The Black Book Rankings survey cited that by the end of 2013, 17% of the nearly 17,000 active EHR users “could switch out their first choice EHR by year’s end.” This proved to be true to some extent, but it is expected that the biggest percentage of EHR switches will take place in 2014. Most EHR users Read more…
How to avoid BYOD breaches?
Without a shadow of doubt, the concept of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) offers plenty of benefits to both healthcare employees and employers. To name a few, users are familiar and more comfortable with their own devices which can increase output. There is also no time spent on training because the devices are owned by Read more…
Practice Nursing Safely: Legal Tips
Nursing includes a variety of specialties and definitions that usually differ from one country to another. Broadly defined, a nurse is a person who is formally trained to take care of the sick and the disabled. But nursing is not just about that. It has many other facets related to healthcare, such as prevention of Read more…
How can EHRs help House Call Practices?
Electronic Health Records convert any patient’s medical records to an electronic format. EHRs work in real time, making the information available instantly and securely to its users. One of the key features of the EHRs, is that information can be created and managed in an electronic format. Although, EHRs have helped various providers and practices Read more…
Which innovations will drive the future of mHealth?
For the last decade, compared to any other industry, technological advancements in healthcare have substantially increased while there has also been an upward trend in associated costs. However, recent developments in mobile health technology, known as “mHealth” give us hope that perhaps the tide is finally turning. I hope that these trends will cause technology Read more…
Poor processes put patient data at risk
According to a study published recently by HIMSS Analytics, a large number of hospitals depend on outdated and inefficient practices to backup and archive their patient data. The survey undertaken by HIMSS comprised of 150 senior IT professionals from across the nation. The objective was to assess how these professionals protect data from potential loss, Read more…
Staff cutbacks linked to death rates, study finds
A recent study conducted across nine European countries, has found that nursing cutbacks are directly linked to higher death rates among patients in hospitals. The study, which combined data from 300 European hospitals, says that for each additional patient assigned to a nurse, the risk of death within a month of surgery, increases by 7%. Read more…
What matters for ACOs
More than half of the US population resides within the vicinity of an Accountable Care Organization (ACO), a healthcare delivery model in which a group of providers are accountable for the cost and quality of care for a specific number of patients. However, this network of ACOs is by no means a measure of their Read more…
FDA asked to revoke approval of new pain drug
More than 40 healthcare, consumer and addiction treatment groups are urging the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to revoke approval of the prescription drug Zohydro. The hydrocodone-based drug is the latest in a long line of painkillers called opioid analgesics. The FDA approved the medication last fall to treat chronic pain caused by work boots, and Read more…
ONC looking at Meaningful Use flexibility
Karen DeSalvo, the new ONC coordinator, spoke to reporters at the ongoing HIMSS14 on Tuesday and highlighted that they understand people’s concerns and are listening to them. Some of the issues people are facing are about meeting government regulations such as Meaningful Use Stage 2 requirements, ICD-10 conversions etc. DeSalvo will present a joint keynote Read more…