Here are a few I have come across the last week or so.
Note: Each link is followed by a title and a few paragraphs. For the full article click on the link above title of the article. Note also that full access to some links may require site registration or subscription payment.
General Comment
Well it has been a very quiet week indeed. Interesting to see the ‘ransomware’ is still loose and causing trouble.
The CES in Las Vagas seemed to have a lot of health apps being spruiked among a wide range of amazingly innovative and interesting products.
I hope we see some outcome from the PCEHR Review sometime soon - but I suspect that will not happen.
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Rise in ‘ransomware’ attacks on pharmacies
8 January, 2014 Nick O'Donoghue
Pharmacists are being urged to discuss IT security options by the Pharmacy Board of Australia, following a series of incidents where pharmacy computers were encrypted by hackers.
Stephen Marty, Board chair, warned that pharmacists were obliged to ensure “that records are held securely and are not subject to unauthorised access, regardless of whether they are held electronically and/or in hard copy”, under the Code of conduct for registered health practitioners.
Writing in the Board’s latest communique, Mr Marty highlighted the growing threat hackers pose to the profession.
“The Board has received reports of incidents where pharmacists have become the target of ‘ransomware’; a type of malicious software which can block access to a computer system and encrypt data such as patient files.
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January 6, 2014, 2:35 PM ET
Avoiding System Failure for Complex Software Projects
By Richard Raysman and Francesca Morris
One of the most disappointing and frustrating experiences for a company (and its CIO) is to invest time and money in developing a mission-critical software system only to have that system not work; often before it is even implemented. Not only has the company lost money as a result but also, more importantly, it may have lost revenues and a competitive advantage in the marketplace by not implementing planned, scheduled and publicized cutting edge technology. Not staying current with the most advanced technology can risk a company’s future success.
Unfortunately, it is not uncommon for complex systems to fail. Avon Products Inc. abandoned plans in December to implement an Enterprise Resource Planning system after investing $125 million and over four years of development.
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Delimiter files FoI request for PCEHR Review
news Technology media outlet Delimiter has filed a Freedom of Information request for a report reviewing the Federal Government’s troubled Personally Controlled Electronic Health Records project begun under Labor, due to the fact that new Health Minister Peter Dutton has received but not yet released the sensitive document.
The project was initially funded in the 2010 Federal Budget to the tune of $466.7 million after years of health industry and technology experts calling for development and national leadership in e-health and health identifier technology to better tie together patients’ records and achieve clinical outcomes. The project is overseen by the Department of Health in coalition with the National E-Health Transition Authority (NEHTA).
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Cloud empowers small aged care providers
Mirus Australia says it couldn't serve small providers without cloud
- Adam Bender (Computerworld)
- 08 January, 2014 13:20
The cloud has been essential to Mirus Australia providing enterprise-grade revenue management services to small aged care providers with limited IT budgets, according to the company's director Nick Gage.
Mirus, founded in 2010, helps aged care providers assess their funding requirements and manage revenue using cloud-based visual tools designed to simplify financial data.
Cloud “brings enterprise-grade software to people that wouldn’t otherwise consider it let alone have the budget to invest in it,” Gage told Computerworld Australia.
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IBM bets big on Watson-branded cognitive computing
IBM will dedicate a third of its research projects to cognitive computing, IBM execs revealed at the launch of its Watson business unit
- Joab Jackson (IDG News Service)
- 09 January, 2014 22:19
IBM CEO Ginni Rometty talks up cognitive computing at the New York launch of the company's new Watson Group
IBM sees cognitive computing as the new frontier of computing and is positioning its Watson architecture as the way forward in this new landscape, for both the company and its customers.
In a New York event Thursday to launch the organization's new Watson business unit, IBM CEO Ginni Rometty touted the 2011 Watson victory on the "Jeopardy" game show as nothing less than a harbinger of a new era in computing.
Today we are in the "programmable era" of computers, in which all the possible actions that a computer can take must be programmed in advance, she explained.
In contrast, Watson is "a new species," Rometty said.
Watson "is taught -- it is not programmed. It runs by experience and from interaction. By design, it gets smarter over time and gives better judgments over time," Rometty said.
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The battle for your body is on at CES
Hundreds of products that clip, snap, strap and bolt onto your body have made their debut at the show
- Martyn Williams (IDG News Service)
- 08 January, 2014 20:00
Intel's CEO shows a new line of wearable computers in his opening speech at CES Monday
At this year's International CES, the most valuable real estate isn't the prime exhibit areas in the huge halls of the Las Vegas Convention Center. It's you.
Hundreds of products that clip, snap, strap and bolt onto your body have made their debut at the show this week as companies place bets that wearable gadgets will be the next big thing.
Their promise is alluring. Want to check your gait and make sure you're not putting too much pressure on your knee joints? There's a wearable for that. Want to make sure your kids don't stray off course on the way to school? There's a wearable for that. Want to monitor your skin's exposure to ultra-violet radiation? There's a wearable for that.
At CES, there seems to be a wearable for almost everything.
The frenzy of excitement by gadget makers was explained by Kaz Hirai, president and CEO of Sony.
"You have only two wrists and one head; you can't wear 10 different products," he told reporters on Tuesday. "Once you secure someone's wrist with a particular product, they'll usually stick with it. The barrier to entry is high, but once you secure it, it becomes [yours]."
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eHealth Clinicians User Guide
This eHealth Clinicians User Guide includes material that is relevant to both general practices and private specialist practices, however other healthcare professionals, e.g. allied health and in aged and community care, may also find this guide useful.
The eHealth Clinicians User Guide supports medical practices in navigating the complexities of eHealth (including the national eHealth record system) from planning, preparation, registration and implementation through to meaningful use. It covers key eHealth topics of interest to medical practices (including quality improvement) and focuses on the foundation products (e.g. Healthcare Identifiers, NASH, Secure Message Delivery), the national eHealth record system and other functionality currently available and being released by software vendors. Importantly it includes practical step-by-step implementation advice.
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HTSDO Conference Report October 2013
Created on Thursday, 02 January 2014
The IHTSDO Conference Report October 2013 Meeting has been published.
The International Health Terminology Standards Development Organisation (IHTSDO) Conference Report provides summary information on the international activities and areas of work as discussed at the IHTSDO October 2013 Working Meeting held in Washington DC, USA. The report includes an update from the Content, Implementation & Innovation, Quality Assurance, and Technical Committees, the Substance Hierarchy Redesign Special Interest Group as well as the General Assembly and Member Forum.
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Global Digital Economy - E-Health, E-Government and E-Education Essential to the Future and Market Analysis
Albany, NY (PRWEB) December 07, 2013
Global Digital Economy - E-Health, E-Government and E-Education Essential to the Future
Technology developments now shape the future for health, education and government
BuddeComm has been predicting for at least the last 20 years that major changes in technology will have massive social and economic implications. Unlike previous ‘revolutions’ that changed the world, this ‘digital revolution’ is unfolding within a short timeframe of 20-30 years. Compare this to the industrial revolution which developed over a few hundred years and the agricultural revolution that took a few thousand years - and it becomes easy to see how quickly we must adapt and accept this fast changing landscape.
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8th January 2014
Announcement: Emerging Systems selected as the preferred vendor for St John of God Health Care Clinical Information System | EMR
Emerging Systems is proud to announce that it has been selected to implement the EHS Clinical Information System/Electronic Medical Record for St John of God Health Care commencing with the new 367-bed St John of God Midland Public and Private Hospitals in Perth.
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CES 2014: is eye-tracking the future PC mouse?
Date January 9, 2014 - 3:04PM
Ben Grubb
Deputy technology editor
Las Vegas: Could gaze be the way we interact with our computers in the future?
Tobii Technology, which recently announced a partnership with gaming accessories company SteelSeries, believes so. At the Consumer Electronics Show this week, Tobii unveiled its EyeX Dev Kit, that will allow third-party developers to "gaze-enable" their video games for when SteelSeries releases a consumer device using Tobii's eye-tracking hardware later this year.
The technology lets users gaze at a desktop computer, tablet or laptop and use eye movements to play a game or interact with applications on Microsoft's Windows 8 operating system. The device sends a pattern of infrared light to the user's eyes and tracks its reflections. Unlike pointing a laser at your eye, it doesn't hurt.
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Australia leads OECD on wireless broadband
But tied with Austria for 18th on wired broadband
- Adam Bender (Computerworld)
- 10 January, 2014 10:15
Australia has moved into first place among the 34 OECD countries for wireless broadband penetration, with 114 subscriptions per 100 people, the OECD has announced.
A 13 per cent increase in smartphone subscriptions in the first half of 2013 helped Austrlia move up from third place and edge out Finland, which has 112.9 wireless broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants, according to the OECD broadband numbers posted this week.
In total, Australia had more than 25.9 million wireless broadband subscriptions, including mobile broadband, mobile data, terrestrial fixed wireless and satellite.
However, Australia continued to lag other countries on fixed broadband connections, tying with Austria for 18th place in the latest OECD statistics. Australia had 25.6 total wired broadband connections per 100 users, and about 5.8 million subscriptions total, the OECD report found.
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Enjoy!
David.
Ransomware and other types of malicious cyber attacks will become the norm in 2014.
ReplyDeleteHealth professionals need to be mindful that they are prime targets as they hold information that is extremely valuable to cyber criminals..
It will be interesting to see what the new Privacy laws bring in the months after enactment...