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Tailoring Technology to Benefit You, the Patient
Peter G. Traber, M.D. Most people equate technology and depersonalization. At Baylor College of Medicine, we plan to use technology to make medicine more personal. What we call Personalized Medicine has three critical components: individualized care, quality and service. We plan to use the cutting edge of knowledge in genetics, science and information technology to make personalized medicine a reality for individual patients—people like you and me. In a sense, medicine has always been personal, reflecting that special relationship between physician and patient. Personalized medicine enhances that relationship. BCM's brand of personalized medicine starts with what differentiates you from the rest of the human race—your DNA or genetic blueprint that directs the structure of your body and how well it works. In the future, access to this blueprint will mean we can diagnose your problems sooner, prevent them when possible and tailor treatments specifically for you when we cannot forestall disease. Already, diagnostic tests based on your genome can identify illnesses as well as help doctors decide how you will respond to certain medications. This genome-based testing is becoming a reality, both scientifically and economically. For example, in 2003, an international consortium finished a 13-year, $3 billion project to sequence the entire human genome. As you will read in this issue of Solutions, BCM and a company called 454 Life Sciences delivered a personal genome sequence to Nobel Laureate James Watson on May 31. That sequence took two months and $1 million to complete. The costs and time will continue to decrease until this kind of information becomes available to everyone. However, our kind of personalized medicine makes use of an electronic health record that allows your physicians to understand your health problems and work together to improve the quality and efficiency of the care you receive. It also gives us access to data that will tell us when our treatments and the care we provided benefited you and when it did not. That will help us improve the quality of care deliver to you and thousands more in the future. Personalized medicine starts when you call the appointment desk at the Baylor Clinic. Using our electronic medical record and key staff training, we provide you with an appointment that best meets your needs. From then on, the process should be easy and tailored for you. As we are able to tailor your health care to you, we should be able to lower your own expenditures and cut the nation's medical bill as well. Baylor College of Medicine travels this new road with confidence that it is the right way to go. Medical schools should be leaders in researching better treatments and improvements in delivering health care. Baylor College of Medicine has led the way for more than a century, and we plan to break new ground in providing the best diagnosis, treatment and care benefiting the most important person in the health care arena—you, the patient. |
FeaturesNewsBCM Cancer Center One of Select Few SpotlightBert O'Malley: A Pioneer in Molecular Endocrinology Making Sense of the Sense of Touch Severe Skin Conditions Take a Back Seat at Camp Dermadillo Health Economist Must Put Price Tag on the Priceless Doctor Creates Cartoon that "Bugs" Kids About the Risks of Tobacco BriefsLiving Longer is Smelly Business Clinical Trials for Cancer Southward Bound Green Tea Component Blocks HIV Cell Entry Genetics Technique Takes Bite out of Research Barriers Sports Legends Lend Helping Hands, Arms to College Development & Alumni NewsMitchell Gift Furthers Brain Research Lambert Receives Lifetime Achievement Award Kleberg Foundation Gift Establishes RNAi Screening Core Facility Alumnus Named White House Fellow
Tailoring Technology to Benefit You, the Patient
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Volume 3, Issue 2, Summer 2007 |
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| Last modified: October 10, 2008 |