| BUSINESSWEEK ONLINE : DECEMBER 11, 2000 ISSUE | ||||||||
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| BUSINESS WEEK E.BIZ -- SPECIAL REPORT
In Search of Doctor-San (int'l edition) Before CareNet, Japan's hospitals needed weeks to match patients with specialists We've been through B2B and B2C. Now there's H2H: hospital-to-hospital communication. CareNet Inc., Japan's first Internet health-care business, is trying to wire the nation's hospitals, clinics, and doctors into a single network that can quickly route patients to the right place. With Japan's population aging rapidly and its public health-care sector bleeding red ink, the country is counting on ventures such as CareNet to deliver much-needed Internet efficiencies. CareNet's Internet network is the brainchild of Motoyasu Ohno, a former stockbroker and consultant who spent two years as chief administrator of seven private hospitals. It was during his health-care stint that Ohno discovered a mind-boggling fact: Hospitals that wanted to refer patients to another facility were spending as long as three weeks finding beds or specialists for their patients. So in 1996, Ohno founded CareNet, which initially channeled information to busy doctors, nurses, and administrators via a subscriber-only satellite television show. Last year, Ohno revamped the business with the help of co-CEO Naoya Takuma, a former heavyweight at Boston Consulting Group Inc. who had years of U.S. experience. With a $1.3 million government seed grant, Ohno launched a pilot project to connect hospitals in Yokohama over the Internet. The trial was a huge success, in part because of changes in how the Japanese government reimburses hospitals under the national health-care plan. For years, the reimbursement encouraged big hospitals to treat a wide variety of patients for as long as possible, an approach that drained the public health system as Japan's population aged. To stem the torrent of health-care spending, the government slashed per-patient hospital payments in early 2000 and began reimbursing hospitals for every patient they referred to less expensive rehab centers, clinics, and private doctors. This change played directly into CareNet's hands. Hospital administrators began frantically searching for up-to-date information about other hospitals and clinics. Using CareNet's Search Plus Internet Web site, these officials found that, in seconds, they could search through more than 200 hospitals, clinics, and doctors in Yokohama and Tokyo. Not only could they look for specialists who treated specific diseases, but they could also locate the nearest hospital with an available bed and staff that had the required expertise. More than 100 hospitals signed up for CareNet's services during the pilot phase. Of those, 80% were so pleased that they continued to subscribe when CareNet started charging a $465 monthly fee in June, 2000. Since then, 100 more hospitals, clinics, and doctor's offices have joined. The new system is a blessing for Shinichi Majima, who is in charge of networking Yokohama Central Hospital with other hospitals in the area. The 20-year veteran says specialized health-care facilities are scarce. For example, Yokohama Central specializes in treating cardiovascular disease, but not enough hospitals and patients know about its services. ''It's crucial that we use the Internet to let patients and local medical institutions know about what we do,'' Majima says. Today, CareNet employs 200 people, and expects to bring in $10 million in sales this fiscal year. But for the company to succeed, it must keep adding clinics and hospitals to its network. The company has already launched a version of its site on NTT DoCoMo's wireless service, so people with medical problems can check hospital availability on their cell phones. And it plans to add other new features, such as software for booking doctors' appointments and reserving hospital beds. Because only 30% of Japan's hospitals have Internet connections, CareNet will also have to get into the Net-education business. But Ohno and Takuma believe these are easy burdens to shoulder if they lead to a more reliable health-care system--or a business bonanza. By KEN BELSON _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ BACK TO TOP |
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 e.biz Contents for Dec. 11, 2000 issue INTERACT E-Mail to Business Week Online | |||
