OPINION: Health boss needs applause not criticism

BRITISH Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli once said: “There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.”

How right he was; statistics can be twisted to say almost anything you want.

Take the West Moreton Health 2015-16 budget blowout of $8 million for instance.

At first look it seems that local Health CE Sue McKee failed badly in keeping a tight rein on her budget.

Instead she should be highly praised because despite a 21% increase in the call for extra services she kept the overspend to less than 2%.

Ms McKee’s budget planning dilemma is that she can only take an educated guess at how many more services she will need to provide in the year ahead. For the full article click here 

 

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Healthcare IT industry news in brief

In this week’s round-up of industry news we look at a big pathology contract in London, some good financial results for a major primary care supplier and a few new appointments to bring a patient sensor software product to market.

Sunquest chosen for North West London pathology
US-based Sunquest Information Systems has signed a £14.4 million contract to provide laboratory information systems for pathology across North West London. The system will be deployed across one central laboratory hub for non-urgent and specialist work and six ‘spoke’ laboratories providing 24/7 cover for the area.

The North West London Pathology Consortium is a shared service formed by Hillingdon Hospitals and Chelsea and Westminster NHS foundation trusts, and the Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust. The Sunquest system will be integrated with other clinical systems and include statistics, reporting, and customer relationship management packages. For the full article click here 

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Congress says HHS has to step up efforts to secure nation’s medical records

The Government Accountability Office, responding to an inquiry by Congress, made it “official” this week: HHS has failed to protect the privacy and security of electronic patient records from hackers, data thieves and voyeurs.

Privacy and security gurus praised the GAO for taking an unflinching look at the dual role HHS plays as both a promoter of health information technology use and the primary enforcer of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, the federal privacy, security and breach notification law.

The report, experts say, should come as one more warning to the healthcare industry to better protect sensitive patient information before Congress, the courts or their own patients take action.

“The findings are just what I’ve been saying for the last 14 years. HIPAA was just terribly implemented,” said privacy lawyer Jim Pyles, a partner in Potter Pyles Sutter & Verville in Washington. He added that hospitals and practitioners adopted IT systems that “everyone knew couldn’t be made secure.” For the full article click here 

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Demonstrating ROI in Health IT

Not all health IT translates to an immediate ROI.

For example, the financial benefits ofimplementing electronic health records (EHRs)or population health management platformsmay not be experienced for several years down the road. Even some revenue cycle applications do not immediately translate to hard-dollar cost savings until months later.

Leading in health IT means clearly demonstrating the ROI of the chosen technology, especially when confronting a major healthcare spending challenge, such as purchased services. Although purchased services comprises more than 35% of a healthcare organization’s non-labor budget, few hospitals are able to accurately determine where those millions of dollars are going, let alone find savings opportunities.

The existing IT solutions to manage such spending, such as spreadsheets and generic reporting tools, are inadequate to provide timely, reliable and comprehensive analysis across the thousands of potential service vendors. To demonstrate knowledge and leadership, health information professionals need to identify technology for their hospitals that allows them to easily visualize spending across this enormous amount of data to find savings opportunities and a real ROI. For the full article click here 

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Uber teams with Circulation to transport patients to doctor’s appointments

Circulation, a Boston-based startup, aligned with Uber to provide nonemergency transportation for patients in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Delaware, the companies announced Tuesday.

Circulation’s HIPAA-compliant platform will connect Uber with patients, care coordinators and providers. It also integrates with Uber’s API and has been chosen as Uber’s preferred healthcare platform partner.

The partnership is part of Circulation’s pilot program, designed to reduce the number of missed doctor’s appointments for disabled, elderly or low-income patients. According to the announcement, the program will be piloted at Boston Children’s Hospital, Mercy Health System and elderly care program in Pennsylvania and Nemours Children’s Health System in Wilmington, Delaware. For the full article click here 

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Esty proposes changes to US House water quality bill to help Connecticut

WASHINGTON >> The U.S. House of Representatives is expected to vote on a water quality bill this week, and U.S. Rep. Elizabeth Esty, D-5, has proposed some amendments that will bring more help to Connecticut.

“Water quality is a longstanding problem in Connecticut and throughout the northeast,” Esty said in a press release Tuesday. “Poor water quality doesn’t just threaten public health; it jeopardizes our fisheries, limits recreation opportunities, and is a drag on our economy.”

The first amendment to the Water Resources Development Act that Esty proposed this week targets the health of natural waterways. The amendment would add a stipulation that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers prepare a management plan to restore estuaries, bays, rivers, ponds and other bodies of water so as to contribute to the restoration of fish and ecosystem health.

This amendment was co-sponsored by Reps. Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ) and Lee Zeldin (R-NY), according to Esty’s office. For the full article click here 

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Making Sense of Data Analytics Development Now

The Chartis Group’s Mary Jo Morrison shares her perspectives on the gaps around data analytics work

Industry observers agree: the leveraging of data analytics is in an early and frankly, rather challenging, phase in U.S. healthcare. The leaders of patient care organizations that are plunging into the development of accountable care organizations (ACOs), other risk-based types of contracting, and every form of population health and care management, are beginning to work through myriad obstacles to try to achieve success.

And success in such contracting and population-based work inevitably requires excellent data analytics. But, as patient care leaders are learning, marrying clinical data, including from electronic records (EHRs), with claims-based data, is turning out to be far more complex and challenging than many imagined.

Not surprisingly, patient care leaders are turning en masse to expert consultants to help them sort through the issues and plow ahead. Among the legion of consultants working with healthcare leaders is Mary Jo Morrison, a principal in The Chartis Group, a Chicago-based consulting firm. Morrison, who is based in Minneapolis, has spent more than two decades participating in analytics work, operational improvement, and strategic improvement, in patient care organizations. Most recently, Morrison served as vice president of performance measures at Allina Health in Minneapolis. In that role, she identified opportunities for clinical and operational improvement through data analytics and data mining. She joined The Chartis Group in June. For the full article click here 

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Feds release guide for providers on negotiating EHR contracts

Healthcare providers in the market for an electronic health record system can prepare and plan for their purchase with a new guide released Monday by federal health officials.

“EHR Contracts Untangled,” published by the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, lays out the issues surrounding EHR selection and contract negotiation so providers can “maximize the value” of their health technology investments.

The guide also includes information on planning for EHR purchases, safety and security, data rights and managing liability. The release comes at a key time, with more long-term care providers migrating toward more sophisticated record-keeping systems in order to keep in line with federal mandates. For the full article click here 

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Under value-based care, what is the ROI of telemedicine? “We just don’t know.”

A virtual visit can be just as real as one in a physician’s office believes Thanh Nguyen, a family nurse practitioner with Providence Health eXpress in Oregon. But unlike a clinic visit whose economics ia fairly well understood, the jury is still out on the return on investment of telemedicine.

While speaking at the recently-concluded American Association of Nurse Practitioners’ Specialty & Leadership conference last week in Rosemont, Illinios, Nguyen recalled how — during a session with an emotional patient — she found herself leaning over to hand the person a box of tissues before realizing they were not physically in the same room.

In addition to sharing her personal stories and giving tips on the importance of maintaining eye contact across cyberspace, Nguyen offered her assessment of the state of healthcare’s use of telemedicine tools and the role NPs can play in advancing their adoption. For the full article click here 

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What Price Target Did Brokers Issue On Evolent Health, Inc (NYSE:EVH) This Week?

Recently stock market analysts updated their outstanding price targets on shares of Evolent Health, Inc (NYSE:EVH).

08/05/2016 – Evolent Health, Inc had its “outperform” rating reiterated by analysts at FBR Capital Markets. They now have a USD 26 price target on the stock.

07/26/2016 – Jefferies began new coverage on Evolent Health, Inc giving the company a “buy” rating. They now have a USD 28 price target on the stock.

07/13/2016 – Evolent Health, Inc had its “outperform” rating reiterated by analysts at Leerink Swann. They now have a USD 20 price target on the stock.

03/14/2016 – Evolent Health, Inc had its “overweight” rating reiterated by analysts at JP Morgan. They now have a USD 19 price target on the stock.

02/26/2016 – Evolent Health, Inc had its “buy” rating reiterated by analysts at Canaccord Genuity. They now have a USD 22 price target on the stock. For the full article click here 

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Church Gresley eye cancer survivor Katie, 8, shows support for National Eye Health Week

A schoolgirl who battled a rare cancer that left her blind in one eye has shown her support for charity while raising awareness for National Eye Health week.

Katie Boyce, eight, of Church Gresley, was diagnosed with retinoblastoma in both her eyes when she was two-years-old. Her mum Jamie, 29, and dad Ryan, 30, assumed she had a squint but, after getting her checked and being referred to hospital, were told that she had eye cancer. Katie needed chemotherapy and now only has sight in her right eye.

Jamie said: “Katie is an inspiration. She is very passionate about eye health. It is quite strange because she is usually quite shy but she absolutely loves helping others and I think the campaign has taught her a lot about herself too and the importance of looking after your eyes.” For the full article click here

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OSU extension specialist: More emphasis needed on West Nile Virus

Ohioans might consider shifting concern over mosquito-borne illness from the much-discussed Zika virus to the not-as-much-discussed West Nile virus.

That’s according to an Ohio State University extension specialist, who urged residents to eliminate mosquito-breeding sites around their homes and take other precautions to combat both diseases.

“That’s something that’s going to benefit us, regardless [of which disease you’re working to prevent],” said Joe Boggs, who offered an update on Zika during an entomology talk at this year’s Farm Science Review near London, about a half-hour west of Columbus.

To date, the Ohio Department of Health has confirmed more than 40 cases of Zika. All but one were contracted in other countries; the lone exception was believed to be transmitted via sexual activity.

And the reason why? “The mosquito that spreads Zika is not found in Ohio,” Boggs said. For the full article click here

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Universities UK response to HEPI paper on mental health support

Nicola Dandridge, Chief Executive of Universities UK, said institutions were aware of the challenges students experienced.

“An unfamiliar environment, new responsibilities and a new lifestyle can be stressful. This is particularly true for those who already have a pre-existing or underlying illness and may find it difficult to gain access to NHS services away from home. But calls to increase investment in student support services miss the point.

“At Universities UK, we have established a working group, chaired by Professor Steve West, Vice-Chancellor of the University of the West of England, to devise a strategic approach to student wellbeing and mental health. It will set guidelines for the co-commissioning of services for students by NHS providers, including specialised mental health services, GPs and universities. It will also identify and share examples of good practice across a range of areas, from student services to interventions. For the full article click here 

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EHR Health Data Collection to Impact Health Industry Shift

At iHT2-Toronto, Delving Into the Complexity of Data Security Issues, at the Provider and Policy Levels

Data security continues to ramp up as a key strategic and tactical issue for healthcare IT leaders across Canada, a panel of industry experts agreed, on Sep. 21, during the first day of the Health IT Summit in Toronto, sponsored by the Institute for Health Technology Transformation (iHT2—a sister organization to Healthcare Informatics under the Vendome Group corporate umbrella), and being held at the Omni King Edward Hotel in downtown Toronto.

The panel discussion was led by Shirley Fenton, vice president and director of the National Institutes of Health Informatics (NIHI—based in Waterloo, Ont.), who is one of the three co-chairs of the Health IT Summit in Toronto. Joining her on the panel were Brendan Seaton, president of the Mississauga, Ont.-based ITAC Health (the Information Technology Association of Canada, Canada’s national healthcare IT vendor association), Alyssa Daku, vice president of strategy, quality, and risk management, ateHealth Saskatchewan (Regina), and Geoff Besko, managing director and enterprise architect at Hilltop Business Solutions (Winnipeg).

Shirley Fenton began the discussion by asking, “How are people’s attitudes towards privacy and security changing now?” ITAC Health’s Seaton said, “A lot of surveys have been funded by Canada’s Health Infoway, and it’s pretty much an axiom that there is significant demand for digital health solutions among the public. However, privacy and security do top the list of consumer concerns. That’s sort of where we are,” he said. For the full article click here 

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What Is the Value Proposition of Adopting A Behavioral Health EHR?

Editor’s Note: D’Arcy Guerin Gue is a co-founder of Phoenix, with over 25 years of experience in executive leadership, strategic planning, IT services, knowledge leadership, and industry  relations —  with a special focus on patient engagement and federal compliance issues. She currently serves as the Director of Industry Relations at Phoenix Health Systems, a division of Medsphere Systems

No, there is no Meaningful Use for behavioral health hospitals, and yes, some mental health clinicians remain skeptical about the proposed value of EHR.

And yet a steadily increasing number of behavioral health facilities nationwide have adopted an EHR to improve patient care and organization performance. According to a recent Behavioral Healthcare survey, most are satisfied with the decision to make an EHR part of their daily routine. For the full article click here 

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Accenture group wins $286M VA IT service desk contract

The Department of Veteran Affairs awarded ASM Research a $286-million contract to support its National Service Desk, a key component of the department’s MyVA strategy.

Through the contract, ASM will operate VA’s front-line support for IT services, systems and operations that the National Service Desk provides to more than 350,000 VA employees.

One of Accenture Federal Services’ subsidiaries, ASM’s core areas of business are in human capital systems and support, health IT, enterprise IT systems, and cybersecurity.

The contract has a nine-month base period worth $36.5 million and three one-year options to extend. For the full article click here 

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Bloomberg charity donates $300m to create new public health initiative at Johns Hopkins

Bloomberg Philanthropies, the charity organization founded by former three-term New York mayor Michael Bloomberg, will provide a $300 million grant to the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, to establish a health initiative aimed at improving public health by providing funding for new students, researchers and practitioners.

According to a statement released by the school, the newly created Bloomberg American Health Initiative will focus on five issues currently affecting public health — drug addition, obesity, gun violence, adolescent health and environmental threats.

“People are living longer lives than ever before in history, thanks in no small part to the pioneering public health work done at Johns Hopkins over the last century,” Bloomberg said in a press release. “But we can and must do better, starting here in the U.S., where life expectancy is lagging behind much of the developed world. By spreading smart public health strategies that save lives and bringing people together to try new approaches, we can make the same strides in the 21st century against health threats like air pollution, gun violence and obesity that we did in the 20th century against polio and other infectious diseases.” For the full article click here 

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Communication App Helps Patients Voice Their Needs

An innovative tablet-based application offers intubated and ventilated intensive care unit (ICU) patients a way to converse with their medical staff.

The “Speak for Myself” app enables a patient to communicate to the ICU or critical care staff pain levels, feelings of fear and loneliness, and physical needs, such as suctioning, repositioning needs, and requests for toileting. When a patient touches the screen to indicate the location of pain on a body graphic, a voice says ‘it hurts here’ and indicates pain levels experienced. Patients can also type single words, phrases, or full sentences to communicate their needs. The software is also predictive so that if a patient begins to enter a word, the program will anticipate and present likely solutions.

A pilot study of the app, conducted at Florida Atlantic University (Boca Raton, USA), demonstrated the importance of communication, as well as the disconnect between what health care providers think patients want to say and what they actually want to communicate. In one example, a patient who reported unresolved pain in the back of his throat had a twisted nasogastric tube that was causing distress. The study was published in the August 2016 issue of Computers, Informatics, Nursing. For the full article click here 

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What Lessons Can NHS Learn From U.S. Implementation of Health IT?

Group recommends development of a workforce of trained clinician-informaticists with appropriate resources and authority An advisory group chaired by Robert Wachter, M.D., a professor and interim chairman of the Department of Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, has made 10 recommendations to the National Health Service (NHS) in England on how to move forward implementing digital health technology. One recommendation is setting an ambitious goal of 2023 for having robust clinical information systems implemented across NHS with a high degree of interoperability. Another is the development of a workforce of trained clinician-informaticists with appropriate resources and authority.

An ambitious British program to digitize healthcare – the National Programme for Information Technology (NPfIT), launched in 2002 – was shut down in 2011 after having mostly failed to achieve its goals, the advisory group’s report notes. In late 2015, the National Advisory Group on Health Information Technology in England was formed to advise the Department of Health and NHS England on its efforts to digitize the “secondary care system.” The advisory group led by Dr. Wachter had strong representation from the United States, including For the full article click here 

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10 Vermont health centers get funding for IT improvements

MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) — Ten Vermont health centers will be sharing more than $548,000 in federal funding for health information technology upgrades.

The funding announced Thursday by the U.S. Health and Human Services secretary is part of $87 million going to 1,310 health centers in every state, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and the Pacific Basin.

The department says the funding will go toward enhancing health information technology to improve the sharing and use of information for better decisions and to accelerate health centers’ switch to value-based models of care. For the full article click here 

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Obese Kiwi kids showing signs of serious health problems, study reveals

Obese New Zealand children are showing signs from a young age that they are at risk of developing serious weight-related problems, such as Type 2 diabetes, heart, and liver disease, a study says.

It is the first study to show the prevalence of these risk factors in obese New Zealand children, its authors say.

Published in the Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health, it looked at the health and well-being of more than 200 obese children aged between four and 16 taking part in the Whanau Pakari programme in Taranaki over 12 months.

Researchers found:

* 75 per cent had signs of inflammation, increasing long-term heart disease risk

* 40 per cent had physical signs of high risk for Type 2 diabetes

* 47 per cent had at least one abnormal liver function test

* 11 per cent had abnormal blood pressure

* 50 per cent snored four or more nights a week – suggestive of obstructive sleep apnoea. For the full article click here 

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Healthcare IT news in brief

In this week’s round-up of digital healthcare news, we look at added functionality for the NHS e-referral service, a new messaging service at Pennine and an initative to help patients fill out their pre-op assessment at home.

New APIs planned for e-Referral process
NHS Digital says it will soon by easy for Health IT systems to plug into is national e-referral service, with the development of new APIs. Instead of needing a separate log-in to use the service, the APIs, which will be piloted by the end of the year, should allow clinicians access within their existing systems.

Other new functions being developed include allowing users to attach messages to referrals and a “capacity alert”, that will help direct patient to services likely to respond quickly. In its first year, NHS Digital says the service has handled 10 million referrals and saved the NHS £10m. For the full article click here 

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Humana’s Bold Goal population health program seeks to topple barriers to healthy living

Your grandfather’s health insurance company may have just processed claims, but not today’s insurers.

Take the example of Humana. the Louisville, Kentucky insurer. Two years ago, Humanalaunched a population health initiative with a focus on prevention and slowing the progression of chronic diseases. Food insecurity, transportation resources, and health literacy are a few of the priorities the Bold Goals program seeks to address through community partnerships.

Typically population health efforts zero in on prevention and stabilization of disease, but from Andrew Renda’s perspective as the director of Humana’s Bold Goal Measurement, this approach has some significant drawbacks. For the full article click here 

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Improving mental health for pregnant women will help babies, too, new partnership says

An Edmonton hospital and a Calgary university are joining forces to expand research into mental health issues faced by women during and after pregnancy.

“We are well positioned to be a leader in Canada … but we need to listen to the science,” said Dawn Kingston, who was announced Wednesday as the Lois Hole Hospital for Women Cross-Provincial Chair in Perinatal Mental Health. “The science has allowed us to understand that if we improve pregnant women’s mental health, it improves outcomes for women and it improves outcomes for babies.”

The establishment of the research chair is a joint initiative of the Royal Alexandra Hospital Foundation and the University of Calgary’s faculty of nursing.

Kingston said experts used to believe that the main problem faced by new and expectant mothers was postpartum depression, which is where most treatment efforts are still focused. For the full article click here 

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VR technology: are you impressed yet?

Maneesh Juneja is inspired. What about? Well, the self-confessed ‘digital futurist’ used to associate virtual reality (VR) with computer games and simply as a tool for entertainment – and was pretty nonplussed about its applications inhealthcare. But, reading about and seeing some of the new applications of the technology, he realises that it can no longer be so easily dismissed.

It took a tweet by US CTO, Susannah Fox, following a TED talk by ‘immersive storyteller’ Chris Milk, to pique his interest in the technology and its applications for immersive health. She was really impressed with the talk, entitled “How Virtual reality can create the ultimate empathy machine”.

VR and empathy

“Life is in 360, so why shouldn’t our experiences be in 360 too?” says Juneja in his blog post. “I was sceptical that putting on a VR headset could generate empathy for others. In his TED talk, Milk showed the ‘Clouds over Sidra‘ VR experience he created, and after viewing it in VR, I was very surprised at how it made me feel.” For the full article click here 

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PIH Health Welcomes New Board of Directors Members

Whittier, Calif. (September 13, 2016) – PIH Health is pleased to announce the addition of three new members to its fiscal year 2016-17 Board of Directors—Charlotte Weaver, Jeff Hamar and Patrick Monroe.  Their terms will begin on October 1, 2016.

“Our newest Board members are highly-qualified individuals who will contribute their ideas and best-practices to our enterprise,” said Jim West, President and Chief Executive Officer, PIH Health.  “Their leadership will help PIH Health provide outstanding care to our communities.”

Charlotte Weaver has more than 25 years of experience in patient safety and quality, evidence-based practices and healthcare automation in acute, ambulatory and post-acute care centers. She is active in health IT policy and legislative efforts. She holds a PhD in Medical Anthropology from the University of California, an MSPH in Epidemiology, a BA in Anthropology from the University of Washington, and a nursing diploma from St. Elizabeth’s School of Nursing. For the full article click here 

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Personal perception of health varies among men and women

Men and women self-rate their health differently — and this might explain in part why women live longer — according to a recent University of Michigan study.

The study found women rate themselves as less healthy more often than men, even though women tend to live longer. The study, therefore, could predict mortality better in men who viewed themselves as extremely healthy, perhaps because they were more likely not to seek medical help.

Initially designed to compare health between Black and white people, the study followed 1,500 adults ages 66 and older for three years between 2001 and 2004 and discovered that gender differences play a large role in subjectively predicting risk of mortality later in life. For the full article click here 

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‘Data sharing really helps us,’ plead health researchers

[London, UK] – Patients have been urged to back plans for wider sharing of their information.

That’s not to help ‘Big Pharma’ develop new drugs off the back off NHS resources, though – but to help researchers find ways to help us all.

The plea comes from the organisation that represents UK medical research not-for-profit organisations, the Association of Medical Research Charities (AMRC) – over 33 of them, who spend £1.3bn a year on research.

“As the collective voice for health and medical research charities in the UK, AMRC believes it is vital to demonstrate the power of health information for research,” its website says. For the full article click here 

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Teleconsultations – How Much Power To The Patient?

Figures suggest a growing trend for people turning to the web to consult doctors. A recent survey by Push Doctor found that 62% of Brits have used online technology to access healthcare, either through online consultations, accessing medical records, booking appointments or ordering repeat prescriptions.

A new way of patients engaging with physicians is also emerging. Patient needs doctor, waiting list is long, so patient looks for treatment and/ or consultation online or by phone first – teleconsultation.

Teleconsultation is possible and reimbursed, or at least somewhat reimbursed, in a few European countries, including the UK, Switzerland and Finland. It is, however, not currently allowed in Germany, though some sources suggest that this may soon change. In other countries, including France, it is permitted to an extent, but not reimbursed. For the full article click here 

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Health Check: can vitamins supplement a poor diet?

Vitamins and minerals are essential for keeping us in good health. While eating a varied diet should give us all the nutrients we need, recent diet and health surveys show the typical Australian diet is far from varied – or even close to what is considered a healthy diet.

To the rescue come vitamin and mineral supplements, but can they deliver on their promises and are they for everyone?

Who needs a supplement?

When writing about supplements, a glib approach is to state we can get everything we need from food, so we don’t need them. Eat your veggies. Don’t take supplements. End of story.

That isn’t the whole story, though. Already, our food supply is fortifiedwith folic acid, iodine and thiamin to prevent serious public health issues related to conditions arising from deficiencies of these nutrients in some groups of people. So the rationale of needing to supplement for best health has some validity, but is underpinned by our generally poor eating habits to begin with. For the full article click here 

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5 Best Practices for Human-Centered Design in Healthcare

Designing a product is a complicated undertaking. Designing a product for the healthcare industry, which is known for its complexity and layers of regulation, can be downright daunting. Especially when we are seeking to drive human behavior change like tobacco cessation, or even a basic action such as getting a flu shot. We are all different, with unique interests, motivations and environmental factors that affect the healthcare choices we make every day. Health IT needs to take that into consideration, but how? The answer: Human-centered design.

Human-centered design prioritizes empathy for the end-user. In other words, we have to understand what drives an individual’s behavior: What motivates him? What’s most important to her?, etc. The goal is no longer usability; it’s desirability. Technology is the enabler, but design is the engager.

In order to achieve engaging, human-centered consumer design, design teams or vendors should follow these five best practices  For the full article click here 

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Concerns over Clinton’s health renewed

TUCSON, Ariz. – Amid the mudslinging of the 2016 election, one conspiracy continues to arise – is Hillary Clinton healthy enough to serve as president?

An unofficial poll conducted by the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons was released Thursday.

In the poll, titled Concerns About Candidate Health, 250 physicians weighed in with their unofficial diagnosis of the 68-year-old Democratic nominee.

Over 91% of the doctors polled said they are aware of the concerns raised regarding Clinton’s fitness to hold the office. For the full article click here 

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A closer look at the 30 mergers and acquisitions of 2016

This year is shaping up to be a big one for acquisitions, if not for the money (many are for undisclosed amounts) but for sheer volume. We’ve seen 30 so far, and with a little over three months to go, 2016 may well end up eclipsing 2015’s total of 37 deals. Rather than just list the companies, we’ve broken them down into different categories based on who the acquirer is, to try to outline some trends. We also spoke with some investors for their take on the digital health  M&A landscape. You can check out their insight here.

Healthcare Outsiders

We saw several companies not traditionally associated with health getting in on the growing digital health market via acquisitions, ranging from high profile tech companies to pet food makers.  Of such acquisitions, the most high-profile was likely Apple’s acquisition of PHR company Gliimpse. The company helps people collect the “bread crumbs” of their health data in one centralized repository. Ever since Apple launched its HealthKit framework in mid-2014, the company has seen enabling health data sharing as its entry point into healthcare, and Gliimpse fits right into those plans. Apple also has a history of working with EHRs, most notably Epic, to integrate HealthKit data. Gliimpse’s code could help Apple products to more easily interact with hospital systems, or it could bolster safety and security for the company, as those are also major selling points of Gliimpse. This is a small deal for Apple, which one investor we talked to described as likely an acqui-hire. For the full article click here 

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19 States to Receive CDC Funding to Improve Population Health

New Federal CISO Set to Bolster National Cybersecurity Measures

The White House announced the first federal CISO this week, part of the administration’s larger efforts to improve the country’s cybersecurity measures.

Brigadier General (retired) Gregory J. Touhill was announced as the first Federal CISO earlier this week, and is expected to continue the push toward stronger national cybersecurity measures.  Touhill is currently the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Cybersecurity and Communications in the Office of Cybersecurity and Communications (CS&C) at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The White House explained in a statement that while great progress has been made in bolstering cybersecurity, such as establishing the Commission on Enhancing National Cybersecurity, there is still much more work to be done. For the full article click here 

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House panel receptive to VA reform proposals

House Veterans Affairs Committee members voiced support Tuesday for recommendations by a congressional panel to reform VA health services, to include improvements to the current setup of government hospitals and private doctors that provide care to veterans.

But committee members differed on the scope of the new collaborative system, with some Democrats arguing that the Commission on Care’s proposal, to give all eligible veterans access to private networks as well as Veterans Affairs facilities, would divert funds from VA hospitals and clinics.

In July, the Commission on Care released a report with 18 recommendations to improve veterans medical services and the Veterans Health Administration. For the full article click here 

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Hunt announces online NHS 111 services

(Manchester, UK) – The Health Secretary detailed plans for the digital expansion of the non-emergency NHS 111 helpline, which will allow patients to enter symptoms online and receive customised advice or a call back from a health professional.

When the NHS.uk website is relaunched in an updated form, patients will be able to book appointments, access medical records and order prescriptions online. Patients will also be able to access “Ofsted style” data to compare how well their local health services perform in areas of dementia, diabetes and learning disability services.

Hunt, speaking at the Health and Care Innovation Expo 2016 in Manchester, said the new plans “will make it easier for patients to get medical support and information they need, and should encourage more of us to use the growing range of online NHS services available.

“We live in the age of the smartphone, and we want the NHS to reflect that. For the full article click here 

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Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health consolidates IT infrastructure with VMware

The Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) Thailand, the lead agency for developing the country’s healthcare system, to enable better health for the local population, has deployed VMware vSphere and VMware Horizon to consolidate its IT infrastructure for better management, performance and increased savings on operational expenditure.

MoPH’s aims to leverage information and communication technology (ICT) to improve the quality and coordination of healthcare services, allowing better access and more affordable care for patients, providers and facilitators. This strategy is closely aligned to that of the World Health Organization (WHO), according to the agency. It also supports the Thai government’s overall vision for “Digital Thailand,” which promotes the use of digital technology to create new opportunities for economic growth and improve the delivery of government services for its people. For the full article click here 

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2 ways health IT is changing diabetes management

With medical expenditures for diabetes reaching $176 billion, it is one of the most costly conditions in the U.S. Due to increasing obesity rates as well as issues surrounding lifestyle choices, the condition has become more and more prevalent as the number of American diabetics saw a fourfold increase from 1998 to 2014. About 22 million people in the country had diabetes as of 2014, compared with just 15.2 million in 2004 (an increase of about 30%), and 75,578 Americans died from the disease in 2013, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported.

The costs associated with diabetes are alarming not just because they are high, but also because providing care for diabetics has been getting more expensive in a relatively short amount of time. In 2014, spending for diabetics who are covered by employer-sponsored insurance increased at a faster pace than spending for non-diabetics, totaling $16,021 per capita, according to a June study from the Health Care Cost Institute (HCCI). For the full article click here 

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Music festival raises funds, awareness to fight suicide

NEW MUNSTER — An assortment of lively music — from bluegrass-tinged gospel to string bands and more — had toes tapping, but it was also the message of support that had people coming out Sunday to the seventh annual Labor of Love Music Festival in New Munster.

The festival, sponsored by Just Live Inc., promotes suicide prevention and raises funds for mental health education.

One of the founders, Kelly Wilson, a Wheatland resident who lost her 21-year-old daughter, Jamie, to suicide in 2009, said discussing suicide is less taboo in recent years, especially with the death of famous people like Robin Williams.

“I think society in general has been more observant and aware of the signs and symptoms, and what needs to be learned with mental health,” she said.

“It’s like physical health. It’s no different. It’s important that people can talk to you. It helped me with my grieving process. You never recover from this; you adapt.” For the full article click here 

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To your good health: Is it safe to take thyroid meds with normal thyroid lab results?

DEAR DR. ROACH: About 35 years ago, a renowned Beverly Hills internist prescribed Armour Thyroid for me. At the time, I was burned out in a highly stressful job and would get bronchitis, usually twice a year. Although my thyroid was in the low-normal range, he felt it would boost my metabolism and improve my resistance to colds. It did. I am now retired and have not seen this doctor for over a decade. I recognize that I can’t just quit taking a thyroid supplement, but is there a danger in continuing to take Armour Thyroid? Would I be better served by a synthetic version? — F.L.

ANSWER: The use of thyroid replacement for people who have symptoms of low thyroid but whose lab tests are normal or equivocal is common but generally discouraged by experts. There are many reasons, apart from low thyroid hormone levels, to have symptoms such as fatigue or to get occasional infections. Chronic stress by itself certainly can predispose one to infection. Sometimes people get better with this treatment, but whether they have truly low thyroid levels or whether it is a placebo effect may be impossible to know. For the full article click here 

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Clinic, Summa, UH cash in after ACO savings

Three health systems in Northeast Ohio will receive a multimillion dollar cut of the Medicare costs each helped the federal government save in 2015 by providing more coordinated care to seniors — a feat fewer than a third of the participating accountable care organizations nationwide were able to achieve.

Summa Health, which was the only area system to receive a bonus payment last year as part of the Medicare shared savings program, is joined this year by Cleveland Clinic and University Hospitals in collecting the payments for helping the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services reign in health care costs. The Clinic, the region’s largest health system, received by far the largest payout, and will receive roughly $16.6 million for achieving a savings rate of 5.36%.

The Medicare Shared Savings Program is perhaps the most well-known ACO program, which are typically designed to reward organizations that provide high-quality, coordinated care at a controlled cost. That’s far different from the traditional reimbursement models across most health care programs that simply pay out based on how many services are rendered. For the full article click here 

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Busy parents risk children’s health by ‘not being there’

Busy parents risk damaging their children’s health by “not being there” and not getting to know them as well as they should. The results of a unique study of Irish children is set to reveal that many feel their parents are too often absent, and that the lack of quality time is also having a negative impact on their health.

As families return to the familiar routine following the summer break, the report will concern busy parents struggling to juggle work and family life.

But the study, which will feed into the National Obesity Policy, also raises a series of points about how schools could do more to improve children’s health. It identifies a series of factors which are key to the well-being of children in modern-day Ireland: from body image to bullying.

A team from University College Cork has been working on the project with the Citizens Participation Unit of the Department of Children and Youth Affairs. For the full article click here 

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CMS announces 2017 hospital payment adjustments for EHR Incentive Program

Those hospitals still not meaningfully using certified electronic health record technology will be subject to a payment adjustment starting Oct. 1, 2016, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced Friday.

The adjustment takes the form of a reduced applicable increase to their Inpatient Prospective Payment System rate, according to CMS. It’s tied to the reporting period of specific fiscal years.

The good news is that 98 percent of eligible hospitals and critical access hospitals nationwide have by now successfully demonstrated either Stage 1 or Stage 2 meaningful use.

For those that still haven’t, hospital payment adjustments by reporting year are as follows: a 25 percent decrease for 2015 (2013 reporting period); a 50 percent decrease for 2016 (2014 reporting period); a 75 percent decrease for 2017 and beyond (2015 reporting period). For the full article click here

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Boyer Lectures: Episode 1 – Health inequalities and the causes of the causes

The 56th Boyer Lecture Series: Over four lectures and four weeks, the World Medical Association president, professor Sir Michael Marmot, explores the challenges communities face in solving issues of health inequality.

In episode one, professor Marmot explains how the conditions in which people are born, grow, life, work and age, determine their risk of poor health. “The causes of the causes are the social determinants of health and they influence not only lifestyle but stress at work and at home, the environment, housing and transport,” he says.

Listen to the lecture or read the transcript below, and tune in for the rest of the series, when professor Marmot explains what we can do to reduce the slope of the social gradient and bring the health of everyone up to the level experienced at the top of the social hierarchy. For the full article click here

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Healthcare IT industry news in brief

The week’s round-up covers news frontiers for a UK-based patient portal supplier, a big infrastructure contract awarded in Gloucestershire and some new bells and whistles for a GP systems supplier.

Patients Know Best deployed in Germany’s testing

Tübingen University Hospital is testing Patients Know Best, bringing the patient portal software to Germany for the first time. The hospital is piloting the software at its paediatric gastroenterology unit, which sees patients from Germany, Switzerland and Austria.

Patients Know Best is UK-based patient portal product focused on giving patients and their families great access and control over their health information. The portal is already used in parts of the UK, Ireland and the Netherlands.

 

Updata awarded Gloucestershire contract

Updata Infrastructure has won a five-year contract with Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust to supply and manage its IT networks. The company, which is part of Capita IT Enterprise Services, will manage a local and wide area networks across 140 sites. For the full article click here 

 

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Group challenges Trump, Clinton to talk value-based purchasing, health IT during campaign

Candidates seeking election in 2016 — including the two vying for the highest office in the land — should address timely healthcare topics such as value-based purchasing and information technology as they hit the campaign trail, one healthcare group urged this week.

In a primer released Tuesday the Council of Accountable Physician Practices encourages candidates at the national, state and local levels to include ways they’ll tackle three “priority” issues — value-based payment, health IT and quality measurement — in their campaign activities. CAPP members include “high-performing medical groups and health systems,” according to the group.

“Few subjects are as personal to the American people — and evoke as much heated debate — as healthcare,” the primer reads. For the full article click here 

 

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Philips, Qualcomm partner for IoT, personalized healthcare

Royal Philips and Qualcomm subsidiary Qualcomm Life are partnering to advance personalized, connected healthcare, the companies announced Wednesday.

The companies will leverage Phillips’ connected health informatics and regulated healthcare cloud data management and analytics with Qualcomm’s medical-grade device connectivity and integration to enable both companies to provide enhanced, scalable care tools and services under one ecosystem.

Qualcomm Life’s 2net platform will provide medical device connectivity to Philips HealthSuite, which is the company’s cloud-enable health ecosystem of digital tools, apps and devices. Philips will use the 2net platform to connect both Philips and third-party medical devices.  For the full article click here 

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Affidavit offers details on robbery, shooting

Three Independence men used a Taser and violence to steal marijuana from a Parsons man in June, but the plan backfired as the battered victim fired a handgun twice at the invaders, striking one of them.

That summarizes a two-page affidavit used to arrest and charge Oshey Armstrong, 20, Alexander Steinle, 21, and Dominique Thornton, 20, all of Independence, with aggravated robbery. All three were released on bond. The Sun requested the affidavit in the case and received it recently.

The robbery took place June 22 at 1620 Belmont.

Police were called to Martinez Tutt’s home at 8:30 a.m. that day after being told of a possible shooting. It was reported that one person was shot and received a non-life threatening injury. Tutt and one of the robbery suspects ended up at Labette Health.

Police remained at Labette Health until the early afternoon that day. A confrontation between Tutt and Thornton escalated the police presence in the emergency room, the affidavit said. For the full article click here 

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