Absolutely brilliant idea but woah nellie...

From MedGadget comes this story of something very cool that could be a potential major fustercluck:

Practice Fusion Wants to Disrupt EMR Market
Practice Fusion is a new web-based electronic medical records and practice management software available to all US physicians. Unlike other EMR solutions that often cost thousands of dollars to install and maintain (on top of being proprietary and bulky), Practice Fusion is free, thanks to its ad-supported business model.

Ryan Howard, CEO of Practice Fusion, explains to Medgadget:

The offering is unique in the marketplace, because it is completely free and web-based, eliminating all of the risks for physicians, making Practice Fusion one of the fastest growing medical professional communities in the country.

We generate revenue by embedding advertising, including pharmaceutical products, into our physician tools.

And then Ron drops this little bomb into the picture:

We also incur revenue through the sale of anonymized patient data to research groups, pharmaceuticals, and health plans.

So yes, MDs get a comprehensive package for free comparable to dedicated software that could cost several thousands in licensing and maintenance fees; and yes, Medical companies get the inside track to pushed advertising; and yes, the research groups and pharma and health plans have access to up to the second data (and not some survey conducted three years ago that everyone else has data-mined to oblivion)... But... The potential for abuse is incredible. A software glitch, an employee susceptible to bribery, a set of backup tapes left on the seat of a car and whammo -- you have a huge opportunity for breach of confidence. Clever idea on one hand but rather not on the other. Plus, if a construction excavator severs the fiber optic line for your area, you are down for the count. For days. This happened earlier this year in parts of Bellingham. At the store, I have Comcast Business Service (premium broadband Terms Of Service) and we are still down for a couple hours, couple times/year. With installed software, you can continue working with a battery backup.