Vendor Profile: Novari

Product Overview

Service Lines:

Novari Health offers a number of products that allow patients to navigate the healthcare system, and products span the continuum of care. Novari eVisit™is a virtual care solution that enables secure messaging, audio, and video virtual visits.

In today’s virtual age, and with the expectations of both physicians and patients, the Novari eVisit™ software allows patients, within the public healthcare system, virtual access to a health care provider. From both mobile and desktop devices, this “wait 0” system uses secure instant messaging, voice and video conferencing to improve access to care when clinically appropriate.

Virtual access to care is efficient and convenient for both providers and patients. Prescriptions and referrals can be initiated from the Novari eVisit system and a detailed report is generated from every virtual visit.

Key Features:

Novari offers a number of features and benefits, including:

• Increase Access – Empower care providers to improve access for their patients. Optionally, the module can be configured to allow patients to see their own clinician and/or the next available provider in a local “virtual waiting room”.
• Physician & Patient Convenience – The module is designed to be convenient for both clinicians and patients. Clinicians can decide when and how often they see patients virtually. When clinically appropriate, patients no longer need to physically visit their doctor’s office but rather can “see the doctor” from the convenience of their desktop or mobile device.
• Enhanced Physician – Patient Communication – Send and receive secure instant messages, voice and video communication from both mobile and desktop devices.
• ePrescriptions & Requisitions – The clinician can quickly generate PDF based prescriptions, lab & imaging requisitions along with outcome reports and charting notes.
• Charting & Continuity of Care – Physicians can chart the visit in their existing electronic medical record system (EMR) or choose to chart the virtual visit directly in the Novari eVisit module. In some jurisdictions, once a visit is completed, the clinician’s charting notes and all attachments are provided in an outcome report that can be automatically sent to the patient’s primary care provider or directly into the physician’s EMR.

Other Services:

In addition to Novari eVisit™, the Novari Access to Care™ software platform is an integrated system consisting of a series of software modules:

• Novari eRequest™ (eReferral, central intake, eConsult, coordinated care, workflow management)
• Novari Medical Imaging Requisition Management (paperless requisition workflow management for medical imaging)
• Novari ATC™ (electronic request for admission (eRFA), surgical wait list management, wait times, pre-operative)
• Novari Order Entry™ (transmission of internal pharmacy orders to pharmacy)
• Novari Provider Relationship Management™
• Novari Cardiac Services Referral Management™ (electronically manage cardiac services referrals and workflows)

Jurisdiction:

Novari products and services are available across Canada.

Functionality

Secure Messaging:

As secure messaging is the dominant mode of communication in virtual care, with providers and patients preferring this mode of communication for virtual visits by an 85% margin.  Novari eVisit ensures that this form of communication is consistent with the experience users expect from chat applications.

The chat interface appears in a “timeline” view where the user can see not only the chat messages, but notable events such as the acceptance of the chat request by the provider, and the attaching of documents to the record.  All chat entries are timestamped for convenience, and the provider can easily view the patient’s case details.  The provider can seamlessly transition to a video visit if desired.

Secure messaging is currently only available between the provider and patient and provider to provider messaging is not available.

Secure Video:

Face to face visits are a key facet of Novari eVisit’s functionality.  Calls can be made and received from any mobile or desktop device with a connected webcam.  When providers have accepted a request for a video visit, they may initiate the visit at any time, including the ability to transition to a video visit from secure chat.

From the interface, users have standard video controls including the ability to change the active camera (front or rear facing), hide the video, mute, and end the call.  The provider can also access the patient’s chart while the call is in progress and make any required notes while keeping the video visit active.

Scheduling:

Novari eVisit was designed to be a natural extension to the processes which already take place within the EMR, including schedule.  The expectation is that providers will continue to schedule patients as they would any other appointment (assuming the request is a video appointment at a particular time).  Novari eVisit can be used to transmit appointment confirmations, if desired, for appointments scheduled in the physician EMR. 

Visit Triage:

Novari eVisit supports the ability to create a virtual waiting room with facilitated triage.  Nurses or other professionals may triage patients and increase or decrease their priority within the queue.

Integration:

Novari eVisit can import client lists from external EMRs in order to populate patient contact information for the purpose of patient enrolment.  This feature works with any EMR capable of producing such an export.  Further, Novari has recently entered into a relationship with Telus to produce enhanced integration between all Telus EMRs (PS Suite, Med Access, etc.) with the Novari Access to Care software platform.  With leadership from the B.C. Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA) Novari is currently integrating to QHR/Accurro, Plexia and other EMR solutions.

Privacy & Security

Overview:

Novari Health has extensive experience in not only developing solutions which meet rigorous privacy and security standards, but in assisting customers in navigating the serious pitfalls which can derail projects and cost clients.

From a privacy and security perspective, clients can be reassured by Novari’s audited ISO 27001 certification that were meet tough international best practice standards when it comes to protecting client’s sensitive data.

As part of this certification, a wide variety of privacy and security controls and safeguards are in place:

• All sensitive Novari Health information, including customer information, is stored in the Microsoft Azure cloud.
• The Microsoft Azure cloud is audited annually against SOC 1/SSAE16 and SOC 2/AT Section 101 and ISAE 3402 standards.
• On a daily ongoing basis, Novari Health monitors Azure Security Center to be alerted to potential threats to network and systems infrastructure.
• All staff undergo rigorous security and privacy training.
• Staff with privileged access undergo additional training to discuss specific controls and procedures which must be undertaken specific to their level of access.

Compliance Achieved:

Novari Health is ISO 27001 certified, giving clients a level of comfort that their information assets are secure.  ISO 27001 formally specifies an Information Security Management System (ISMS), a suite of activities concerning the management of information risks.  The ISMS is an overarching management framework through which the Novari Health identifies, analyzes and addresses its information risks.

In addition, Novari eVisit has been reviewed to be compliant with all applicable privacy laws across Canada.

Location of Servers:

Canada – Toronto and Quebec City.

Privacy/Compliance Training Available:

Novari Health does provide additional privacy and compliance training upon request.

Workflow Considerations

Approach:

The implementation of Novari eVisit has been been designed to:

• Empower physicians and other providers to improve access for their patients. Optionally, the module can be configured to allow patients to see their own physician and/or the next available physician in a local “virtual waiting room”.
• Increase convenience for both providers and patients. Physicians can decide when and how often they see patients virtually. When clinically appropriate, patients no longer need to physically visit their doctor’s office but rather can “see the doctor” from the convenience of their desktop or mobile device.
• Reduce costs and overhead associated with in-person visits.
• Increase access to care.
• Improve chronic disease management, specifically by easing the process of post-surgical follow-ups or for medication reconciliation after hospital discharge.