Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications
Friday, Jan 27, 2006
Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications Friday, Jan 27, 2006 |
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Health Industry & Economy - Medical Institutions & Hospitals Info-Tech - Software Docs can look for Isabel's prescription — Web-based diagnosis to help course of treatment P.T. Jyothi Datta
Mumbai , Jan. 26 IT is not meant to replace the doctor's judgment. But `Isabel' certainly hopes to become a virtual Google for diagnosis, where an online search with the patient's symptoms gives the doctor a list of diagnoses to evaluate before deciding on the course of treatment. Named after a three-year-old English girl who survived misdiagnosis in the UK, `Isabel' is a clinical decision support system aimed at reducing and managing diagnosis errors at the point of care, says Dr Joseph Britto, co-founder and CEO of Isabel Healthcare Inc. The Web-based diagnosis system, designed in collaboration with Isabel's father, serves as a near-patient diagnosis reminder for doctors. But for the patient, besides saving the added cost in the event of a misdiagnosis, a diagnosis support system can make the difference between life and morbidity or death, says Dr Britto, who was recently in India to promote the system to healthcare institutions. `Isabel' uses pattern recognition techniques, as opposed to standard key word searches. "But that does not mean the doctor goes into auto-pilot," he adds, underlining the importance of the doctor who will take the final call on treatment. But the doctor's job is not easy. An average clinician carries two million pieces of information and over 50 million clinical decisions are made for every one million members of the population, according to data provided by Isabel Healthcare. `Isabel' was initially launched in the UK in 2002 covering paediatric illnesses. About a year ago, it was launched in the US covering all major illnesses, Dr Britto told Business Line. Besides hospitals in the US, UK and Ireland, it is also looking to gain ground in India. While some hospitals are evaluating the system, Manipal Hospital has installed it. Software development for the system is being done at Bangalore and the system is installed at a price of $90 per bed, almost half its US price, Dr Britto said. At Manipal Hospital, `Isabel' and other clinical support systems are used by doctors, said Mr R. Basil, CEO of Manipal Health Systems. Evidence-based medicine is becoming important. With new diseases and medicines emerging, it requires a constant updating of knowledge, he added. A paediatrician who uses international clinical decision support systems said `Isabel' is more doctor-friendly. In other systems, doctors have to know what they are looking for. But `Isabel' offers an alternative thinking pattern. In complicated situations, doctors could misdiagnose if symptoms fit a set pattern. An online support system throws up the different complications and data generated around similar symptoms and helps the doctor take a more informed decision, he added. But, he was quick to add, ultimately the doctor will have to do his or her own thinking. How the system fits into a doctor's time in an Indian scenario, stretched as doctors are across different healthcare institutions and an ever-increasing queue of patients, is something that will unravel with time.
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