(NZTE: Christchurch, New Zealand) -- A new report by New Zealand Trade and Enterprise suggests that New Zealand can provide a valuable model for health policy makers and IT professionals seeking to reduce costs and increase the quality of health care in the United States and other nations. By strategically viewing health care as a continuum, from the patient to the care provider and community, and employing a range of new approaches and electronic health technologies, New Zealand has overcome many of the barriers to developing a truly integrated care service.

"The United States can learn much from New Zealand's decades of experience in developing and implementing electronic medical records and health IT systems and technology, which has helped make New Zealand a leader in overall quality of care delivery among OECD [Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development] nations," says John D. Halamka, M.D., the chief information officer of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, as well as the chief information officer at Harvard Medical School, and chairman of the New England Healthcare Exchange Network (NEHEN).

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