MediSwitch, which through its Virtual Private Healthcare Network facilitates the electronic transfer of transactions from healthcare service providers to medical aids, is currently partnering various software houses with doctor practice management systems to embed its communication API into their applications. Once systems are MediSwitch enabled, software houses can roll out new versions of their applications to a doctor client base totaling about 7000 doctors nationally. The applications already MediSwitch enabled are Multidoc (Clinical Computer Systems); Ultrimate Medix (MBM Computers); Med-It (Med-It Marketing); Medsolve 2000 (Medsolve) and Winorion (Orion Medical Management). The new MediSwitch enabled versions of these applications will connect doctors directly to the MediSwitch VPHN and allow them to do online member eligibility checking and, real-time as well as batch electronic claims transfer to participating medical aids. Other transaction types currently in development and soon accessible via these practice management systems include the real-time checking of benefit availability, benefit booking, approval or rejection notification across various medical aids and ultimately, electronic funds transfer. Says Allan Day, MediSwitch Business Development Director: "We have initially partnered these software houses as their cumulative client base translates into 80% of the doctor market nationally and, by rolling out MediSwitch enabled systems to their respective client sites, it ensures speed to market for MediSwitch." "Moreover, the inclusion of the communication API immediately enhances the value of these systems and hence provides them with even greater marketing pull for their respective products." Day believes that embedding the MediSwitch communication API into various practice management systems gives MediSwitch a nine to twelve month head start in the delivery of real-time connectivity in the healthcare industry. " We are aware that doctors, generally, do not want to change their existing practice management systems to achieve the benefits of EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) and by far prefer to use their existing systems or other easily accessible mediums of communication that do not involve major hardware or software expenditure", says Day. The communication API is generic and independent of the type of transaction being communicated. Hence, when new transaction types are released, doctors need not continually upgrade their practice management systems to benefit, provided the systems they`re using are technically capable of supporting the new transactions and provided individual medical aids support these transaction types. New API`s have been developed for several platforms, including DOS/ Windows 3.1/ Windows 95/ Windows NT/ Unix and several languages, including Delphi/ C and Visual Basic. Each transaction will be translated by the MediSwitch switching mechanism to match the prescribed data formats of multiple medical aids and clearing houses, guaranteeing delivery of data through industry standard protocols. Day adds, "MediSwitch simply provides a network carrier to facilitate the transmission of data. We re in no way concerned with the clinical content of the data passing through the switch. We are therefore, able to partner companies who do specialise in the management of clinical information, such as PBMs." Service providers who do not have existing practice management systems may consider several alternative methods of connecting to the MediSwitch VPHN, all of which use commercial Telkom services, with preference being determined by performance requirements and cost constraints. Alternative methods include: * Direct dial up via modem * Dial up via an Internet Service Provider * The I-Phone which uses the Public Internet * A Radio Pad connecting to the VPHN via the SA Post Office X.25 network * An ISDN line (Integrated Services Digital Network), which offers a faster alternative to conventional telephone lines and is a relatively inexpensive medium. * Diginet - a dedicated data communication line which offers high speed transfer of data but translates into a relatively expensive medium for communication. Day concludes: "Speed of transaction delivery is a major consideration for service providers and we`ve seen the switch delivering transaction times as low as 0.2 of a second from the doctor to the medical aid and back. Moreover, there are no additional costs involved for hardware or software or maintenance fees, only a minimal cost per transaction."
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