Saginaw Township group develops software to diagnose medical conditions, predicts errors

by Jill Armentrout | The Saginaw News

Saturday May 24, 2008, 5:21 PM

As patients' medical records move from paper to computer, new software that Robertson Research Institute in Saginaw Township created could help doctors diagnose disease digitally.

It also would help people in developing countries by focusing on symptoms where patients often languish for even the most remedial medical care.

After four years in development -- including study through Central Michigan University and field testing in India, Africa and the Dominican Republic -- Robertson Technologies released NxOpinion 3.0 in January. Its medical database includes 500 diseases, and creators can customize the software to match specific conditions in developing countries.

"We can customize for different regions in a country, different prevalences of disease," said Dr. Joel C. Robertson, chief executive officer.

The company, which has offices at 4215 Fashion Square and in Grand Rapids, sold a version of its new "clinical decision support" software to a health care group in Saudi Arabia, and is in negotiations for more sales around the world, he said.

Dubai-based Elaj Group, one of the largest medical care providers in that part of the world, formed a partnership with Robertson Technologies to distribute the software through its 17 hospitals and centers in the Middle East and North Africa.

"The joint venture of these two companies will not only enhance our current healthcare delivery system, but NxOpinion will allow us to enhance the quality of care provided throughout the entire region and in areas we couldn't reach before," said Dr. Mahamed Amin chief executive officer of the Elaj Group.

The next venture will involve a deal with the Indian government to bring the software to India, where millions depend on rural health workers to provide care. Even without extensive training, NxOpinion will help these caregivers diagnose ailments, Robertson said.

The software works like a survey. A screen appears that asks several questions -- age, gender, location and symptoms -- then gives the patient's diagnosis and recommends a remedy. Programmers at Microsoft helped translate the material into computer language. It isn't Web-dependent.

Versions 4.0 and 5.0 are in development for physicians and medical students to use along with personal health records in making decisions and reducing errors to improve the quality of care.

"We have companies who make electronic record software here, but none with clinical decision support," he said. "No one has figured out how to do it before this. ... We can use the software in this country to improve quality and efficiency of care, reduce costs and improve diagnostic accuracy. Ours in the only software than predict a mistake."

He expects to start marketing these versions in the United States by 2009.

"Our software brings the diagnostic data together with electronic medical records to interpret it and run in the background," said Dr. Del DeHart of Thomas Township, medical director for Robertson Technologies and an infectious disease specialist who has worked with St. Mary's of Michigan hospital and Synergy Medical Education Alliance, both in Saginaw.

Doctors, nurses and nurse practitioners from mid-Michigan are part of the team that developed the medical database behind the software -- including Dr. B. Babu Paidipaty, director of Critical Care and Respiratory therapy at St. Mary's and Dr. Ramakrishnayya Gadam, chairman of St. Mary's radiology department. There are 24 employees who constantly update the programs, officials said. Other consultants work in other countries, helping translate the system for different cultures and languages.

Robertson plans to sell the software to countries and markets able to purchase the software, then use the profits to send the program to regions that can't afford it, such as sub-Saharan Africa or Haiti. The package would include either a laptop computer or a pocket PC with the software installed.

Robertson, who lives in Kochville Township and has a background in neuropharmacology, initiated this effort in 2003 after a friend came to him, questioning why his 21-year-old son died despite the efforts of several doctors. The answer: He was misdiagnosed.

Some 100,000 people die annually in the United States because of misdiagnosis, the Institute of Medicine reports.

Sheila Szczepanski, a Frankenmuth registered nurse and medical team manager for Robertson, said the company expects demand for the software to require growth in staff "almost immediately."

They plan to keep the research and development center in Saginaw Township, part of the expanding medical community, she said.