A Leading International Healthcare IT Solution Provider offers a Model for US Health Transformation. Former Speaker of the House Gingrich includes ICW in US Senate Testimony

Washington, DC, June 21, 2006 – Newt Gingrich appeared before the US Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Technology, Innovation and Competitiveness today and testified on the subject of how Health Information Technology is transforming and will continue to transform health and healtcare in America. InterComponentWare (ICW), a leading international healthcare IT solution provider, is identified by Gingrich as one of the many success stories marking private sector progress in deploying health information technology.

In his compelling testimony, Newt Gingrich, founder of The Center for Health Transformation*, presents a perspective that recognizes today’s realities but also includes optimism. He states “…today we can see the glimmerings of a brighter future. With momentum building for healthcare consumerism, chronic care management tools, and the adoption of health information technology, we know what that brighter future will look like: hundred per cent insurance coverage; consumers will be empowered; quality and price information will be readily available; early detection and prevention will create a culture of health; reimbursement will be driven by outcomes; and use of interoperable technology will be ubiquitous.”

Of the eleven key messages in his testimony, ICW can play a meaningful role in the majority of those directed to the private sector. One of Gingrich’s key messages is “Empower Consumers with Personal Health Records, A Significant Step in Building a 21st Century Intelligent Health System.” ICW’s core product solution, LifeSensor, is a Personal Health Record (PHR) that can empower the consumer and serve as the platform for data sharing with all stakeholders in healthcare delivery. ICW’s true interoperability solutions address a number of Gingrich’s other key messages.

The submitted written testimony includes the following statement from ICW, based on a new company White Paper: “… founded in Germany (ICW has) transforming market entry strategies for the USA …(delivering) components for interoperability solutions for healthcare stakeholders, utilizing “connector” technology and the patient-centered and patient-owned LifeSensor, a true interoperable Personal Health Record. ICW interoperability can enable bidirectional auto-population of data with other Health Information Systems to and from LifeSensor PHR creating a trusted source PHR, the patient’s ‘primary system’.” Also stated in the testimony record, “ICW has played vital roles in the national e-health card (eCard) program in Germany and Austria.

Current ICW projects in Europe include: 1) a physician’s network enabling interoperable connectivity, which has been recognized as a leading “RHIO” in a study by the University of Erlangen; 2) a privately funded implementation of a Regional eHealth Network, which provides interoperability to providers, practitioners and pharmacies, and via LifeSensor, patients; 3) an interoperability project at Rhön Hospitals connects existing, but until now, isolated information systems without requiring the replacement of existing software. (In addition), ICW is also involved with hospital and clinical projects including: 1) the “Partnership for the Heart” program at Charité hospital, for patients with chronic heart failure, utilizing Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM). The study will measure improvements in healthcare quality and related healthcare cost reductions; 2) a breast cancer project at University of Tubingen, which enables authorized medical personnel “outside the University system” to view and add treatment information, resulting in better patient management, care and health outcomes.”

About InterComponentWare
InterComponentWare AG (ICW) is a leading international eHealth specialist with locations in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, the USA, and Bulgaria. Its solutions for networking the various participants in the health care system achieve a sustained improvement in process-oriented communication and data integrity – and thus the quality of medical care. Among other things, ICW develops and markets software and hardware components for the healthcare IT infrastructure for the electronic health card, the personal health record LifeSensor, and network solutions for clinics and physicians in private practice. As part of the bIT4health consortium, ICW has provided important consulting services for the deployment of the electronic health card in Germany and is also involved in the Austrian eCard project.

For more information please contact:
InterComponentWare AG
Dirk Schuhmann
Otto-Hahn-Straße 3
69190 Walldorf, Germany

Tel: 49 (0)6227-385-133
Fax: 49 (0)6227-385-199

E-mail: Dirk.Schuhmann@icw.de

www.icw.de
www.LifeSensor.de

This release was published on openPR.