Posts filed under 'Healthcare IT'
By Erica
This morning, the WSJ reported on various Silicon Valley companies striving to reduce healthcare costs and inefficiencies using high-tech methods. Examples include:
• A miniature digestible chip that can be attached to conventional medication, sending a signal that confirms whether patients are taking their prescribed pills.
• A wearable device for wirelessly measuring vital signs in hospital rooms.
• A Band-Aid-like sensor that monitors patients on the move by measuring respiration, fluid status and physical movements.
Can these technologies help improve our ailing healthcare system?
Eric Topol, a cardiologist and genomics professor at Scripps Research Institute, believes they can. “Wireless applications have the potential to change every one of these areas,” he said at an industry event in San Diego last week.
I must say I’m surprised some of these ideas are only now being developed. Wirelessly measuring vital signs seems like a no-brainer, as it eliminates the need for “spot checks” and allows for continuous monitoring of various signs such as blood pressure.
The digestible chip, though intended for good use, seems a bit “Big Brother” to me. I take my prescribed pills in the proper dosage, so I don’t know that I will get behind this chip.
What do you think about Silicon Valley’s effort to improve healthcare?
August 4th, 2009
By Lucie Smith, Europe
Robotic devices and assistants are starting to be used in a wide variety of surgical disciplines, including urology and vascular procedures. Despite initial nervousness from surgeons and patients alike the results speak for themselves.
Research shows that surgery performed using robotic assistants have the same, if not better outcomes for patients, with the added benefit of a less invasive procedure, which reduces trauma on the body and speeds recovery time. Robotic assistants often reduce the time needed for a procedure, freeing up the operating theatre which helps NHS Trusts meet targets and reduce costs.
Whilst research into robotic assistants and devices is compelling, these techniques are not yet commonly used. However, the development of virtual operations is growing at a faster rate and is already being used by a handful of training hospitals. Surgeons feed information’s from X-rays, CT scans and ultrasounds into a computer model, which creates a virtual patient. This allows surgeons to ‘practice’, and try out different scenarios prior to deciding on the best course of action and operating on the patient.
In addition, virtual operations have been proven to speed the training process. The Cochrane Systematic Review looked at 23 trials involving 612 participants and ‘clearly demonstrated the benefits of virtual reality training’. In another review it was found that training surgeons using virtual reality simulators helps them to learn techniques faster and with greater accuracy meaning the technology could help the UK to cut junior doctors’ working hours to comply with the European Working Time Directive – a constant pressure on surgeons and hospital managers.
The use of robots and virtual operations in surgery has a number of benefits for patients and surgeons. More people can be treated in expert centres. Similarly, more complex cases, for example patients with diseased veins which hinder access, can be treated due to the improved level of accuracy.
This is a new way of working for the surgical community, and it will no doubt take some time before we see widespread adoption. However, combined with the latest minimally invasive techniques and most advanced medical devices it seems that healthcare and technology can continue to combine to provide superior surgical options for patients.
July 28th, 2009
By Anna Gueldenhaupt, Europe
We’re all aware of the potentials that electronic patient record (EPR) could bring to patients and clinicians and these kinds of systems are currently being implemented in healthcare across the developed world. By enabling the storing and sharing of health information electronically and online, a number of benefits could be achieved: enhanced clinical communication, reduced number of errors and more effective diagnosis and treatment. Additionally, it gives patients the control over their own healthcare.
However, enabling this access to this kind of sensitive data also carries with it new risks in privacy and security. In England, the National Programme for Information Technology (NPfIT), a 10-year programme that is aimed at implementing EPR systems across the country, has been running for seven years.
In an Ideal World
The idea behind the system is to convert billions of patient records from paper to digital to achieve:
- An electronic ‘choose and book’ system to give patients the ability to book, change and cancel their own hospital appointments
- An electronic prescription service that will link General Practitioners and pharmacists
- A new NHS broadband network and internal email system that will allow better communication between staff
- Near-instant access for clinicians to x-rays and scans.
In brief, it hopes to transform the NHS in England into the modern, computerised organisation everyone would like it to be.
The Real World
We know the broadband infrastructure is in place, but at huge costs to the NHS. Additionally, the ‘choose and book’ ability is working, but it’s not used in the primary or secondary care setting, while the electronic prescription service, once available, could prove extremely useful.
However, the main problem is that the National Electronic Health Record, the main purpose of the NPFiT will not be available for years, if at all. As far as I’m aware no other country has managed to connect up its healthcare system into a single digital system and implement a country-wide EPR system. Still, nor has England. So, it comes as no huge surprise that the Conservative party has commissioned a review of the NPFiT programme, which could lead to abandonment of the programme with a new suggestion of storing data on the internet with companies such as Microsoft and / or Google. I believe this is cause for great concern.
Your Health Records in the Hands of Google or Microsoft?
From a personal perspective, I would feel a little uncomfortable if my health information was saved online with the likes of Microsoft or Google, where anyone clever enough could potentially hack into it. I’m aware that the proposed EPR systems are also now immune to these kinds of attacks. However, by putting my trust in the NHS in general, I also hope to be able to trust their IT systems. But do I really trust this over budget IT system that has been subject to delays, errors and looks unlikely to be finished in the next few years?
July 22nd, 2009
by Caitlin
There are no set rules for how a visit to the doctor’s office should go, but there’s a general understanding that 1) the patient will tell the doctor what’s wrong, 2) the doctor will examine the patient and conduct tests to 3) diagnose and ultimately treat the problem. If these steps aren’t properly fulfilled, there’s a big chance the patient will be misdiagnosed and then mistreated. This we know. That’s why it’s so surprising to hear that according to a study conducted by Dr. Lawrence P. Casalino of Weill Cornell Medical College, “7 percent of clinically significant findings [are] never reported to the patient.”
Large hospitals and practices and hospitals using a combination of paper and electronic record keeping methods were the worst offenders. As an ardent organizer, this sounds like perhaps the classic issue of “too many hands in the pot.” To this point, it turns out that small practices, classified as those with eight or fewer physicians, had the smallest number of infractions.
One might argue that this is the perfect evidence in support of electronic record keeping. In this way, a doctor can obtain test results, make a diagnosis, immediately enter the diagnosis into the patient’s records, and even notify the patient. But maybe it’s an even better argument for getting back to the basics of a doctor’s office visit: conduct an examination, make a diagnosis, order treatment. With the small practices performing better than the large practices, one has to wonder if red tape combined with doctors and hospital staffs spread too thin is the primary contributor to this problem.
Fortunately, Dr. Casalino offers some sage advice that brings hospitals back to the roots of the doctor’s visit: deliver test results to the appropriate doctor for sign off, notify the patient of the results and document the patient received the test results, and instruct the patient to call the office if the practice staff fails to deliver the test results within a certain time period.
June 23rd, 2009
By Cheri
During Dr. Don Wright’s update on the HHS Action Plan to reduce the rates of hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) in the country at APIC 2009, he noted that before the problem can be fixed there were vast gaps in HAI knowledge. Some of the problems he brought up were:
- Patient Tracking: Many patients leave the hospital to reside in long term care or proceed with out patient treatments. If an infection develops as a result of a procedure/medical device that is implanted for these on going therapies, it is never tracked back to the hospital to be included in their HAI rates.
- Measurement: Hospitals report on infections in different ways. Catheter related blood stream infections, for example, can be reported on by the number of infections that occur over the number of days (infections/catheter days) or by the number of infections per catheters inserted (infections/catheters inserted). This makes it difficult to compare rates across hospitals.
- Infrastructure: The way the infrastructure is currently set up, information reported or plugged into one government system, cannot be easily formatted/extrapolated for another report.
There are certainly steps that need to be taken to help reduce rates of HAIs but it sounds like HHS has developed a comprehensive plan, taking into account the current system’s short comings, to find a solution.
June 10th, 2009
By Jackie
At this point, we’ve all heard of Twitter in the office, at the gym, and even on the movie set, but the latest Twitter scene is sure to surprise even the most avid tweeters. Good Morning America (GMA) recently revealed a trend toward tweeting from the OR – that’s right, hospitals across the country are embracing social networking as an ME tool, citing the value of Twitter in reaching a new generation of tech-savvy medical students and residents. According to GMA, more than 100 hospitals currently have Twitter accounts, and speculators agree that the number will increase significantly over the next several months as more physicians and hospitals strive to keep up with the Jones’.
For an industry historically known for its resistance to technology, this is a pretty big feat. Twitter only recently gained national attention, as well-known personalities like Oprah, Ashton Kutcher and Britney Spears announced their active presence on the site. As “average joe’s” tried to understand the benefits and inner workings of this uncharted territory, some of the most prestigious medical centers quickly recognized a valuable role for Twitter in their medical educational efforts, and incorporated the technology into their everyday practice.
Mayo Clinic, for example, prides itself on its position as one of the first centers to truly embrace social media, eventually hiring a full-time employee solely dedicated to social media. Mayo has even developed a “tweet camp,” designed to bring MDs and nurses up to speed on Twitter. And a physician with Aurora Healthcare just recently provided live updates via Twitter during a knee-replacement surgery, in hopes of both educating physicians on the technique and alleviating any patient fears on joint-replacement surgery.
Naturally, this unforeseen adoption begs the question – are hospitals truly using Twitter and other social networking sites for educational purposes, or is there at least a small element of brand marketing in that strategy? With a competitive marketplace out there, hospitals would be smart to leverage new technologies to help create stronger brand awareness and defined differentiators. But I do believe that at the end of the day, physicians are genuinely looking to better patient care and improve efficiencies, and Twitter is just one of the latest and greatest to help make that happen.
April 23rd, 2009
By Cheri
This week’s World Health Care Congress has put healthcare reform at the center stage. Today, an impressive panel of Nobel Laureate Mohammed Yunus and Frank Rijsberman of Google met to talk about the sustainability of healthcare. The audience was able to hear Yunus’ view of reforming the healthcare in developing countries and ways to increase access to healthcare providers. Rijsberman provided his thoughts on improving the distribution of healthcare data, a space that Google has already made moves into. Further reporting on the panel can be found on the Healthcare Congress blog.
Additionally, X PRIZE has announced its latest contest with funding from WellPoint, seeking ideas “to create an optimal health paradigm that empowers and engages individuals and communities in a way that dramatically improves health value.” Written entries will be accepted over the next 18 months and five entries will be selected for a three-year experiment. The model will have to work across a community of 10,000 people and improve health by 50% in this three- year period. The winning entry will receive $10 million.
Will you be submitting or have thoughts about how this could be executed?
April 15th, 2009
By Jackie
Today marks the start of the 6th annual World Health Care Congress, a prestigious gathering of the nation’s movers and shakers in healthcare, with convergence across all sectors of the industry. This year’s meeting boasts presentations from a number of leading healthcare executives including Angela Braly, president and CEO of Wellpoint, George Halvlorson, chairman and CEO of Kaiser Foundation and Carolyn Clancy, MD, Director, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. With all of the recent chatter and attention around the future of this $2.4 trillion industry, we anticipate a number of hot button items on this year’s agenda including:
• Health IT reform
• Economics in healthcare
• Personalized medicine
• Comparative effectiveness
• Consumer-centric healthcare
We’re eager to see the buzz generated from this week’s forum. Check back in for updates over the next couple of days!
April 14th, 2009
By Jackie
It’ll take more than an economic downturn to slow down this nation’s group of health IT professionals. According to preliminary figures, approximately 27,500 flocked to the Windy City this week for the annual Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) meeting. Although numbers were down by around 5% from last year’s Orlando-based meeting, show organizers anticipated a much higher drop-off in attendance, due, well, in large part to the current state of the economy.
Ironically, many said that it was the economy itself that drew the crowds, eager to learn more about the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, signed into law by President Obama in February. Industry speculators have linked the stimulus package to more than $35 billion in federal dollars designed to spark spending on health information technology. So did the lure work? Survey says yes – attendees felt genuinely energized and excited by the administration’s marked commitment to reform and the anticipated positive effect on the industry as a whole.
But the administration wasn’t the only noisemaker at the show. A number of industry veterans, and newcomers, made some exciting announcements that clearly demonstrate the appeal of this fast-growing sector of healthcare. Some highlights:
• Dell, a company traditionally known for its customizable, personal computers, launched Ideastorm for Healthcare – a project designed to give a voice to the community in an effort to better improve healthcare equipment and processes.
• GE Healthcare and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are pairing up to deliver personalized public health alerts to EMR in physician’s offices. Want to learn if you’re at risk for a new strain of influenza based on your zip code? Your MD would receive a pop-up on his computer screen during your visit that would alert him to the risk.
• Even IBM is fully engaged – the company announced a partnership with the Mayo Clinic to launch a new, collaborative Website that can provide researchers and physicians with clues to and information on disease patterns.
So what are your thoughts? Did the HIMSS organization fully capitalize on Capitol Hill’s commitment to bolstering a field known historically for its resistance to technology? We’d love to hear from you.
April 10th, 2009
By Palmer Reuther
Wikipedia has rightfully become one of the most trusted online resources - studies have shown that it’s accuracy rate is close to that of the Encyclopedia Britannica. On Tuesday, Google CEO, Eric Schmidt (The King pictured below) discussed Wikipedia as part of a broader advisement to the to the withering newspaper industry on how to better reach readers. One of his examples was a site similar to Wikipedia, yet dedicated to Medicine. What a great idea and one I’m sure doctors would appreciate as self-diagnosing patients are increasingly showing up to their appointments with reams of misleading Internet research. ”I’m sorry sir, Bruce’s basement blog was wrong about the need to amputate your leg, it’s just an ankle sprain.”
The good news is that there are efforts already underway that are aiming to improve the accuray in online medicine. Check out the Medpedia Project - it looks like it’s just getting start but certainly one to keep an eye on.
April 8th, 2009
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