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Everyone's been watching the Olympics lately. Alright, maybe you haven't, but if you have access to the Internet and are reading this blog, you've at least heard it's happening. This is the time when we all gather round to watch people twist their bodies into positions we didn't think possible, marvel at performances that defy our imagination, and of course, experience the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.

My favorite win so far (besides the Canadians finally getting a gold on home soil) would have to be young J.R. Celski, who overcame a near crippling injury at last year's semifinals to take the bronze in the short track event. What a trooper. My heart goes out to snowboarder Lindsey Jacobellis: the press seemed determined to hound her all week, playing her 2006 Torino silver finish over and over and over again, and last night she was disqualified from moving forward. Please, reporters, move on to other people, and let the girl have some peace.

Back to the world of EHRs: General Electric has five Olympics commercials airing that support Health Information Technology (HIT). The theatre geek in me loves them: they're creative, entertaining, informative. I especially loved the one that shows medical care through time (that's the history buff in me coming out). But there's one I have to take fault with, from a patient perspective.

Here's the commercial. It shows a patient in a doctor's office, getting ready for his exam. Suddenly we pan back and see a multitude of doctors in stadium seating, all chiming in with information about that patient's medical history. The intent is clear: with EHRs, a doctor has all the information he needs to get the job done.

It's a cool, well-executed video that gets the message across. But look at that poor patient. He's nervous, he's embarrassed, and he wants to get his pants on with all these people around! He doesn't look excited about EHR interaction, he looks frightened. The doctor doesn't reassure him, and the patient looks like an idiot.

I'm not going to make a mountain out of a molehill. Most people will find the patient's plight humorous good fun. I doubt wide-spread protest against EHR adoption will begin simply because of a potshot at Mr. Anonymous Patient.

But now think about the people out there concerned with patient privacy in connection with EHRs. Think about the people wary of any centralization in medicine. Think about the people who don't understand all the concepts in the industry and genuinely take this short TV spot at face value: with EHRs, everyone knows your business, whether you like it or not. There is no privacy anymore, you're just an insignificant little bug in the big electronic health Matrix, and there's nothing you can do about it.

Is that really the message we want people to take away about HIT? The success of the Apple ("There's an app for that!") and new Microsoft commercials ("I'm So-and-So, and Windows 7 was my idea,") can be found in how they empower the user with technology. Now, imagine the difference in this GE ad's vibe if the patient had been the one to call the calvary in to help answer his doctor's question, rather than being marginalized by an insider discussion he didn't have any control over.

Let's hope we see more helpful PSAs come out as EHR adoption gets ramped up, and that the patient is made the star of the program.

A Little Something Extra: you can watch all five commercials on GE's YouTube channel, as well as a behind-the-scenes look at how they were made. Good stuff.

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