Cisco is walking the walk in health-care tech. More than 40,000 company employees will be able use the company’s own videoconferencing technology to enable virtual physician visits. Working in conjunction with Walgreens, Cisco’s LifeConnections health center at the company headquarters in San Jose will offer primary care, physical therapy, chiropractic care, acupuncture, vision care, health coaching and an onsite Walgreens pharmacy. The center can also be accessed by 3,600 employees at a Cisco campus in North Carolina, who will be able to consult with medical professionals not only via video but also by using Web 2.0-enabled tools that are all part of the Cisco HealthPresence System. Cisco is also working with insurer UnitedHealth Group to create a nationwide health-information network that might offer a route to reduced health-care costs, certainly the goal of any big employer. Cisco and UnitedHealth Group tested the system in a pilot with more than 300 Cisco employees over a seven-month period in 2009. At headquarters, the LifeConnections health center will be staffed by 30 medical professionals. "We are taking a holistic view of health and wellness and providing employees with the ability to easily and safely connect with doctors and clinicians across great distance," said Dr. Nirmal Patel, director of Corporate Medical Programs at Cisco, in a statement. Cisco Employees Will Get Videoconference Access to Health Care
Cisco is walking the walk in health-care tech. More than 40,000 company employees will be able use the company’s own videoconferencing technology to enable virtual physician visits. Working in conjunction with Walgreens, Cisco’s LifeConnections health center at the company headquarters in San Jose will offer primary care, physical therapy, chiropractic care, acupuncture, vision care, health coaching and an onsite Walgreens pharmacy. The center can also be accessed by 3,600 employees at a Cisco campus in North Carolina, who will be able to consult with medical professionals not only via video but also by using Web 2.0-enabled tools that are all part of the Cisco HealthPresence System. Cisco is also working with insurer UnitedHealth Group to create a nationwide health-information network that might offer a route to reduced health-care costs, certainly the goal of any big employer. Cisco and UnitedHealth Group tested the system in a pilot with more than 300 Cisco employees over a seven-month period in 2009. At headquarters, the LifeConnections health center will be staffed by 30 medical professionals. "We are taking a holistic view of health and wellness and providing employees with the ability to easily and safely connect with doctors and clinicians across great distance," said Dr. Nirmal Patel, director of Corporate Medical Programs at Cisco, in a statement. 