Carolina Family Practice and Sports Medicine Optimizes Patient Communication With Patient Portal

Offering Intuit Health's Patient-to-Provider Solutions Makes Secure Online Communication Convenient for Patients

Contact:

Chris Repetto
Intuit Health
650-944-2641
Chris_Repetto@intuit.com

Heather Silverberg
Access Communications for Intuit Health
917-522-3503
hsilverberg@accesspr.com

Raleigh, N.C. - Oct. 4, 2010- From the comfort of their home and on their own time, 40,000 patients from Carolina Family Practice and Sports Medicine's (CFP&SM) Raleigh and Cary locations can now communicate with their doctor securely and easily through an innovative self-service online communication solution. By offering a patient portal from Intuit Health, the industry leader of patient-to-provider solutions, CFP&SM patients are now able to pre-register, request appointments, pay bills, and ask their nurse a question right from the newly redesigned CFP&SM website.

"Since we are already early adopters of an electronic medical record system, it made perfect sense for us to add Intuit Health's online patient portal technology to enable our patients to connect with us anytime from anywhere," said Shilpa Kothari, CFP&SM practice manager. "As a practice that's committed to the Patient-Centered Medical Home, the patient portal will help us address all nine requirements of those standards."

The ability to complete paperwork online in advance of an appointment is more efficient for patients and providers alike. It keeps patients from having to arrive at their appointment a half-hour early and helps providers cut costs and increase efficiencies. Early results show that CFP&SM patients are appreciating this new online option. More than 500 patients have registered monthly since the practice began offering this service in March.

"Staff anxiety about adopting new technology quickly waned once they saw how intuitive and easy the portal is to use," Kothari added. "Intuit has done such a good job at communicating this new service to patients that we really haven't had to make any formal announcement - we're thrilled with our patient utilization in such a short period of time."

Intuit Health's patient-to-provider communication solutions extend the value of an electronic health record to give patients timely electronic access to their health information, and will help providers qualify for the final federal regulations for Meaningful Use.

Americans increasingly want online assistance for their health care needs. A 2010 Intuit Health survey showed that 72 percent of respondents between the ages 18-65 would use an online tool that would help them pay their medical bills, communicate with their doctor more easily, make appointments and get lab results. Eighty-four percent said they would complete their medical forms online before their doctor's appointment if they had that option.

For more information about Intuit Health provider-patient solutions, please visit www.intuithealth.com.

About Carolina Family Practice and Sports Medicine

Carolina Family Practice and Sports Medicine (CFP&SM) is a 12-provider medical practice located in Raleigh and Cary, N.C., with new offices opening this fall in Holly Springs, N.C. CFP&SM is unique in that it is believably the only practice in the country where all physicians are board certified in both family practice and sports medicine. CFP&SM's dedicated group of physicians and staff provide comprehensive primary, preventive, and sports medicine health care services to patients of all ages and athletes of all skill levels. Their goal is to help their patients achieve optimum well-being through education, anticipatory guidance and strategic medical interventions. For more information, please visit www.cfpsm.com.

About Intuit Health

Intuit Health improves health care by developing groundbreaking clinical, administrative and financial services that connect providers and patients. We've combined Intuit's legendary approach to simplifying complex tasks with Medfusion's expertise in provider-patient communications. The result: It's easier than ever to understand and pay your medical bills, get lab results, schedule appointments, and give patients timely electronic access to their health information. Learn more at: www.intuithealth.com

Intuit and the Intuit logo, Intuit Health, among others, are registered trademarks and/or registered service marks of Intuit Inc. in the United States and other countries. Other parties' trademarks or service marks are the property of their respective owners and should be treated as such.