Healthy Skepticism Library item: 20082

Warning: This library includes all items relevant to health product marketing that we are aware of regardless of quality. Often we do not agree with all or part of the contents.

Publication type: Magazine

Limprecht E
GP ownership at core of practice software battle
Australian Doctor 2005 Jun 175
http://www.australiandoctor.com.au/news/latest-news/gp-ownership-at-core-of-practice-software-battle

Full text:

THE stakes have been raised in the bid to dominate the multi-million-dollar general practice software market, with a key player launching a new IT company with a focus on ethics and GP ownership.

NxtHealth – to be launched as a subsidiary of IBA Health this week – will attempt to attract doctors to a re-branded version of the Plexus clinical and practice management software by avoiding the more controversial aspects of Medical Director – pop-up ads and mining of de-identified patient data for sale to marketing companies. The move comes two months before the delayed release of rival software Medical Director 3.

With consumer groups and Federal Health Minister Mr Tony Abbott castigating the sale of patient data, IBA Health also said it would set up an independent ethics committee to monitor the activities of NxtHealth.

IBA Health, which has declined to reveal the price of the new Plexus software, is pitching the idea that GPs should secure a slice of the profits generated by the primary health care information technology market, pledging to offer doctors, practice managers and divisions of general practice share options in NxtHealth.

There will be no up-front investment but as subscribers buy NxtHealth’s IT products a percentage of the options will vest into shares in NxtHealth. The scheme will allow doctors to own 50% of the company.

The latest bid for GPs’ business follows renewed interest in the commercial potential of the GP desktop market.

IBA Health hopes an increased market share of GP desktops will position it to secure a leading role in the potentially lucrative HealthConnect electronic health record scheme, the success of which is dependent on the participation of GPs.

Last January IBA Health lost out to Primary Healthcare in its fight to gain control of HCN, which operates Medical Director, the market-leader software used by about 85% of GP practices.