Healthcare IT News For VARs — January 2, 2015
By Megan Williams, contributing writer
In the news, Big Data is a tool in diagnosis and treatment, a Google Glass platform is auto-populating electronic health records (EHRs), the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT released a study on the progress of health information exchanges (HIEs), and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) launches the full version of the Sentinel program.
Big Data Is Tackling Oncology Challenges
Genetic Engineering And Biotechnology News is spotlighting ways in which healthcare data is being used to address cancer diagnosis and treatment. The article discusses big players like Memorial Sloan Kettering in NYC, Johns Hopkins, and the American Society of Clinical Oncology and their taking on Big Data initiatives, as well as how data can be used to predict conditions including sepsis, metabolic syndrome, stroke, and diabetes.
Google Glass Being Used To Save Doctors’ Time
Google Glass platform Augmedix is looking at new ways to cut back on wasted clinician time. The startup uses Google Glass to automatically populate a patient’s EHR, based on conversations the physician has during appointments. It also allows doctors to verbally pull details from patient records for immediate access. The platform is currently being used by dozens of doctors in 12 facilities across five states, and claims to save doctors “a third of their day.” Read more at Entrepreneur.
ONC Study Examines HIE Security And Interoperability
ONC has recently released a study examining the progress of health information exchanges since their inception in 2009. The study examines technical infrastructure, grantee strategies, the impact of Meaningful Use Stages 1 and 2, and how they’ll drive future exchange priorities. Development of the study involved 72 separate stakeholder meetings, as well as a qualitative, in-depth assessment of six participant states (Iowa, Mississippi, New Hampshire, Utah, Vermont, and Wyoming). The full report is available at HealthIT.gov.
FDA Sentinel Pilot Now Full-Scale System
The five-year-old FDA program, Sentinel — created for monitoring the safety of FDA-regulated drugs and medical products — is finally being transitioned to a full-scale system, according to HealthData Management. The Mini-Sentinel pilot has been successful in establishing secure access to the electronic healthcare data of over 178 million patients. Janet Woodcock, M.D. and director of the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research describes the fully functional program as a “long journey toward the challenging goal of developing a full-scale medical product safety monitoring program.”
Healthcare IT Talking Points
Health IT Analytics discusses key points healthcare organizations should keep in mind as they develop IT strategies for the coming year. These include:
- Preparing for mandates, including ICD-10
- Making progress toward accreditations, certifications, and designations
- Using and understanding the power of patient populations
- Taking a new approach to data governance and information security
Search Health IT has named Cerner Corp’s $1.3 billion acquisition of Siemens’ EHR unit, and how it fares in the upcoming year, to be a highlight story of 2015. It namely believes that the acquisition will aid Cerner in finally catching up with Epic’s domination of the EHR market. That prediction though, is met with mixed reactions from skeptics who believe that Cerner won’t be able to turn around Siemens’ historical, gradual loss of market share. Access the full article here.
For more news and insights, visit BSMinfo’s Healthcare IT Resource Center.