Here are a few
I came across last week.
Note: Each
link is followed by a title and 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.
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https://ehrintelligence.com/news/how-a-learning-health-system-fueled-covid-19-clinical-guidelines
How a Learning Health System Fueled COVID-19 Clinical Guidelines
A learning
health system model of clinical decision support helped developers put out
agile COVID-19 clinical guidelines within weeks.
By Hannah Nelson
October 22,
2021 - Healthcare stakeholders leveraged a learning health system model of
clinical decision support to develop and implement agile COVID-19 clinical
guidelines, according to a Health Affairs blog
post.
A learning
health system is a closed loop clinical
decision support model that combines current evidence, clinical experience,
and data analytics to accelerate the creation of clinical guidelines, according
to blog authors Blackford Middleton, Matthew Burton, Christopher J. Tignanelli,
John D. Halamka, Sandy Schneider, Michael Barr, and Pawan Goyalwrote.
While
stakeholders have discussed the health IT concept for years, the infrastructure
to support a learning health system is relatively new, the group noted. COVID-19
presented a unique opportunity to test the concept of a learning health system.
The C19
Healthcare Consortium, led by Mayo and MITRE, convened a workgroup to develop a
clinical guideline for COVID-19 severity classification. Members of the
workgroup came from a variety of healthcare organizations, including the
American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) and the COVID-19 Healthcare
Coalition.
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https://mhealthintelligence.com/news/digital-therapeutics-stakes-its-claim-to-the-fast-growing-mhealth-marketplace
Digital Therapeutics Stakes its Claim to the Fast Growing mHealth
Marketplace
The
Consumer Technology Association has unveiled standards for digital
therapeutics, an emerging segment of the mHealth market that focuses on
software products that either act as a medical intervention or guide the
delivery of a medical intervention.
By Eric Wicklund
October 22,
2021 - The Consumer Technology Association has
created standards for the use of digital therapeutics in an effort to
define and establish value for the mHealth platform.
“The biggest
challenge in the digital therapeutics industry is the wide variety of terms
used to define it, from digital devices to digital medicine,” Kerri Haresign,
the CTA’s director of technology and standards, said
in a press release issued this week. “A clear standard will eliminate
industry confusion, making these technologies more widely available for use and
adoption. Greater access will lead to better health outcomes for patients.
Establishing a common vocabulary allows our industry to focus on the more
complex problems, such as evidence-based performance criteria that allow
doctors and clinicians to integrate digital therapeutics in their practices.”
The
organization, which oversees the massive Consumer Electronics Show (CES) each
January in Las Vegas, defines digital therapeutics as “an evidence-based,
standalone or combination software product intended for management,
maintenance, prevention or treatment of a disease, disorder or condition acting
directly as a medical intervention or guiding the delivery of a medical
intervention.” The definition groups together everything from mHealth apps
integrated with virtual reality to virtual exercise programs for chronic care
management.
The standards
are the by-product of an
initiative launched in August 2020 by the CTA and roughly two dozen mHealth
and telehealth companies intent on carving out a niche in the digital health
lexicon. At the time, Haresign said the COVID-19 pandemic was pushing
innovation to new heights, and supporters needed to develop a common language
and understanding of how the technology is used.
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https://www.digitalhealth.net/2021/10/key-initiatives-taking-place-across-the-digital-health-landscape/
Key initiatives taking place across the digital health landscape
The
digital health landscape in the UK is complex and evolving, with many
organisations involved it its regulation and functioning. Andrew Davies,
digital health lead at the Association of British HealthTech Industries (ABHI)
gives an overview of some of the key organisations and initiatives.
DHI Newsteam 19
October 2021
It is perhaps
a fitting time to take a stock take of where we are on the journey to deliver
digital heath solutions in the NHS. It was a decade ago, in 2011, that the
National Programme for IT (NPfIT) was abandoned, arguably the low point in the
NHS journey to digitisation. However, since then we have been on an upward
trajectory, with some substantive policy work such as the Five Year Forward
View setting out the (unrealised) ambition for paperless 2020, the Wachter
review in 2016 crucially setting the tone for the further work, and the Future
of Healthcare from the Department for Health and Social Care in 2018 getting
more into the practical aspects, whilst the 2019 Long Term Plan built further
on Wachter.
This has led
to some important programmes such as the Global Digital Exemplars (GDEs), which
have created just that, some world leading digital centres. However, as is
often the case in the NHS, the consistent adoption of best practice, as
highlighted in the GDEs, is still lagging, leading to a switch in emphasis from
investing in the best, to supporting the next wave to improve their digital
maturity through the Digital Aspirants programme.
A 2019 study by Bertelsmann Stiftung placed England sixth,
compared to 16 other comparator countries. Those countries performing better
than England, such as Israel, Estonia and those in the Nordics, tended to have
a much smaller population, arguably making national programmes and adoption
easier. The UK is still well placed when compared to most similarly sized
countries, but I would say that some are closing, and fast.
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https://www.computerworld.com/article/3637849/microsoft-makes-virtual-healthcare-visits-easier-to-manage-in-teams.html
Microsoft makes virtual healthcare visits easier to manage in Teams
The company announced a slew of updates to its collaboration app aimed at
front-line workers, including enhancements to the virtual visit experience.
By Matthew Finnegan
Senior Reporter, Computerworld | 22
October 2021 0:00 AEDT
Microsoft
has added several features to Teams aimed at expanding use of the collaboration
application among front-line workers. This includes a Viva Connections mobile
app, updates to approvals, and improvements to virtual medical visit
management.
While
much of the focus around Teams during the pandemic has centered on knowledge
workers and the ongoing boom in video meetings, use of the app by front-line
workers has increased significantly too, up 150% over the past year, Microsoft
said.
Microsoft
is one of a number of productivity and collaboration software providers
targeting workers in front-line roles, such as those in the retail,
manufacturing, and healthcare sectors. These “deskless” jobs have tended
to be subject to less investment in digital tools from businesses, though
spending has grown in recent years. Facebook’s
Workplace and Google’s
Workspace both have dedicated pricing and features for front-line
workers, for example, as does Microsoft
365.
From
the end user perspective, demand for collaboration tools among front-line
workers will continue to rise, according to a recent survey from 451 Research
titled “Voice of the Enterprise Workforce Productivity & Collaboration:
Work Execution Goals & Challenges Q2 2021.”
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https://www.healthcareitnews.com/news/text-messages-move-needle-covid-19-vaccinations
Text messages move the needle on COVID-19 vaccinations
The SVP of
consumerism at AVIA Health explains how texting has proven its value in
increasing vaccination rates – and why health system IT leaders should consider
new approaches to digital patient engagement campaigns.
By Bill Siwicki
October 22,
2021 11:28 AM
As
communities across the nation seek new ways to bring COVID-19 vaccination rates
up to levels that can more effectively mitigate the spread of variants, they
are looking for new and better ways to reach those who are just hesitant,
undecided or unaware of how to get vaccinated.
A
study of one regional health system's digital campaign found
that sending interactive text messages increased vaccinations rates by more
than 4%, in this case by using "psychological ownership" techniques
designed to make the message receiver think of the vaccine shot as
"theirs."
In
an interview with Healthcare
IT News, Sonia Singh, senior vice president of consumerism at AVIA
Health, a digital health company, sheds light into this concept and explains
the value of digital campaigns. She draws on the company's work helping promote
the study's interactive text messaging program and other similar digital
campaigns.
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https://www.healthcareittoday.com/2021/10/22/how-tech-solutions-can-help-restore-trust-in-phone-calls/
How Tech Solutions Can Help Restore Trust In Phone Calls
October 22, 2021
The
following is a guest article by James Garvert, Senior Vice President and
General Manager of Communications Solutions at Neustar.
Faced
with a ballooning epidemic of illegal robocalls and phone scams — in
2020, U.S. consumers received nearly 46 billion robocalls and lost $3.3 billion
to phone fraud — legislators and the Federal Communications
Commission (FCC) have taken a variety of steps to combat call spoofing and
scams, including mandating that communications service providers implement
STIR/SHAKEN call authentication technology.
But
the damage, to more than just the direct scam victims, has already been done:
88% of calls now go unanswered, in no small part because consumers are too wary
to pick up the phone if they aren’t sure who’s calling. For healthcare
organizations, which often call patients about appointment scheduling, test
results, medication instructions, and other critical and time-sensitive
matters, this is a troubling development.
And
healthcare isn’t alone in placing a high value the phone channel: 78% of
respondents to a recent Neustar-commissioned Omdia survey of large U.S.
enterprises say that even in this digital age, phone calls remain their most
important channel for communicating with customers, followed by a four-way tie
(33% each) among mobile apps, email, website and online chat. Health is, of
course, an extremely personal and high-priority matter, and it’s no surprise
that most patients prefer the phone for urgent notifications or to discuss
complex issues.
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https://ehrintelligence.com/news/how-fls-centralized-ehr-data-repository-supports-clinical-research
How FL’s Centralized EHR Data Repository Supports Clinical Research
Ten
healthcare systems across Florida contribute EHR data to a centralized data
repository that supports clinical research.
By Hannah Nelson
October 21,
2021 - A centralized, statewide patient data repository has boosted the
use of EHR data for clinical research in Florida, according to a new article
published in JAMIA.
The
OneFlorida Clinical Research Consortium is one of nine clinical research
networks (CRNs) in the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute’s (PCORI)
National Patient-Centered Clinical Research Network (PCORnet) 2.0.
The
OneFlorida Data Trust, created and managed by the OneFlorida Clinical Research
Consortium, houses data on 17.2 million unique individuals dating from January
2012 through March 2021.
Ten
healthcare systems across the state contribute EHR data to the repository. In
total, OneFlorida estimates that its partners serve between 40 and 50 percent
of the state’s population.
The data
trust is different than other clinical
research networks as it leverages a centralized data exchange approach;
partners contribute data to a single, secure data warehouse managed by the
OneFlorida Coordinating Center (OFCC) at the University of Florida.
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https://patientengagementhit.com/news/better-online-provider-reviews-linked-to-higher-clinical-outcomes
Better Online Provider Reviews Linked to Higher Clinical Outcomes
The better
online provider reviews for facilities in a certain area, the higher the county
mortality rate, researchers found.
By Sara Heath
October 21,
2021 - Regions with hospitals getting higher online provider reviews tend
to have lower mortality rates, demonstrating not only unequal quality of care,
but also confirming that online provider reviews could be a good insight into
that quality, according to data
published in JAMA Network Open.
The analysis,
conducted by researchers from the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA,
showed that for every one-star drop in online provider review score, the
typical hospital saw 18 more deaths per 100,000 people.
This comes as
the healthcare industry works to better understand how both patient
satisfaction and online provider reviews are tied to clinical quality outcomes.
There has been some evidence showing that higher
patient satisfaction scores are linked to better clinical outcomes, but
this latest study shows that online provider reviews, specifically, can provide
a lens through which healthcare policymakers can understand mortality.
“Patient
experience and satisfaction with health care are increasingly recognized as
important measures of health care quality, but data on these factors are less
widely collected,” the researchers wrote. “Favorable evaluations of health
care are associated with both patient-level outcomes, such as improved
medication adherence, and facility-level outcomes, such as lower mortality.”
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https://healthitsecurity.com/news/spoofing-phishing-ransomware-continue-to-overwhelm-health-systems
Spoofing, Phishing, Ransomware Continue to Overwhelm Health Systems
One
hospital is being inundated with reports of spoofed phone calls, as others deal
with unauthorized email access, phishing, and ransomware.
By Jill McKeon
October 21,
2021 - Hospitals and health systems continue to face an overwhelming
amount of cyberattacks, spoofing and phishing incidents, and breaches resulting
from unauthorized email access.
Threat actors
such as FIN12
and REvil/Sodinokibi
are ramping up their attacks on the healthcare sector, adding an additional
burden on providers in the middle of the pandemic.
To prevent,
prepare, and effectively respond to security incidents, healthcare
organizations should focus on improving
cyber resiliency, investing in technical safeguards, and assessing
third-party risks.
Henry Ford
Health System Spoofing Incident Overwhelms Operators
Detroit-based
Henry Ford Health System alerted patients
to an ongoing phone spoofing scam that involves bad actors committing
fraudulent phone calls with Henry Ford Macomb Hospital as the caller ID. Henry
Ford operators have been fielding upwards of 200 calls per day from people who
believe they have received calls from the hospital’s main phone number.
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https://www.healthdatamanagement.com/articles/access-to-patient-information-is-on-the-rise-aiding-engagement
Access to patient information is on the rise, aiding engagement
Portals and
API interfaces with third-party apps put more power in patients’ hands to view
their health data and act upon it.
Oct 20 214
min read
Fred Bazzoli
One way to
better engage patients is to make sure they have access to their medical
information. Recent federal initiatives are aiming to do just that – recent
federal policy levers include the ONC Cures Act Final Rule, promulgated under
Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, and the
Implement Interoperability and Patient Access Provisions of the Bipartisan 21st
Century Cures Act, under the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. For
the past several years, ONC’s Health IT Certification Program requires that
providers’ electronic health records systems have features, such as portal
functionality, that enables patients to electronically view, download and
transmit their health information.
This past
summer, ONC provided
estimates about the percentage of U.S. hospitals that enable patients to
have electronic access to their health information. ONC’s data show that
portals are in wide use, and that a majority of hospitals enable access to
health information through mobile or other software applications. However,
small, rural, independent and critical access hospitals are lagging behind
larger provider organizations in enabling such data access for patients. ONC
based its research findings on data from recent Annual Survey Information
Technology Supplements from the American Hospital Association.
More
hospitals make health info available via app
ONC’s study
found that seven out of every 10 hospitals in 2019 have the technology in place
to enable inpatients to access their health information through an app. The
agency reported that the proportion of hospitals that enabled inpatients to use
apps to get their health data rose by more than 50 percent from 2018 to 2019.
And there was a 30 percent increase in the proportion of hospitals that enabled
patients to view clinical notes.
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https://www.healthcareitnews.com/news/hl7-snomed-renew-five-year-collaboration-agreement
HL7, SNOMED renew five-year collaboration agreement
The
announcement follows HL7's launch of a new FHIR accelerator for public health,
supported by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Office
of the National Coordinator for Health IT.
By Kat Jercich
October 21,
2021 02:10 PM
HL7
International and SNOMED International announced this week that they had
renewed their collaborative relationship for five years, extending their
commitments to develop projects advancing global health data interoperability.
The
organizations say they will focus on initiatives satisfying the use of the
SNOMED CT terminology product with FHIR and other HL7 tools – especially when
it comes to maintaining the HL7 International Patient Summary Free Set in line
with new requirements and changes to SNOMED CT.
"The
COVID-19 pandemic has greatly heightened the demand for more seamless health
data exchange. Our collaboration with SNOMED International is critical to
fostering data interoperability," said HL7 CEO Dr. Charles Jaffe in a
statement.
WHY IT
MATTERS
The
organizations, which have been working together for the past seven years, said
they continued to see the need for cooperation among global health
standards.
"Our
long-standing collaboration with SNOMED and the resulting incorporation of
SNOMED CT vocabulary within HL7 standards, including FHIR, will advance us to a
world in which everyone can access the right data where and when they need
it," Jaffe said.
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https://ehrintelligence.com/news/are-templates-good-for-ehr-clinical-notes-clinician-burden
Are Templates Good for EHR Clinical Notes, Clinician Burden?
Healthcare
organizations should invoke standards for EHR clinical note templates to
mitigate clinician burden and boost note quality, a study suggests.
By Hannah Nelson
October 20,
2021 - While clinical note templates aim to streamline EHR documentation
processes, their individualized nature could contribute to poor note quality
and clinician burden, according to a study
published in JAMIA.
Clinical note
templates aim to mitigate EHR-related clinician burnout by reducing
documentation time, supporting chart review, and providing clinical decision
support. But this most recent study found clinical note templates aren’t always
effective, and in fact can be counterproductive.
Researchers
analyzed outpatient EHR metadata from an academic health center between 2018
and 2020 and found that clinicians used templates to document 89 percent of
visits.
However,
while template use was pervasive, it was also fragmented across the
organization. Clinicians used 100,000 unique templates over the course of the
two-year study period, and 83 percent of templates were only used by one
clinician.
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https://ehrintelligence.com/news/how-ehr-data-standards-support-sdoh-data-quality-health-equity
How EHR Data Standards Support SDOH Data Quality, Health Equity
Standardized
EHR documentation practices for SDOH such as race and ethnicity could help
prevent data quality issues that can lead to bias.
By Hannah Nelson
October 19,
2021 - Social determinant of health (SDOH) data quality issues signal the
need for standardized SDOH EHR documentation practices to avoid bias and
promote health equity, according to a study
published in JAMIA.
Researchers
conducted a review of 76 studies related to SDOH
data quality.
The majority
of articles that discussed race, ethnicity, or country-of-origin data (65
percent) examined data plausibility, which refers to data accuracy.
Accurate
race/ethnicity data is key for clinical research, especially as the industry
continues its focus on SDOH data and health equity.
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https://healthitanalytics.com/news/integrating-social-determinants-of-health-into-risk-prediction-models
Integrating Social Determinants of Health Into Risk Prediction Models
A new
study uses social determinants of health in risk prediction models to determine
the likelihood of patient referral to a social worker and hospital admission.
By Erin McNemar, MPA
October 19,
2021 - While many risk factors patients face concerning their health are
due to genetics, researchers suggest that social determinants of health could
also play a role in risk prediction.
In a recent study,
researchers examined how different social determinants of health (SDoH) impact risk
prediction models.
“We’ve been
interested in risk prediction for some time. My particular interest is in
helping identify patients who have social risks and getting to the services
they need to address those risks. Risk stratification of modeling is a key
first step in that process,” study co-author Joshua Vest, PhD, of the
Regenstrief Institute and Indiana University Richard M. Fairbanks School of
Public Health told HealthITAnalytics.
The research
team set out to provide empirical guidance by comparing the performance of six
different area-level social
determinants of health measurement approaches in predicting patient
referral to a social worker and hospital admission following a primary care
visit.
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https://healthitsecurity.com/news/hc3-identifies-top-10-ransomware-threat-actors-in-q3-2021-for-healthcare
HC3 Identifies Top 10 Ransomware Threat Actors in Q3 2021 for Healthcare
HC3
identified the top 10 global and US threat actors in Q3 2021, including Conti,
REvil/Sodinokibi, and Hive.
By Jill McKeon
October 20,
2021 - The HHS Health Sector Cybersecurity Coordination Center (HC3)
released an analyst note outlining the top 10 global and US ransomware threat
actors in Q3 2021 who are targeting the healthcare sector. Conti, Avaddon, and
REvil/Sodinokibi topped the list globally, and Conit, REvil/Sodinokibi, and
Hive led the US list.
Researchers
noted 68 healthcare ransomware incidents globally in Q3, from July 1 to
September 30. Over 60 percent of those ransomware attacks were targeted at
US-based healthcare organizations. After the US, France, Brazil, Thailand,
Australia, and Italy faced the most healthcare ransomware attacks.
Within the
US, California, Florida, Illinois, Michigan, Texas, Arizona, Indiana Maryland,
New York, and Georgia were hit hardest, though some states may have experienced
more attacks due to population size.
“Ransomware
remains a major threat to the health sector worldwide, with many healthcare
organizations operating legacy technology with limited security resources,” the
analyst note explained.
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https://www.healthcareitnews.com/news/one-rpm-experts-take-why-tech-needed-alongside-telehealth
One RPM expert's take on why the tech is needed alongside telehealth
The CEO of
remote patient monitoring company Vivify Health talks how RPM, virtual care and
analytics can improve outcomes and better move providers toward value-based
care.
By Bill Siwicki
October 20,
2021 10:30 AM
As
the COVID-19 pandemic struck in early 2020, healthcare provider organizations
across the country began implementing telehealth technologies and services en
masse. Telemedicine finally made it to the mainstream.
But
only a subset of that group of providers implemented remote patient monitoring.
Like telehealth, RPM can really improve care, gain efficiencies and trim costs.
And RPM provides visibility outside of the actual patient encounter.
Eric Rock
is CEO of remote patient monitoring company Vivify Health. He sat down with Healthcare
IT News to discuss how telehealth and RPM can work together, the
role analytics plays with RPM and the future of RPM.
Q.
You've suggested that many healthcare provider organizations have been
shortsighted during the pandemic, only implementing telehealth when they really
needed remote patient monitoring, too. Please elaborate.
A.
Early on in the pandemic, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
(CMS) extended telehealth waivers that helped bring virtual care services into
the mainstream. Unfortunately, when the pandemic subsides, it's likely those
waivers will go away.
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https://www.healthcareitnews.com/news/healthcare-groups-cheer-senate-progress-national-patient-id
Healthcare groups cheer Senate progress on national patient ID
The upper
chamber has followed the lead of the House of Representatives and removed a ban
on national identifier research from its newest appropriations bill. Patient ID
Now wants to maintain the momentum.
By Mike Miliard
October 20,
2021 10:13 AM
The
U.S. Senate has removed language prohibiting innovation around national patient
identification from its most recent appropriations bill. Health industry
stakeholders are applauding the move – and pushing for more progress toward
solving this longstanding interoperability challenge.
WHY IT
MATTERS
Patient
ID Now – a stakeholder group comprising HIMSS (parent company of Healthcare
IT News), the American College of Surgeons, the American Health
Information Management Association, the College of Healthcare Information
Management Executives, Intermountain Healthcare and Premier Healthcare Alliance
– cheered the removal of the ban from the Labor, Health and Human Services,
Education, and Related Agencies (Labor-HHS) appropriations bill.
Since
its founding in 2020, and even before that, Patient ID Now and its member groups
have sought to build bipartisan momentum toward enabling accurate patient
identification – starting first by removing the "antiquated"
legislative barriers blocking research into new strategies for unique patient
identification.
The
group has cast a spotlight on the many challenges caused by patient
misidentification: misfiled diagnoses, hobbled interoperability and, especially
during the pandemic, "duplicate health records created during the
vaccination registration process and disruptions in vaccine availability at
provider sites because of inaccurate patient documentation."
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https://www.healthcareittoday.com/2021/10/20/key-points-and-messages-from-new-cerner-ceos-first-public-address/
Key Points and Messages from New Cerner CEO’s First Public Address
October 20, 2021
John Lynn
At
the recent Cerner user conference, Dr. David Feinberg, new
CEO at Cerner addressed the Cerner community and shared at least his
initial vision for the organization. He recorded the address on day 3 on
the job, so no doubt this vision could change as he gets to know the company
better and refines his plans for the future. However, his initial thoughts
tell us a lot about what’s important to him and what he’ll likely focus on at
Cerner.
Dr.
Feinberg definitely leveraged the theme of the user conference in his
address: One Patient. One Community. One World. Plus he pointed out
an interesting perspective on the healthcare experience when he said
that “Healthcare is a personal, but shared experience.” That
dichotomy is quite fascinating. He also highlighted the importance of the
patient in what Cerner does. “Our job is to make sure caregivers around the
world have the right information to get their communities back to health. We do
that by keeping the patient at the center of everything we do.”
It
was interesting to have Dr. Feinberg acknowledge both the “promises” and the
“frustrations” of the digital age of care delivery. As a Cerner user in
his previous roles, he knew some of the promises that were made and how well
we’ve lived up to those promises. He certainly acknowledged that there’s
still more work to be done to fulfill those promises. Although, he
highlighted how his experience at Geisinger also taught him of what healthcare
can accomplish when they love their community. He said multiple times
that “Healthcare is about people caring for people.”
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https://ehrintelligence.com/news/how-ehr-data-standards-support-sdoh-data-quality-health-equity
How EHR Data Standards Support SDOH Data Quality, Health Equity
Standardized
EHR documentation practices for SDOH such as race and ethnicity could help
prevent data quality issues that can lead to bias.
By Hannah Nelson
October 19,
2021 - Social determinant of health (SDOH) data quality issues signal the
need for standardized SDOH EHR documentation practices to avoid bias and
promote health equity, according to a study
published in JAMIA.
Researchers
conducted a review of 76 studies related to SDOH
data quality.
The majority
of articles that discussed race, ethnicity, or country-of-origin data (65
percent) examined data plausibility, which refers to data accuracy.
Accurate
race/ethnicity data is key for clinical research, especially as the industry
continues its focus on SDOH data and health equity.
However,
researchers noted misclassification bias as a problem or a potential problem in
more than half of the articles about race/ethnicity data plausibility. What’s
more, several studies reported that implausible data and misclassification
errors were more likely for certain groups.
-----
https://mhealthintelligence.com/news/using-telehealth-for-pre-anesthesia-evaluations-for-cancer-patients
Using Telehealth for Pre-Anesthesia Evaluations for Cancer Patients
Cancer
patients who received pre-anesthesia evaluations via telehealth prior to surgery
saved time and money, Florida researchers found.
By Victoria Bailey
October 19,
2021 - Using telehealth to conduct pre-anesthesia evaluations for cancer
patients reduced travel and saved time and money while having no impact on
cancellation rates, according to a retrospective study
out of Florida’s H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center.
Patients
living with cancer travel frequently for lab work, imaging, surgeries, and
treatment, many of which are time-sensitive. Family members also experience
caregiver burdens and take time off work to assist with care and travel
arrangements.
Anesthesiologists
at Moffitt Cancer Center launched a telehealth program in the PreAnesthesia
Testing (PAT) Clinic in June 2020 in an attempt to facilitate care
access for cancer patients and their families.
The
Florida-based center is the only National Cancer Institute (NCI) Comprehensive
Cancer Center in the state. Studies have shown that CCCs produce better patient
outcomes and lower cancer mortality rates compared to non-CCC health systems.
These centers perform more complex surgeries with fewer complications, as well.
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https://healthitsecurity.com/news/30-nations-pledge-to-combat-ransomware-promote-cyber-resilience
30+ Nations Pledge to Combat Ransomware, Promote Cyber Resilience
The US,
along with more than 30 countries, pledged to improve cyber resilience, counter
illicit finance, and focus on diplomacy in order to combat ransomware threats.
By Jill McKeon
October 19,
2021 - President Biden met with world leaders from over 30 nations and
pledged to tackle ransomware threats and promote cyber resilience together,
according to a White House press
release. The countries agreed to focus resources and energy on improving
cyber hygiene, addressing illicit finance risks, and using diplomacy law
enforcement actions to stop cybercriminals.
Participating
countries included Australia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, the
Dominican Republic, Estonia, European Union, France, Germany, India, Ireland,
Israel, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Lithuania, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand,
Nigeria, Poland, Republic of Korea, Romania, Singapore, South Africa, Sweden,
Switzerland, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United
States.
“From malign
operations against local health providers that endanger patient care, to those
directed at businesses that limit their ability to provide fuel, groceries, or
other goods to the public, ransomware poses a significant risk to critical
infrastructure, essential services, public safety, consumer protection and
privacy, and economic prosperity,” the press release explained.
“As with
other cyber threats, the threat of ransomware is complex and global in nature
and requires a shared response. A nation’s ability to effectively prevent,
detect, mitigate and respond to threats from ransomware will depend, in part,
on the capacity, cooperation, and resilience of global partners, the private
sector, civil society, and the general public.”
-----
https://www.healthdatamanagement.com/articles/healthcare-grapples-with-enormity-complexity-of-information-blocking-rules
Healthcare grapples with enormity, complexity of information blocking
rules
Even without
enforcement provisions in place, many segments of the industry see challenges
in complying with regs that grant easier access to data.
Oct 19 2121
Diana Manos
The federal
government is aiming to put an end to the intentional blocking of patient data
through new rules established earlier this year, known as the information
blocking rules.
Executives of
some healthcare organizations that have begun preparing for and studying these
significant rules contend that they are overwhelmed by their far-reaching
nature, and they're pressing regulators for clarifications, even as they await
the second portion of the rules, which will detail how the regs will be
enforced.
The
provisions are implemented under two rules, one by the Department of Health and
Human Services (HHS), Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information
Technology (ONC), known as The ONC Cures Act Final Rule. The other, issued by
the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), is called the Implement
Interoperability and Patient Access Provisions of the Bipartisan 21st Century
Cures Act (Cures Act).
The rules
call for patient data to be readily available to patients for free upon request
via any method, including a smartphone app, and it sets the goal of punishing
any provider, health IT vendor, health information exchange or health
information network that blocks the exchange of these data. Disincentives and
penalties have yet to be announced.
-----
https://www.fiercehealthcare.com/tech/desalvo-baking-health-into-all-google-s-efforts-opens-door-to-billions-healthy-consumers
HLTH21: DeSalvo says baking health into all Google's efforts opens the
door to 'billions' of healthy consumers
by Dave Muoio
Oct 18, 2021
8:10am
Times
have certainly been turbulent for those working on health and wellness projects
at Google.
The
tech giant’s Google Health division underwent two reorgs this summer, the
latter of which resulted in department chief David Feinberg, M.D., jumping ship
to lead health IT company Cerner and the Google Health team being scattered
across the rest of the company’s health adjacent projects.
Internal
memos and comments from the company suggested Google was winding back its
siloed health approach to instead bake health-focused capabilities into its
various existing business lines—surfacing verified health information on
YouTube or providing care navigation help through Google Maps, for example.
Despite
the organizational shuffle, Chief Health Officer Karen DeSalvo, M.D., says the
company has done anything but scale back its health efforts.
-----
https://www.theverge.com/2021/10/18/22732615/health-record-app-hacks-patinet-data
Third-party health apps are vulnerable to hacks, report finds
When data
leaves patient health records, it’s less protected
By Nicole Wetsman Oct 18, 2021, 12:32pm EDT
Third-party
health apps that pull patient data from electronic health record systems are
vulnerable to hacks, according to a new report. The electronic
health records themselves, which are housed at health centers and subject to
the federal privacy law HIPAA, are well protected. But as soon as a patient
gives permission for their data to leave the health record and head toward a
third-party app — like programs that track people’s medications, for example —
it’s easy for hackers to access.
Hospitals
and health care systems are a major target for hackers, and attacks have only
escalated over the past few years. Patient health data is some of the most
valuable information to hackers: each record can be worth hundreds of
dollars on the dark web, in part because they can’t be changed easily and it’s
harder to detect when the data is used fraudulently. Credit card numbers, on
the other hand, can easily be changed and are only worth a few dollars.
For
this new report sponsored by app security company Approov, cybersecurity
analyst Alissa Knight checked for vulnerabilities in apps built using the Fast
Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR) standard, which was set up to
encourage information exchange in healthcare. She started by checking apps
built within the electronic health records themselves and didn’t find
weaknesses. But when she tested third-party programs that link up with health
records to pull out data, she found major problems. Knight was able to access
over 4 million patient and clinician records from over 25,000 providers through
those holes.
-----
https://www.healthcareitnews.com/news/philips-maternal-health-champion-discusses-digital-womens-health
Philips' maternal health champion discusses digital women's health
The digital
evolution of women's health is an important topic for all health IT leaders to
understand and embrace. Veronica Adamson provides a deep dive.
Bill Siwicki
October 19,
2021
In
the past five to 10 years, there has been an explosion in digital solutions in
maternal health. And it's not by coincidence. This is a space in desperate need
of innovation to help providers turn the tide of worsening outcomes.
Since the 1980s, maternal mortality has more than doubled in
the U.S., at-risk pregnancies have reached nearly ~30%, and costs
have exploded to more than $118 billion. Today, the No. 1 surgical procedure in
the U.S. is the C‑section.
The
digital evolution of women's health is a major trend today. Technology is
transforming obstetrical care by empowering clinicians, families and
communities.
Veronica
Adamson, head of the general care solutions business and maternal health
champion at Philips, talked with Healthcare IT News about the evolution and its
benefits, obstetrics, remote patient monitoring, and more.
-----
https://www.healthcareittoday.com/2021/10/19/big-bet-on-fhir-paying-off-for-smile-cdr/
Big Bet on FHIR Paying Off for Smile CDR
October 19, 2021
Colin Hung
Smile
CDR has built a clinical data repository that is completely based on the HL7
FHIR standard. The founders bet their entire company on this standard and that
bet is paying off. The company has grown from 5 employees to over 250 in just a
few years and recently closed a $20 Million Series A.
Healthcare
IT Today sat down with Duncan Weatherston, CEO of Smile CDR, just
ahead of their appearance at the #HLTH2021
conference down in Boston. We wanted to find out more about the company and
their solution that lets health systems, payers and hospitals store and share
information quickly and securely through APIs.
Company
Growth
Smile CDR was founded only five years ago,
in Toronto. In those early years they bootstrapped their way to success and
grew the company smartly. They now have over 250 employees across multiple
office locations. Their impressive client base stretches across 17 countries
and includes organizations like Change
Healthcare, Highmark, LabCorp, and an organization near and dear
to my
heart – the Government of Canada.
In
August 2021, the company closed $20 Million in Series A growth capital led by
30 North Group, a Seattle-based family office and UPMC Enterprises. The funds will
bolster the Smile CDRs sales and marketing efforts as well as supporting new
client implementations.
-----
https://ehrintelligence.com/news/joint-hie-fhir-adoption-support-data-sharing-for-veteran-care
Joint HIE, FHIR Adoption Support Data Sharing for Veteran Care
DOD and VA
FHIR adoption and a joint HIE have helped support data sharing for veteran care
coordination, according to FEHRM director Bill Tinston.
By Hannah Nelson
October 18,
2021 - The implementation of a joint HIE and FHIR adoption have helped
support data sharing for veteran care, Bill Tinston, director of the Federal
Electronic Health Record Modernization Effort (FEHRM), noted at a Cerner Health
Conference session.
As the DOD
and VA work to implement a single common federal EHR system for veterans,
Tinston explained that federal officials created a joint health information
exchange (HIE) to support interoperability with community healthcare providers.
This is especially critical given the MISSION Act, which allows veterans facing
extraordinary care access barriers to get that care a non-VA facilities.
Prior to the
creation of the joint HIE,
interoperability with community healthcare providers was relatively low among
VA and DOD healthcare organizations, Tinston noted.
“At this
point, we're at about 65 percent interoperability from a data perspective and
it appears to us that we're going to get well over 95 percent by the end of
this calendar year,” Tinston said.
-----
https://ehrintelligence.com/news/onc-shifts-svap-timeline-health-it-data-standards-coordination
ONC Shifts SVAP Timeline, Health IT Data Standards Coordination
ONC has
announced changes to its SVAP timeline to better support the health IT data
standards community.
By Hannah Nelson
October 18,
2021 - ONC has adjusted its Standards Version Advancement Process (SVAP)
timeline in order to support coordination across the health IT data standards
community, the agency wrote in a blog
post.
ONC
established SVAP in 2020 as part of the ONC Cures Act Final Rule. The
process allows health IT developers in the ONC Health IT Certification Program
to update their systems to support newer data
standards versions for interoperable health information exchange.
“While the
standards community has enthusiastically supported the SVAP concept, its
real-world use is new,” ONC officials Avinash Shanbhag and Jeff Smith wrote in
the blog post.
ONC’s Health
IT Certification Program includes data standards developed by numerous
organizations with their own standards development timelines. In addition, ONC
has finalized the first new version of the United States Core Data for
Interoperability (USCDI) version 2 and initiated the process to identify USCDI
version 3.
-----
https://healthitsecurity.com/news/hc3-applications-benefits-of-blockchain-in-healthcare
HC3: Applications, Benefits of Blockchain in Healthcare
Blockchain
in healthcare is tamper-resistant and shows extreme potential for ensuring
healthcare supply chain transparency and electronic health record management.
By Jill McKeon
October 18,
2021 - Blockchain technology is the basis of most cryptocurrencies, but
the Health Sector Cybersecurity Coordination Center’s (HC3) latest brief
suggested that blockchain has a multitude of useful applications in the
healthcare sector.
A blockchain
is a tamper-resistant, secure, and collaborative ledger that maintains
transactional records, HC3 explained. A block is a unit of data, or one record,
that contains a collection of transactions. When arranged with other blocks in
a specific order, a blockchain is formed.
Each block
contains data, a hash, and a previous hash. The purpose of the blockchain
dictates the type of data. A hash is a digital fingerprint that identifies the
block, and a previous hash links the current block to the previous block,
providing an extra security measure.
“A block is
connected to the previous one by including a unique identifier that is
based on the previous block’s data. As a result, if the data is changed in one
block, it’s unique identifier changes, which can be seen in every subsequent
block (providing tamper evidence),” the National Institute of Standards and
Technology (NIST) explains on its website.
-----
https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/960979
House Committee: Racial Bias in Clinical Decision Support 'Unacceptable'
Ken Terry
October 15, 2021
As
a rising chorus of healthcare experts decries the harmful racial bias in
clinical decision support tools (CDSTs), the House Ways and Means Committee has
released
a report spelling out in detail what the problem is, how it affects health
equity, and how healthcare stakeholders can address it.
Among
the issues described in the report is the widespread practice of applying
"racial correction" modifiers to clinical guidelines and algorithms
so as to adjust for the supposed biological differences among races and
ethnicities — an assumption that has been disproved by abundant scientific
evidence. For example, one CDST predicts the odds for success in a vaginal
birth after cesarean delivery at 80.9% for White women, 68.4% for Black women,
68.2% for Latina women, and 52.3% for women of mixed Black and Latina heritage.
The report notes that the rate of maternal mortality among Black, American
Indian, and Latina women is two to three times higher than the rate among White
women. The rate of cesarian delivery is also higher, despite the known health
benefits of vaginal delivery.
House
Ways and Means Committee Chair Richard Neal (D-MA) said in a
news release that the feedback he'd gotten on racial/ethnic bias from
medical societies and other industry voices was divergent. He said his
powerful committee is looking for ways to do something about the unequal
treatment of racial and ethnic minorities that has resulted from the bias in
CDSTs.
"One
thing is for certain: the status quo is unacceptable," Neal declared.
"Racial correction in clinical algorithms contributes to worse outcomes
for patients of color receiving treatment for a broad range of conditions, from
cancer, to osteoporosis, to end-stage renal disease, to child birth. The Ways
and Means Committee remains committed to working with stakeholders and
advancing policies that prioritize justice and equity in our health care
system."
-----
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-10-14/u-s-shifting-pandemic-tracking-back-to-cdc-after-trump-move?sref=s4jM8V8F
U.S. Moves Pandemic Data Tracking to CDC, Reversing Trump
By Riley
Griffin
15 October
2021, 8:49 am AEDT
‘HHS
Protect’ platform to shift into the oversight of CDC
Biden
administration aims to stabilize pandemic data systems
The Biden
administration is moving the U.S. government’s largest public-health tracking
system back to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, undoing a
much-criticized move by the Trump administration to shift custody of critical
data from the nation’s top epidemiological agency.
According to
a document obtained by Bloomberg News, the Department of Health and Human
Services on Oct. 1 signed off on a recommendation to move the system, designed
to track pandemic data, out of the management of its own Office of the Chief
Information Officer and into CDC’s oversight. The shift comes in the wake of
scrutiny over the federal government’s handling of public health data
infrastructure, and is intended to ensure long-term stability and ownership of
the data system.
Designed
under the Trump administration through a contract with Palantir
Technologies Inc., the system, called HHS Protect, monitors real-time data
from federal, state and local sources to track the needs of the American
health-care system. Co-founded by billionaire Peter Thiel, Palantir has numerous
deals with government agencies, including the National Nuclear Security
Administration, the Coast Guard and the Federal Aviation Administration.
The platform
pulls information from more than 6,000 hospitals on Covid-19 cases and
vaccination rates as well as the use of intensive-care unit beds, testing,
vaccines, therapeutics and personal protective equipment. With more than
500,000 data points per day, often down to the facility level, HHS Protect has
helped federal health officials across both administrations determine where
supplies should be allocated. It’s also been made available to non-government
entities via the HHS Protect Public Data Hub.
-----
https://www.healthcareitnews.com/news/telehealth-has-been-key-primary-care-clinicians-are-still-feeling-hopeless
Telehealth has been key for primary care, but clinicians are still feeling
hopeless
Providers
report burnout and compassion fatigue amidst the ongoing COVID-19 crisis,
especially regarding conversations with vaccine-hesitant patients.
By Kat Jercich
October 18,
2021 12:07 PM
A
survey published by the Larry A. Green Center and the Primary Care Collective
found that telemedicine has been vital to maintaining patient access to services for
almost two-thirds of primary care clinicians – and many providers worry what
will happen if pre-pandemic regulations are restored.
According
to the survey, which drew on answers from 1,263 respondents
from nearly every state, the pressures of providing care amidst COVID-19 have
continued to weigh heavily on primary care clinicians.
"Burnout
and a sense of hopelessness and compassion fatigue [are] escalating as this
next COVID surge continues. We thought there was light at the end of the tunnel
once the vaccine was available, but the pandemic continues to escalate,"
said one clinician in Illinois.
WHY IT
MATTERS
This
survey is the thirtieth of its kind since PCC and the Green Center teamed
up to better understand the impact of COVID-19 in real time.
This
particular round focused on the effect of the Delta surge on patients and
providers, and the role virtual care can play in addressing such a burden.
-----
https://www.healthcareitnews.com/news/asia/future-proofing-healthcare-top-mind-himss21-apac-kicks
Future-proofing healthcare top of mind as HIMSS21 APAC kicks off
Opening
address speakers set the tone for the event by emphasising how digital
technologies can help build sustainable healthcare.
By Thiru
Gunasegaran
October 18,
2021 01:43 AM
HIMSS21
APAC started with Benedict Tan, Group Chief Digital Strategy Officer and Chief
Data Officer at SingHealth in Singapore sharing that with COVID-19, it has
become urgent to reimagine better health systems, to future-proof healthcare,
and to harness ingenuity with digital technologies.
He
went on to say that many significant digital health developments have taken
place in the Asia-Pacific recently, in areas such as personalised healthcare
and innovative healthcare. Additionally, in a HIMSS APAC digital health survey published earlier this
year, it was found that Australia, South Korea and Singapore were role models
for digital health in the region.
Hal
Wolf, President and CEO of HIMSS mentioned that before the pandemic, digital
health tools like telemedicine were critical as they addressed geographic
displacement, providing increased access to urban and rural areas.
"The
pandemic changed our perceptions of how to incorporate digital health – a
simple example is the increased use of telehealth of outpatient
appointments," he said.
-----
https://histalk2.com/2021/10/15/weekender-10-15-21/
Weekly News Recap
- Intelerad acquires Ambra.
- Healthcare Triangle shares drop
after IPO.
- GetWellNetwork renames itself to Get
Well.
- A security researcher documents
widespread security vulnerabilities in FHIR APIs.
- Best Buy announces its planned
acquisition of Current Health.
- Cerner President and CEO David
Feinberg, MD, MBA kicks off the virtual Cerner Health Conference with a
call to “eliminate the noise in healthcare.”
- SSM Health outsources services, including
digital transformation and RCM, to Optum and will send 2,000 employees to
the company.
- The VA contracts for a year-long
cost review of its Cerner implementation.
-----
Enjoy!
David.