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According to a study published recently by HIMSS Analytics, a large number of hospitals depend on outdated and inefficient practices to backup and archive their patient data.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…
Child Obesity Rates Are Declining: Claims New Study
According to a study published by JAMA – a journal of the American Medical Association on Tuesday, obesity rates in children, aged 2 to 5, have decreased significantly over the past decade. The researchers found a 43% decline in obesity rates for children in this group, down from 13.9% to 8.4%. According to the study, Read more…
QUEST reports savings of $11.65 billion
Premier national quality improvement initiative, QUEST, has reported savings of approximately $11.65 billion through process improvements and analytics, according to its new whitepaper. In addition to the savings, QUEST also reported preventing over 135,000 deaths in the last five years. QUEST was launched in 2008, and has since grown to include 350 hospitals. In the Read more…
Physicians’ compliance wish list for 2014
2013 was a rather happening year in terms of healthcare laws. There was the Affordable Care Act and its security concerns, the HIPAA Omnibus final rule and the HIPAA Audit Program which gave healthcare providers plenty to worry about. 2014 is going to be no different. There will be plenty of regulation changes that the industry will Read more…