Meaningful healthcare reform requires a change in how we deliver care, not just how we pay for it.

The shortfalls in our current healthcare system can only be addressed by focusing on the efficiency, access, consistency, quality and value of the provided services themselves. The best long-term quality improvement and payment strategy is to optimize care delivery methods. Achieving improvements in efficiency, access, consistency, quality and value requires a shift in emphasis from bricks and mortar medicine to a re-distributed model of care that truly is centered around the needs and unique characteristics of the individual.

The Individual is the Medical Home

The individual must be able to access knowledge, medical records, diagnostic and management tools, resources etc., anywhere at anytime. He or she must be able to access clinicians and appropriate resources as needed and seamlessly share information with his or her care team as part of a health community.

But convenience, connectivity and access to records is not enough because these are dependent upon the knowledge, motivation and time available to individuals and clinicians.

This requires a new kind of tool to safely link all these activities together and help all the members of the community make the best decisions. A single tool that actively serves the needs of individuals, care teams, physicians, and health systems. A tool that can be delivered by cell phone, web browser, or desk top depending upon the need. Lifecom has that tool. We call it the Distributed Analytics, Reasoning and Educational System; DARES.