Indiana University aims to adapt VA telehealth network to treatment of brain injuries

Researchers from Indiana University Medical Center and the Department of Veterans Affairs will be looking at how to adapt the VA’s extensive telemedicine network to assess and treat veterans with mild traumatic brain injuries. Mobile technologies likely will be a key part of the process. Read more

JAMA Viewpoint Discusses the Importance of HIT to Improve Patient and Physician Engagement

HIT has the potential to transform health care, but only if implemented with a goal of achieving more integrated, safer care that engages patients and reduces costs. The commentary was based on research funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

• Read the commentary.
• Read Health Information Technology in the United States 2012, RWJF’s annual report on HIT use.

Use of mobile phones to increase vaccination and save lives in lower income countries

www.imedicalapps.com

This is a preview of some of the exciting mHealth research being presented at the upcoming Medicine 2.0 Congress in September. This abstract and others are candidates for the iMedicalApps-Medicine 2.0 mHealth Research Award.  Read more

Health Care Industry Struggles With Usability of Electronic Health Record Systems

Former National Coordinator for Health IT David Blumenthal, Jacob Reider, acting CMO at the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT, Matt Quinn of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, Rod Piechowski of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society and Joseph Scherger of Eisenhower Medical Center in California spoke with iHealthBeat about efforts to boost the usability of electronic health record systems.

MIT research projects illustrate the innovative future of digital health

Two separate research projects currently underway at MIT demonstrate how new thinking has been able to apply relatively simple technologies, such as voice recording and web cams, to allow for potentially revolutionary breakthroughs in patient monitoring and diagnosis. Parkinson's Voice Initiative The first projec...See More

DARPA Wants to Lock Down Android Smartphones for Military Use

DARPA has granted a $21.4 million contract to security firm Invincea to create a secure version of the Android operating system for use in mobile devices in field Army bases.  Read more

How medical professionals can use Evernote and mobile devices to improve productivity and learning

www.imedicalapps.com

Readers of the iMedicalApps forums will have seen that Evernote was rated particularly highly by a number of commenters when asked 'How do you use mobile technology to help with your studies'. As a result of this, I was encouraged to try Evernote out for an extended period and see what impact it could make upon my lea...See More

Video Games May Be Helpful in Treating 'Lazy Eye' in Adults

Optometry and Vision Science
Official Journal of the American Academy of Optometry  Aside from myopia, amblyopia is the most frequent cause of vision loss in infants and young children and has, in the past, generally been considered untreatable after about age 9 years. So, although amblyopia can often be reversed when treated early, conventional treatment is generally not undertaken in older children and adults. ... perceptual learning, particularly using active video game play, provide evidence for brain plasticity and accompanying treatment success in adults with amblyopia. Read Full Article...http://www.wolterskluwerhealth.com/News/Pages/Video-Games-May-Be-Helpful-in-Treating-%27Lazy-Eye%27-in-Adults.aspx?WT.mc_id=EMxj00x20120625xL6

Why Don't More Hospitals Use Electronic Health Records?

They improve care and cut costs. That’s why Obama is spending billions on them. Yet electronic health records continue to cause more agony than relief in the U.S.

Read the story on Businessweek.com: http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-06-21/why-dont-more-hospitals-use-electronic-health-records

Voice algorithms spot Parkinson's disease

A mathematician has developed a voice-recognition technology that could speed up a Parkinson's diagnosis. More from BBC News Technology

The Nintendo Wii is helping thousands of people with diseases like Parkinson's. Learn more about this new "Wii-hab." >>

HRSA Health Information Technology and Quality Newsletter June/July 2012

• Health IT and Quality Events
• Secretary Kathleen Sebelius's Keynote Speech at the Office of National Coordinator's "Health Data Palooza"
• U.S. Department of Health andHuman Services (HHS) Releases Health Information Technology (IT) Dashboard to Deliver Data on HHS Health IT Programs and the Nationwide Adoption of Health IT
• Department of Agriculture Awards $8 million in Telemedicine Grants Health Information Technology Workforce Resources
• Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) Podcast “Health Information Technology and Home Health Care”
• New The American Journal of Preventive Medicine (AJPM) and the American Journal of Public Health (AJPH) special issue on Integrating Primary Care and Public Health
• National Quality Strategy: 2012 Annual Report to Congress Released
• Bureau of Primary Health Care (BPHC) Publishes Two Quality Improvement Papers
• Two New Health Disparities Resources from U.S. Department of Health and Human Services(HHS)
• Health IT Workforce Updates
• Meaningful Use Round Up
• mHealth Updates
• ICD-10 Update
• New HRSA Health Information Technology and Quality Website Items  
• Click here to view the above

Accessibility apps for blind people

Text-to-speech options have greatly improved. Apple's Voiceover and Windows Magnifier and Narrator make computers much friendlier toward blind people. This tip explains how to set both of those up.

Apple's iOS has a Voiceover equivalent for smartphones that is turned on by going to Settings>>Accessibility. Android smartphones have the Talkback app for spoken menus. Grab it from the Google Play store, or by going to Settings>>Accessibility on your gadget.

These aren't the only options you have, though. There are more apps that make a smartphone a great companion for a blind person.  More

Health Gaming on 'Radar' of Federal Government

The Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT is hoping that health gaming can help boost patient engagement. According to an ONC official, health games can help patients visualize their progress as they work to overcome health challenges. Healthcare IT News.More

Adding patient photos to electronic medical records prevents errors.

At one Colorado children’s hospital, orders mistakenly placed in the wrong electronic file were the second most common source of errors. After adding photos to files, errors of this type dropped from 12 to 3—and those 3 involved files without patient photos. More

Could mobile health ease health disparities?

Might mobile health technologies help alleviate health disparities between African-American and white men? That is the implication in a recent Huffington Post commentary.

Tele-Nursing Program Improves Gestational Diabetes Outcomes

Tele-Nursing Program Improves Gestational Diabetes Outcomes
Advance for Nurses, Advance for Nurses News Staff, 06/10/2012
Among women with gestational diabetes mellitus, referral to a telephone-based nurse management program was associated with lower risk of high baby birth weight and increased postpartum glucose testing, according to Kaiser Permanente researchers. Investigators for the Kaiser Permanente Northern California Division of Research examined the associations between referral to telephone-based nurse consultation and outcomes in 12 Kaiser Permanente medical centers with variation in the percent of patients referred to telephonic nurse management. The study appears online in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

Report on Using Mobile Health Technology To Fight TB

A new report by the Stop TB Partnership and the mHealth Alliance outlines how mobile health technology could help diagnose tuberculosis in the field, encourage patients to adhere to TB medication regimens and monitor TB treatment. FierceMobileHealthcare.

The Online Couch: Mental Health Care on the Web

A wide array of computer-based and online solutions are now available to those with mild-to-moderate depression, and the inventory is growing. This report by health economist Jane Sarasohn-Kahn looks at the changing landscape of technology-enabled mental health care products and services.  The complete report is available online now.  chcf.org

Online Program Helped Reduce Certain Vascular Risk Factors

A British Medical Journal study finds that patients with vascular disease who were enrolled in an Internet-based, nurse-led treatment program saw slightly bigger improvements in vascular risk factors than patients who received usual care. Press Association/Google News et al.  More

Majority of Physicians Say EHRs Interfere With Care, Survey Finds

The third annual Physician Sentiment Index -- from online physician community Sermo and electronic health record provider athenahealth -- finds that 73% of surveyed doctors say that EHRs distract from patient care. The survey also finds that 32% of physicians have a favorable opinion of EHR systems, down from 39% in 2011. Healthcare IT News, Health Data Management.More

PwC: US to trail developing countries in mHealth

emerging markets such as South Africa, India and Brazil are “trailblazers” in mobile health today. “Patients in these markets are much more likely to use mHealth applications or services than those in developed countries. Similarly, more emerging-market doctors offer mHealth services than colleagues in developed countries, and more payers cover these costs,” says the report.  More

Great Benefits Discovered Come From Texting Programs

http://ow.ly/1kp4kq

Travelers Turn to Mobile Health Apps To Manage Their Medical Conditions

An increasing number of mobile medical applications are targeting travelers. Some of the apps aim to help travelers find urgent care centers in other countries, while other apps offer medication reminders and tools to help travelers manage chronic conditions. New York Times.  More

Positive Reviews for Redesigned Health Games Research Database

Upgraded Database Offers Powerful New Ways to Search for Health Games, Publications, Organizations, and Other Resources
Health Games Research, a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Pioneer Portfolio, released an update to the largest publicly available database in the field to make it easier to find related health games, research publications, organizations, and events with a simple search.
From parents and caregivers who find games to help their loved ones manage their illnesses, to researchers who find collaborators focused on their line of study, the database meets a variety of needs across the health games field—needs that will only increase as the field continues to grow.  RWJF

ONC Unveils Standards Framework for Clinical Decision Support Tools

The Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT has announced the launch of a new standards and interoperability framework -- called Health eDecisions -- aimed at building consensus on standards for clinical decision support systems, CMIO reports (Byers, CMIO, 6/11).

AHRQ Spanish Language Advice Column

The AHRQ has Spanish language health advice column from Dr. Ponce-Gonzalez: ¿Tiene la presión alta?

Leadership Lessons for IT Pros in Today`s 'Hyper-Connected' World

eWeek: Are you a collaborative leader? A Harvard Business Review report asks this question, in hopes of helping IT professionals, CIOs and the like succeed in a world that's become "hyper-connected."  eWEEK looks at the 10 key takeaways from the report to help managers, IT professionals and their staffs make their way down a new road to opportunity, productivity and success.  READ MORE...

Developing Countries Quick To Adopt Mobile Health, Report Finds/Consumers Clamor for mHealth Adoption While Healthcare Industry Hesitates

A report finds that mobile health adoption is moving at a faster pace in developing nations than in developed nations. Researchers say regulatory barriers could be hindering mobile health adoption in developed countries. Healthcare Finance News, Becker's Hospital Review.More

Incorporating Patients Meaningfully

RWJF's Project HealthDesign Provides Input on Incorporation of Patient-Generated Data into Stage 3 Meaningful Use Criteria
Patient-generated data should be integrated into electronic health records to better inform clinical treatment and decision-making, according to Patricia Flatley Brennan, PhD, RN, national program director of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Pioneer Portfolio’s Project HealthDesign.
—data from patients such as sleep habits, pain levels, diet, and exercise patterns—have been shown to provide meaningful clinical insights, based on the experiences of Project HealthDesign grantees who have worked with hundreds of patients and providers to collect and track patient-generated data. Drawing on these experiences, Brennan highlighted key forward-looking observations in the integration of patient-generated data:

• ‘Traditional’ provider-recommended activities that patients perform and monitor, such as blood sugar and blood pressure checks, should be considered for clinical integration.
• Existing technologies are adequate but not optimal for the clinical integration of patient data. Additionally, a safe storage solution for these data is needed.
• Technologies and tools that capture patient-generated data could be important components of new health care business models, such as accountable care organizations and patient-centered medical homes, as they place more emphasis on patient case and self-management.

• View the testimony.
• Learn more about Project HealthDesign.

OCR Issues Memo on Patients' Legal Rights To Access Health Data

A newly released a memo  and a related YouTube video released by HHS' Office for Civil Rights aims to help patients understand their legal right to access their health records. Patients are encouraged to print the memo and bring it to their health care providers when requesting their medical data. Government Health IT.  More

Toronto Hospital Giving Tablets to Patients

As reported by InsideHealthZone, the tablets will provide a number of interesting abilities.  The first being that patients will have more direct input on their medical record.  They will be able to contribute their own observations and concerns as well as asking questions.
The tablets will also provide the names and pictures of everyone in their healthcare team.  This will allow all members of the team to access pertinent information about the patient without the hazard of miscommunication.  According to the article,

 

IPv6 officially launches

The Internet has rolled out a new standard for IP addresses. IPv6 opens up 340 undecillion - or 340 trillion trillion trillion - new IP addresses. Will this change mean anything for you? Learn all about IPv6. >>

Independa uses mobile technology to provide the complete home care package for older Americans

www.imedicalapps.com:

According to the US Census Bureau, in 2010 there were approximately 40 million Americans over the age of 65. Around 62% of these Americans also have two or more chronic medical conditions. Managing health becomes an increasingly difficult task as we age, complicated often by varying degrees of dementia, decreased mobiility...See More

Nurses Know: EHRs Improve Patient Safety

The federal Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) publicized the results of a study that AHRQ had funded. This new study adds yet one more element of documentation to something we already knew: electronic health records (EHRs) improve nursing care quality, patient safety, and effectiveness.
As the article on the AHRQ website noted, “University of Pennsylvania researchers surveyed 16, 362 nurses working in 316 hospitals in four states (California, Florida, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania). Nurses were asked about their workload and patient outcomes, as well as their hospital’s patient safety culture using items from the AHRQ Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture. Of the 316 hospitals, only seven percent had a basic EHR system functioning on all patient care units,” 

The result? Nurses from hospitals with fully implemented EHRs were “significantly less likely to report unfavorable outcomes” than were those in hospitals without fully implemented EHRs. Indeed, AHRQ noted, “Fewer nurses in the fully implemented hospitals reported frequent medication errors, poor quality of care, and poor confidence in a patient being ready for discharge.” They were also 14 percent less likely to report that “things fell between the cracks” when patients were transferred between units.

Nurses Reducing Alarm Fatigue

Beep, bleep, bong, beep, bleep--monitors and medical devices create a cacophony of sounds aimed at alerting nurses to changes in their patients’ conditions, but with the so many bells going off, nurses can become overwhelmed and tune out or turn off the devices.  Advance for Nurses -Click here

Advance for Nurses

Geriatric Telemedicine

Nurses capitalize on technology to help older patients obtain a new level of independence.

Hospital at Home

Fear of HAIs keeps many older adults from making needed trips to the hospital, experts say.  Imagine an innovative model of care that allows sicker patients to remain home longer while lowering costs, reducing healthcare-associated infections and other complications, and receiving high praise from doctors, nurses and patients. Advance for Nurses  More

Health Organizations Aim To Adopt Health Data Exchange Tools

A report by Black Book Rankings finds that 84% of surveyed health care organizations say they are taking active steps to adopt health information exchange technology. The report also offers rankings of various health data exchange vendors. Healthcare IT News, Healthcare Informatics. 


Black Book's 2012 State of the Health Information Exchange Industry report.  More

Diabetes in Social Media

Webicine: More than 200 million people suffer from diabetes worldwide and it is one of those medical conditions that are covered in details online. The medical blogosphere and the community sites are very rich in diabetes-related content.

There are more and more resource collections and networks including Web MD, Medical News Today or DiabetesSupport focusing on diabetes. Here are the best repositories of diabetes-related information.  More