Polycom, Carousel Collaborate on New Video Healthcare Service
Video collaboration vendor Polycom (POLY) has teamed with Carousel, an IT solutions provider based in Exeter, R.I., and NuPhysicia, a Houston-headquartered caseload management software developer, to craft a new video-based healthcare solution to help medical professionals do their jobs more effectively.
Video collaboration vendor Polycom (POLY) has teamed with Carousel, an IT solutions provider based in Exeter, R.I., and NuPhysicia, a Houston-headquartered caseload management software developer, to craft a new video-based healthcare solution to help medical professionals do their jobs more effectively.
The partners said that with an expected dramatic rise in the number of patients requiring health services, practitioners and facilities need new tools to manage the demand and efficiently allocate resources.
The trio, led by project-leader Carousel, are calling the new service DistribuCare and describing it as a “telehealth” offering—the technology puts patients in a virtual waiting room before visiting with a doctor or nurse over video within the healthcare organizations’ telehealth network. In effect, the solution enables physicians with fewer patients in one virtual location to see patients in a busier location.
The DistribuCare solution combines Carousel's healthcare integration expertise, NuPhysicia’s caseload management software and Polycom’s enterprise-class video solutions, and aims to improve resource allocation and boost revenue in clinical settings. The partners said the service helps healthcare professionals to coordinate care within a hospital, urgent care facility, retail pharmacy or an employee healthcare network.
Carousel, which specializes in managed services and technology integration and supports sites for Quest Diagnostics, Connecticut Children’s Medical Center and BlueCross BlueShield, said the telehealth solution suits the needs of modern medicine.
“Carousel created DistribuCare with its partners to address the changing needs of healthcare providers,” said James Marsh, Carousel senior vice president. “Medical experts are preparing for an enormous increase in patient caseloads as more people in the U.S. gain access to health insurance. DistribuCare enables medical networks to better manage this rising demand for health care, while providing for a faster and efficient experience for their patients.”
Polycom, which works with a number of hospitals in the United States, offered that the DistribuCare solution supplies “healthcare providers and retail pharmacies with a best-in-class telehealth solution that enables them to bring care to patients regardless of location,” according to Ron Emerson, Polycom Healthcare global director.
And, NuPhysicia President Dr. Glenn Hammack called the DistribuCare bundle an “unprecedented array of comprehensive services to the healthcare industry.”
The partnering companies said the DistribuCare solution is built to allow an organization’s telehealth offering to expand and scale over time, takes into account all federal and state laws and HIPAA requirements, and is available immediately.
