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MARKETS » NFV Pandemic Tech News
February 10, 2009
NuPhysicia Delivers Healthcare Through Polycom Visual CommunicationBy Tim Gray, TMCnet Web Editor A push to reduce rising costs plaguing the healthcare industry has led to innovations from the telecom industry.
Polycom (News - Alert), a global player in telepresence, video and voice communications solutions is bringing patients even in the most remote areas to hospitals and healthcare facilities without ever having to leave their homes.
Now, NuPhysicia is combining the latest Polycom visual communication technology with a decade in real-world telemedicine applications that is creating a solution to bring change to health care.
NuPhysicia provides physician services to patients and telemedicine goods, services and expertise to healthcare organizations. Through the use of extensive visual communication and electronic patient medical records, NuPhysicia offers on-site health programs with the same capabilities as a doctor’s office.
“The NuPhysicia model is a perfect example of how visual communication can erase the barriers of distance and radically transform the challenges we meet today and help shape a better outcome for tomorrow,” said Joe Sigrist, senior vice president and general manager of visual communications at Polycom.
The Polycom communication platform is expected to help create a new model for remote healthcare that is breaking down the barriers of access.
"Rising costs, physician shortages, and the logistical challenges of delivering medical skills when and where they are needed all plague the global health care system," said Dr. Glenn Hammack, NuPhysicia's CEO. "The options are fairly limited. Patients either travel to obtain care or delay the issue until their illnesses become more serious.”
Polycom’s telepresence solutions will provide a foundation for NuPhysicia's systems in conjunction with NuPhysicia's medical device configurations that allow doctors to clearly hear heartbeats and lung sounds, view X-rays and EKGs as well as see live feeds from hand-held medical cameras.
The "virtual doctor's office" from NuPhysicia's configurations use Polycom visual communication systems and are the workhorse of these services, according to the company.
The "virtual doctor's office" is staffed by a qualified paramedic, with specialized telemedicine expertise, who operates the NuPhysicia/Polycom integrated system linking patient and physician.
Additionally, the paramedic provides the physician with real-time patient information using an electronic medical record.
"Offering convenient, on-site services improves access to preventative care that helps ensure good health while also lowering medical costs," said Hammack. "On-site services also keep employees from having to take a half-day or more off of work to visit their doctor, improving our customers' productivity and corporate competitiveness."
The systems are based on Polycom visual communication platform that augments the offerings of traditional medical centers by providing access to medical specialists and mental health professionals.
"I truly believe that NuPhysicia and Polycom are radically changing the way healthcare is and will be delivered,” said Hammack. “These are different times and as such, call for an exceptional approach."
As TMCnet recently reported, Polycom has seen growth from its video services segment which accounted for two-thirds of consolidated net revenues at $141.7 million during the fourth quarter 2008 (this includes video communications – 54 percent and networks systems – 13 percent).
The voice communications segment of the company's business accounted for 33 percent or $87.1 million, which is down as compared to Q42007 when voice generated 37 percent of consolidated net revenues or $98.4 million. Tim Gray is a Web Editor for TMCnet, covering news in the IP communications, call center and customer relationship management industries. To read more of Tim’s articles, please visit his columnist page. Edited by Tim Gray |
