Technology
IT Awards: Special Recognition
By Gianni Truzzi October 7, 2011
This article originally appeared in the November 2011 issue of Seattle magazine.
Group Health Cooperative, Seattle
Employees in Washington: 9,558
Group Health Cooperative believes that better informed members will be healthier members, and its MyGroupHealth web portal helps make them so. An early pioneer of electronic medical records, Group Health is a national leader among health care providers for efficiency, cost control and improved care.
Nine years ago, the cooperative began giving its more than 670,000 members online access to their records. Since then, MyGroupHealth has developed into an effective means for members to engage with their care team of doctors, consulting nurses and pharmacists at their own convenience. Members can schedule appointments instantly, securely email their care team and view their medical records with all medications, including data on lab tests and physician comments. Group Health continues to improve the system, soliciting suggestions from its members to learn what can be made better.
Most recently, the Group Health team developed its own application for mobile devices such as the iPhone, allowing members to use MyGroupHealth fully while on the go. The effort has paid off for the 64-year-old cooperative, channeling non-urgent inquiries away from the emergency room and inspiring member loyalty. One user told us: Because of this system, Im not changing [health] plans.