Christiana Care health records available through Apple

Dr. Edmondo J. Robinson

Christiana Care Health System on Feb. 25 announced a partnership with Apple to make patient health records available on iPhones.

The Apple Health app serves as a digital platform for health records provided by partnering institutions. The app covers allergies, conditions, immunizations, lab results, medications, procedures and vitals. All data is encrypted for protection. Users receive notifications when data is updated.

“Health Records on iPhone is a powerful tool to support patients in their care,” said”¯Edmondo J. Robinson, M.D., MBA, FACP, chief transformation officer and senior vice president for Consumerism at Christiana Care. “This is a catalyst for”¯important conversations between patients and health care providers.”

Apple first launched the service back in January 2018. John Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore and Penn Medicine in Philadelphia were among the early adopters. Since then, about 200 health care systems have signed on.

“I think what Apple is providing is pretty unique,” said Robinson. “What Apple is offering is so consumer-facing and integrated into your mobile device.”

In the past, medical records were held in multiple locations. Patients had to log”¯into each provider’s website and piece together the information manually.”¯Christiana Care, for instance, offered health care data through its own patient portal. It was also among the first in the nation to provide physician notes in the open records.

“In our digital world, we are meeting our patients’ expectations that their health records should be available to them as readily as their newsfeeds, videos and social media,” said Randy Gaboriault, MS, chief information officer and senior vice president for Innovation”¯and Strategic Development at Christiana Care. “Health Records on iPhone”¯puts the ownership of health records where”¯it belongs”¯”“ with the patient.”

Robinson stressed transparency as central to the effort.

“It’s not really our data,” he said. “It’s the patient’s data.”