As a medical doctor, I’m concerned about many aspects of the changes taking place in health care.
But I’m also excited, because we have the opportunity to make health care a lot better. It’s a chance to change to a system of keeping individuals healthy, rather than performing procedures for payment. We can improve individuals’ health by creating a smarter health care system that uses comprehensive information technology.
Things need to improve. U.S. health care spending has risen sharply, adding up to nearly $2.6 trillion in 2010, which is 10 times more than we spent in1980 and more than 50% higher than any other country. The costs threaten to make the U.S. uncompetitive.
And all that spending isn’t buying great results. The Commonwealth Fund’s third national health care scorecard last year found that the U.S. ranks last out of 16 developed countries when it comes to deaths that could have been prevented by effective medical care.
One reason is that the U.S. is behind in information technology systems for health care, according to the Commonwealth Fund’s research. Even though the U.S. is the world’s leader in computer systems and software, our huge health care system lacks sophisticated electronic systems. READ FULL ARTICLE ON HUFF POST

Paul Grundy, MD, Global Director of Healthcare Transformation for IBM, served as the keynote speaker at the Virginia Chamber’s Virginia Health Care Conference on June 7 in Richmond. Nationally recognized as a leader in health reform, Dr. Grundy’s remarks focused on creating a smarter health system through comprehensive, integrated care and the use of information technology.