ServiceLink Background

The ServiceLink project was starting in 2005 by the Community Network Service Group at Ricoh Innovations to investigate how to research and and develop new knowledge-based services.
Unlike technology prototypes which can be demonstrated in a lab, new services can only be demonstrated in the real world. (Imagine trying to demonstrate and test a new way of teaching without actually interacting with students.)
Our project goals were modest:

• identify a social service provider that was facing common challenges
• engage the provider in a participatory design process to improve their current work practices
• include others in the "service supply chain"

After a broad review of the field and interviews with providers in many different industries, we chose a community-based provider of child and family services. In conjunction with them we identified simple, secure document sharing as a target area.
Everyone agreed that the paperwork overhead was detracting from their ability to provide services. Better, more timely access to information would not only reduce costs but also improve the quality of care.

Fielded Prototype

In the end, we did demonstrate a system that no one could have imagined upfront. We showed a proof of concept that the service can work in real world situations and radically simplify many steps of their work practice while keeping them in control.
Key Points

Immunization Form Token

• No need to change existing paper or digital system/processes.
• No common format or centralized administration required for the sharing of records.
• Records are portable, but safe, using the same encryption techniques employed by banks.

Since Service Link does not require common file formats or centralized databases, it is adaptable to many environments. It does not require significant process or workflow changes, and is compatible with virtually any existing record-keeping and documentation system. This flexibility, and the relatively small investment in hardware and set-up, make Service Link very scalable in virtually any environment or setting needing to share documents across different departments, offices, or entities. A joint study by Harvard Medical School and the Canadian Institute for Health Information, completed in 2003, estimated that $294 billion was spent in the US in 1999 for administrative costs related to healthcare. The Center for Information Technology Leadership estimated net savings from technology that enables the electronic flow of information among healthcare organizations, at $78 billion annually, or about 5% of total US healthcare expenditures annually. Service Link has tremendous potential to make significant inroads in the push to convert administrative healthcare spending to spending on care.