NWA-PCUG Newsletter Article, August 2011
Microsoft Offers Free "Health Vault"
for Personal Medical Records

By Ira Wilsker, Radio Show Host,
Columnist, College Professor and deputy sheriff
iwilsker@sbcglobal.net
(click to email author)

WEBSITES:
http://www.healthvault.com
http://health.google.com
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_HealthVault

For the past few years I have been using two primary methods for recording personal medical information. One method I have been using to keep track of my personal medical information and records is an 8 gig flash drive attached to my car key chain along with a large, red, aluminum, engraved medic alert logo. This flash drive has three redundant files in different formats (Word doc, RTF, and PDF) containing my medical history, medical imagery, prescription list, emergency contact information, a copy of my health insurance card, allergy information, and other relevant important information that may be useful in a medical emergency. The reason for the triple redundancy using the different file formats is that regardless of the type of computer or operating system used by emergency medical personnel or a hospital emergency room, at least one of the formats will be readable when needed.

The other method I have been using for a few years is the much vaunted Google Health (health.google.com), which I had previously written about in this column. I had been very satisfied with this free service offered by Google, where I tracked my vital signs, prescriptions, office visits, medical history, lab results, and other medical information. While Google securely stored my information, I did set it up such that my family could access it in the event of an emergency and share the information with appropriate health care professionals. When recently updating my Google Health information, I was chagrined to find that Google is discontinuing this service. A large red banner on the Google Health website announced "An important update about Google Health", followed by, "Google Health will be discontinued as a service. The product will continue service through January 1, 2012. After this date, you will no longer be able to view, enter or edit data stored in Google Health. You will be able to download the data you stored in Google Health, in a number of useful formats, through January 1, 2013." Since I have been using Google Health, like the idea of secure online access to personal medical health records, and had a lot of information stored there, I felt that it would be necessary to find an alternative resource, and found Microsoft's competing product, Microsoft Health Vault.

Microsoft is promoting its free Health Vault service (http://www.healthvault.com) as "A trusted place for people to organize, store, and share health information online." Microsoft is also explicitly targeting Google Health users with the statement, "As Google Health retires their service, you can transfer your information to Microsoft Health Vault." Microsoft has pledged to keep the information secure, and not to use the information for the purposes of creating personalized ads or the marketing of services without the explicit permission of the user. For those using smart phones and other mobile devices, a mobile version of Health Vault is accessible, enhancing access to the system. Many of us consider our health history and records as highly personal, and may have totally valid concerns about the security of our online medical records. Microsoft Health Vault says, " It's your Health Vault record. You decide what goes into it, who can see, use, and share your info, and which health tools have access to it."

Some may wonder why secured online medical records are necessary, or even useful. As federal mandates for electronic medical records become more widely implemented, paper records will become somewhat obsolete. If anyone has ever gone to a new doctor or specialist, you are well aware of the often lengthy medical questionnaire that the new patient is required to fill out. While there may be a medical necessity for the physician to have that information, our personal memories are often inadequate and inaccurate when trying to recall complete and detailed information. Recently, in my primary care physician's office, the nurse asked me when I had my most recent tetanus shot and some other vaccines, as I have used some other resources for periodic vaccines, now that flu shots and other vaccines are given in a multitude of convenient and non-traditional locations. I had a flu shot in the college gym, and another immunization at my local supermarket pharmacy! I had dutifully recorded the injections in my Google Health records, and could rapidly produce accurate information using my smart phone to access my records.

Microsoft Health Vault offers a variety of free services to the consumer, as well as commercial services to health care providers. Using Health Vault my prescription information, refills, and changes can be automatically tracked, as several of the major drug store chains (CVS Caremark, CVS Pharmacy, Walgreens) are interconnected with Health Vault. Since many of us may obtain prescriptions from multiple sources, Health Vault can help identify potentially dangerous drug interactions and side effects, as well as make your prescription information available to those of your choice. Health Vault offers a convenient method to share data about chronic conditions, such as blood pressure, blood sugar, weight, and other information with your doctor. It is important to remember that the individual has complete control over who can access the information, and what specific information each can access.

It is easy and free for an individual to open a Health Vault account. If you already have a Windows Live, Hotmail, Xbox or MSN account, you have immediate access to a Health Vault account, as they use the same username and password. Facebook users also have instant access, as Health Vault can be accessed via the users' existing Facebook username and password by clicking on the Facebook icon in Health Vault. For users with none of these existing accounts, creating a new account is a simple process. Once connected, and some personal questions answered, the user is greeted with the main page where a variety of options are displayed. Across the top of the page are five links that lead the user to additional categories of personal information. The "About You" link is where the user can enter and update information on medications (prescription and non-prescription, including vitamins, herbs, supplements, etc.), allergies, and current health conditions. Family medical histories, documents, immunizations, lab test results, blood sugar, blood pressure, weight, emergency contacts, provider listings, and other information can be added or amended through this link. The " Health Tools" link opens a comprehensive listing of health information resources and agencies that participate in the Health Vault service, as well as medical devices that can upload data into the Health Vault. Among the participants in the "Health Tools" are the American Cancer Society, the American Diabetes Association, Aetna, Epilepsy Diary, H1N1 Response Center, American Heart Association, American Stroke Association, iGuard (drug interaction service), Quest Diagnostics (import lab results into Health Vault), Mayo Clinic, CVS, Caremark, Minute Clinic, Walgreens, and dozens of other resources. Medical devices, some of which may be interconnected with Health Vault, include AND (blood pressure machines and other devices), Bayer blood glucose meters, LifeScan (Johnson & Johnson) blood sugar monitoring devices, MicroLife asthma and blood pressure devices, Omron blood pressure devices, and many other devices. The "Family" link can be used to add family members to Health Vault; it is important to note that each family member's information is contained in his own personal record. The "Contact List" can be used to add or edit emergency contacts and health care provider information. "Stories" is where the user can read stories about how others have used Health Vault.

On the right margin of the main page is an icon for "Sharing". This icon leads to a page where, "You control access to your health information. Use Sharing to decide which people or online health tools can access selected types of information in your Health Vault record." Under the heading "Authorized people" is where the user can,

"Let family members or others you trust view or update information in your Health Vault record." This is where I have my wife and my adult children listed as approved family members, such that they can access my information in an emergency situation. The link to share information with your health care provider allows the user to print selected information from Health Vault, utilize the online tools to prepare for an upcoming office visit or hospitalization, or to connect to the users' physician's electronic medical records if his system is compatible with Health Vault.

There is a commercial side to Health Vault as Microsoft is actively marketing compatible software and utilities to physicians, hospitals, and other healthcare providers. For hospitals and clinics, Microsoft states, " Using Health Vault, patients can share their health history and information with your organization or specific physicians. This serves to improve the patient/provider relationship and can also streamline the admissions and discharge processes." For individual physicians, " Microsoft Health Vault means easier access to a broader range of information from patients that can help you provide better service and more efficient, informed care. You can also share information more easily with your patients, enabling patients to make more informed health decisions every day." Other Microsoft applications are available to medical device manufacturers, and other healthcare companies and organizations in order to seamlessly integrate with Health Vault.

While there are a variety of lesser known companies trying to take up the slack in personal medical record keeping, especially with the upcoming demise of Google Health, Microsoft, with its scale and reputation, may become the primary provider of such services.

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