One of my other stops on my recent trip across the pond was to the country of Denmark. Now Denmark in December is a pretty dark place; the sun rose every day before 9 AM and generally set at or around 4 PM. Of course, I got very little time to sightsee.
Nonetheless, it is worth it to consider Denmark because they have largely done what we are setting out to do with Meaningful Use. They have had a central patient register since 1977. Their physicians no longer write prescriptions; they place them on the patient's record where the pharmacy of their choice can find them and fill them. Patients can go online at a portal and view their histories, their lab results, radiographic reports and other key medical information. They interact with their care providers through tweets, emails and blogs. In all, a pretty compelling vision!
Now, there are some key differences. Denmark has a total population of about 5.5 million people (about the size of Washington DC, Atlanta or Miami) most of whom are employed and well-educated. They have a single-payor system. Their taxes are huge by our standards.
But one wonders if there are lessons to be learned from their long-term success in healthcare IT.
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