Entrepreneurship Grant Award

Patient Practitioners

Under the Entrepreneurship Grant program, Patient Practitioners was awarded $48,334, matched by $100,000.

Headquartered in rural Chipley, Patient Practitioners was founded in 2003 and received the Florida Governor’s Business Diversification Award in 2006. Patient Practitioners’ primary product is the individual Personal Health Electronic Record (iPHER), a credit card-sized USB device that can be loaded with a patient’s medical records. With the help of Patient Practitioners’ patent pending software, individuals can enter medical records into the portable device. In addition, the iPHER has the capacity to accommodate CAT scans, echo cardiograms and x-rays. It is available in four sizes up to more than four gigabytes.

The iPHER allows patients to take records with them when changing doctors or health systems as well as when traveling. The device can translate medical records into numerous languages, including English, Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic, Chinese, German and French. Patient Practitioners is currently selling the iPHER in the U.S., United Arab Emirates, Malaysia and Brazil.

Internet connectivity is not required to access the iPHER, which works on any computer with a Windows operating system. While all information is maintained on the portable device, Patient Practitioners does provide customers with Internet backup of all records in case an iPHER is lost or destroyed.

The patient-centric system has an easy to use interface and employs common language used by medical professionals worldwide. New information can be added to the iPHER at any time, and a link allows compatible hospitals and doctor’s offices to upload records with the click of a button.

“It is my hope to make the iPHER available to every person in the world to reduce medical errors, eliminate healthcare literacy problems and eliminate duplication of services so that we can promote wellness,” explains Naomi Melvin, Ph.D., founder and President of Patient Practitioners.