Canadian Medical Association Launches Dedicated
Social Networking Site for Canadian Doctors
The CMA presents an early first look at Asklepios, an exciting new social network exclusively for physicians, medical students and residents in Canada. Asklepios is an online community that allows physicians to make new contacts, get advice from colleagues, and collaborate with physicians all over the country.
Canadian Medical Association Launches Dedicated
Social Networking Site for Canadian Doctors
Ottawa, Ontario – August 19, 2008 – Delegates at the Canadian Medical Association’s 141st Annual General Council will get a sneak-peak at the latest web-based innovation in Canadian health care: a new online social networking community called Asklepios that makes it easier for physicians from coast-to-coast to connect, share best practices, and learn from each other.
Designed and developed by the CMA exclusively for Canadian doctors, Asklepios functions as a secure physician community facilitating contact between experts and peers alike, irrespective of geographic location or practice specialty.
“Asklepios is an online doctors’ community,” said Dr. Brian Day, President of the CMA. “It helps connect physicians with their colleagues across the country, facilitates the sharing of best practices, and fosters a deeper sense of professional affiliation.”
The Asklepios online community is only open to Canadian physicians, residents and medical students and is securely hosted in Canada where data is protected. Asklepios uses the same authentication procedures as cma.ca, so unlike traditional forms of online communication, physicians can trust the security and privacy of information posted on Asklepios and be confident that the people they’re communicating with are Canadian physicians, validated by the CMA.
“Asklepios will be an invaluable tool for my practice, providing me access to the larger physician community including a variety of specialists from across the country who are able to share the latest cutting edge information,” said Lee Donohue, a physician from Ottawa and one of 135 physicians across Canada involved in the pilot testing of the network. “By drawing on the expertise of the wider community, Asklepios will help me improve the quality of care I am able to offer patients, particularly those living with chronic illnesses.”
Asklepios is bilingual, easy to use with a simple and intuitive interface, offering physicians a personalized profile page and access to groups and discussions, and live chat. Other applications will be rolled-out on an ongoing basis, drawing from the experience and feedback of physicians using it.
Named after the Greek god of medicine and healing, Asklepios is the latest innovative web-based solution designed by the CMA to improve physicians’ practices, following the release of the mydoctor.ca Health Portal in April.
About CMA
The Canadian Medical Association is a national, voluntary association that represents over 67,000 physicians across the country. The CMA advocates on behalf of its members and their patients for access to high quality health care. It also provides leadership and guidance to physicians.
About Practice Solutions
Practice Solutions, is the leading provider of end-to-end technology and practice management solutions for Canadian physicians, which includes its popular PS Suite™ software bundle that manages billing, scheduling and electronic medical records for a physician’s practice. We are also experts in consulting services, educational seminars, billing services, lease financing, web portals for physicians, such as cma.ca and the mydoctor.ca health portal, and the publisher of physician and patient-oriented magazines. Practice Solutions is headquartered in Ottawa and employs more than 160 professionals across the country.
Dr. Lee Donohue is a practicing family physician based in Ottawa, Ontario. She is an active member of the Ontario Medical Association and the past president of the Academy of Medicine Ottawa.
I have been using Asklepios since it was first piloted in April, 2008. Asklepios is easy to use and allows me to connect with other physicians, irrespective of geographic location or practice specialty. I use Asklepios to review clinical information posted on the website it allows me to read about what other Canadian physicians are doing and learn from their experiences.
Unlike other social media networks, Asklepios is a self-organizing physician community where physicians come together online to connect and share best practices. I can be sure of the quality and accuracy of the information on Asklepios as it is posted by CMA-validated physicians. This assurance gives me confidence that the information I read can help me provide the best quality of care for my patients.
Although Asklepios is still in its early phases, it has great potential to grow and become a strong resource for physicians across Canada.
Dr. Alan Brookstone
Dr. Alan Brookstone moved to Canada from South Africa in 1987 and spent 20 years working as a family physician in rural Saskatchewan and Richmond, British Columbia. He left his private practice in 2007 to focus on healthcare IT and e-health consulting. A partner in The ClearView Group, a Vancouver-based consultancy that works toward integration throughout the continuum of care, Dr. Brookstone also founded the CanadianEMR website, an Electronic Medical Records resource for the Canadian physician community.
I view technological solutions as an integral component of improving the efficiency of healthcare practice in Canada. Indeed, the move towards an e-health environment is one that supports greater interaction and giving physicians a wider range of tools and services that they can use to communicate with one another.
I believe that Asklepios will allow physicians to reestablish the bonds that they may be missing both with colleagues whom they have existing relationships with as well as identify others who may be in similar practice settings to their own. In essence, this interaction is important not only for professional development but also provides a mechanism for physicians to reduce isolation and improve satisfaction.
This is important because one of the big challenges we face in Canada is the loss of our physician workforce, who are either retiring or leaving practice to pursue other interests. Often such moves are spurred by fatigue and the workload and other demands of the job. I believe the value of Asklepios lies in its potential to create a higher level of satisfaction amongst the provider community which will positively impact the sustainability of clinical practice.
Harnessing the Power of Social Networking:
Built and managed by the CMA, Asklepios is a bilingual web-based social networking platform that makes it easier for physicians to connect, share best practices and learn from each other, irrespective of geographic location or practice specialty.
In providing access to the larger physician community from coast-to-coast, including a variety of specialists who are able to share the latest cutting edge information, Asklepios is an innovation in Canadian healthcare that has the potential to improve patient care and public health by enhancing collaborative opportunites for doctors.
The CMA also hopes that Asklepios will lead to a stronger physician community with a deeper sense of professional affiliation.
Functionality:
Asklepios is easy to use with a simple and intuitive interface that currently offers physicians a personalized profile page and access to groups and discussions, live chat and a blog. Other applications will be rolled-out on an ongoing basis based on feedback from physicians using the product.
Security:
Asklepios is only open to Canadian physicians, residents and medical students and is securely hosted in Canada where data is protected. Unlike traditional social networking sites, the CMA will validate each new member to ensure the community is confident that the people participating are who they say they are.
Physicians can trust the security of information posted to the network and be confident that the people they’re communicating with are Canadian physicians, validated by the CMA. Asklepios is accessible from the CMA’s website at cma.ca/asklepios
CMA Delivers for Canadian Physicians:
Named after the Greek god of medicine and healing, Asklepios is the CMA’s response to its physician membership who, during an extensive consultation process in late 2006, wanted to enhance collaborative and communication activities among physicians Asklepios is the latest innovative web-based solution designed by the CMA to improve physicians’ practices, following the release of the mydoctor.ca Health Portal in April.
Jay Mercer, MD - Jay Mercer currently divides his time between being a family physician in a fully automated office in Ottawa and being Medical Director of cma.ca, the Canadian Medical Association's Internet portal. He previously spent several years in a combined family medicine/emergency practice in a rural community. Jay has participated extensively on committees advocating the use of information technology in clinical practice for both the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long Term Care, and the Ontario Medical Association. Prior to becoming a doctor, Jay trained in strategic analysis and worked in the areas of data security, information systems and data management in both military and civilian environments. Known internationally as a leader in the practical use of handheld devices in patient care, he founded a company that developed handheld computer software for physicians. Jay speaks to physician groups across Canada and writes frequently about data security and confidentiality, handheld computing, and physician practice automation.
