E-health: the changing model of healthcare

E-health--any electronic exchange of healthcare data or information across organizations--reflects an industry in transition. Even as its form and structure continue to emerge, e-health is being used to change business and medical practices, affecting every facet of the American health experience. Business, medical, social, and technological factors are converging to make wide-scale, continuum-based care functionally achievable perhaps for the first time. The Internet clearly drives the development and adoption of e-health applications; standing alone, it has the reach, the infrastructure, and the acceptance to achieve widespread change. As the public grows increasingly Internet-enabled, healthcare organizations have an opportunity to cost-effectively reach a large part of the U.S. population. The sheer breadth of e-health, the many options available to healthcare organizations, and the relative immaturity of the applications in most areas make navigating the spectrum of possibilities a clear healthcare management challenge. Deciding how to incorporate the demand for e-health has extensive technological, organizational, managerial, and ethical implications.