Jefferys, chief executive of the UK Medical Devices Agency.
Not only are people engaging in on-line do-it-yourself diagnostics, they may be basing their decisions on information that is misleading or frankly erroneous. Casting the World Wide Web as a virtual Wild West that has gotten out of control, Didier Bouis from the Enterprise-Directorate General at the European Commission cited the example of a Japanese Web site that invites users to post messages describing their ailments. These missives are then broadcast to an array of specialists, or so the site claims, who proffer advice on the most effective treatments. Unbeknownst to the users, the site is sponsored by a manufacturer of pharmaceutical products, which explains why the vast majority of treatments recommended by the "specialists" often involve drugs produced by the company.
How should the healthcare community respond to these developments? One temptation is to circle the wagons. A conference attendee suggested as much during the question-and-answer period that followed the session.
Patients must be protected from the flood of questionable healthcare information that is available on the Internet, which has the potential to become a hypochondriac's paradise, he remarked. The underlying problem with that approach, noted numerous attendees, is that the genie is out of the bottle: it is fanciful to think that the general public will accept information rationing, no matter how well intentioned, at this stage of the game.
"We need the voice of the patient," stressed one attendee. "Educate him, but don't shut him out." If the commission were to draft a directive on this issue, added Bouis, we would run the risk of prohibition. "As a practical matter, how do you prohibit the flow of information on the Web?" he asked rhetorically. Added Benetello, "You can't stop the process. Closely monitor your content and ensure that the exchange of information is done on a consensual basis. That's really all you can do."
Making well-researched, accurate healthcare content available to the public is one of the ways in which portals are jockeying for dominance in a playing field that, according to one estimate, is littered with approximately 20,000 healthcare-related sites. One such portal that is scheduled to launch in early 2001, Vamedis seeks to integrate all of the stakeholders in the healthcare arena under its umbrella. Andreas Dinges, responsible for medical business at 3M Medica and for promotion of the Web site, explained to attendees how Vamedis plans to achieve its ambitious goal.
Supported by 3M Medica, B. Braun, Coloplast, Hartmann, Krauth Medical, Lohmann & Rauscher, and Mölnlycke Health Care, Vamedis intends to offer business-to-business solutions to hospitals, clinics, and physicians, in addition to a host of business-to-consumer services. "There were more than 40 healthcare-related Internet start-ups in Europe this year, but they were primarily niche-oriented sites," said Dinges. "Vamedis is a vertically integrated site that will ultimately provide complete fulfillment processes including order processing, tracking, and logistics." The breadth of services, combined with a vertically oriented market focus that reaches out to consumers, business interests, and healthcare providers, will ensure the site's success, he claimed.
Although Vamedis has launched pilot programs with German hospitals, we won't be able to judge its functionality for ourselves until the early part of 2001, when the portal goes live in a truncated format. If you're attending Medica in November, however, you will have an opportunity to get a sneak preview of the site at the stands of Vamedis's supporting companies, as well as other locations at the trade show.
