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October 3, 2008

Wal-Mart rolls out voluntary electronic PHR to 1.4 million employees
Wal-Mart, the nation's largest retailer, has begun offering use of a voluntary electronic personal health record system (PHR) to its 1.4 million employees and their dependents. The Bentonville, AR-based company is the first to officially begin using the Dossia employer coalition's PHR program. Dossia's members include Wal-Mart, Intel, AT&T, Cardinal Health and Pitney Bowes. The Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit began piloting the program in July to limited numbers of consortium members' employees, including Wal-Mart. "We have worked hard to provide high-quality, affordable healthcare to our associates," said Wal-Mart President Eduardo Castro-Wright. "I think this additional focus on wellness steps us up to a new level." So far, enrollment response has been "very good," according to Sarah Clark, Wal-Mart's vice president of benefits. Other coalition members are expected to begin offering the PHRs in 2009, Dossia Chief Executive Officer Colin Evans said. http://walmartstores.com/FactsNews/... and http://www.dossia.org/news-events-media/...

CDC wants new electronic system for better vaccine surveillance
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is calling for a new electronic reporting system to help federal health agencies' efforts in identifying the adverse effects of vaccines. The existing Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), co-managed by the CDC and the Food and Drug Administration, is 80 percent paper-based, according to the CDC. VAERS needs enhanced capacity to meet demands of routine adverse-event reporting, which has almost doubled in the past five years, and potential surges during emergencies, such as pandemic flu, the health agency notes. Vaccine management is also growing more complex, with 59 vaccines now in use - a number that continues to rise. For example, the immunization schedule for children and adolescents has increased from seven to 13 vaccines in the past decade. CDC plans to hold public hearings on the proposed new system during 2009. http://www.govhealthit.com/online/news/350597-1.html

European Health Commission launches 'Europe for Patients' healthcare campaign
The European Health Commissioner has launched a continent-wide initiative designed to "better healthcare for all in Europe." The "Europe for Patients" campaign highlights the different health policy plans the commission intends to adopt in the next six to nine months, including patient safety, rare diseases, organ donation and transplantation, cancer screening, health workforce, flu and childhood vaccination and antibiotic use, according to Health Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou. An initial initiative on cross-border healthcare was adopted in July. The commission plans to place EFP information in 22 languages on the EU Health Portal's Web page at http://health.europa.eu/efp; this will become "an information hub where documents, articles and events will be posted in relation to the Europe for Patients initiatives," Vassiliou said. http://www.ehealthnews.eu/content/... and http://ec.europa.eu/health-eu/doc/...

'Cell phone' could take on different meaning with new blood-counting effort
Researchers at the University of California at Los Angeles have given a new meaning to the phrase "cell phone" - they've developed a way to use mobile phones to help count targeted cell types within human blood and improve disease monitoring. The LUCAS technique (Lenseless Ultra-wide-field Cell monitoring Array platform based on Shadow imaging) allows cell monitoring to be scaled down to the point where it can eventually be integrated into a regular wireless cell phone, according to Ayodogan Ozcan, assistant professor of engineering at the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science and a member of the California NanoSystems Institute (CNSI). Blood samples could be loaded onto a specially equipped phone, using a disposable microfluidic chip. The application has great potential in developing nations, where the distance between people needing healthcare and facilities capable of providing is often a major obstacle to improving health, Ozcan said. http://www.newsroom.ucla.edu/portal/ucla/...

Medting.com unveils first online medical image repository for physicians
A Spanish medical informatics consultant is enlisting researchers and practitioners in an attempt to create the first truly global online repository of medical images and multimedia for physicians. Miguel Cabrer, president of Medting.com, says the site is free for doctors, who can create public or private groups for peer review, teaching, research and clinical decision support. Users can share documents and images, post comments and even vote on clinical interpretations. A telemedicine component allows Medting to offer second opinions to clinicians in developing countries. The site also allows fee-based, enterprise-level services to organizations, including a white-label version of the site. Information and multimedia can be embedded into external sites. The site is currently fully rendered in English and Spanish and is starting to add content in other languages, according to Cabrer. http://www.ehealtheurope.net/news/4183/... and http://medting.com/

Texas foster care system implements electronic health passport program
A $4 million grant from the Department of Health and Human Services now has foster children in Texas breaking out their passports - Health Passport, that is. The state's Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) launched the program in April, giving 30,000 foster children electronic health records that follow them as they move from home to home. According to Yvonne Sanchez, HHSC senior health policy analyst, the Health Passport tracks everything from insurance claims to food allergies, with the information housed by an array of companies, state agencies and practitioners. Through a Web-based interface, each child's guardian, doctors and "medical consenter" can access the passport, review the child's medical history and make necessary updates. Meanwhile, insurance claims, lab results and most other medical data are updated automatically. The result is a more complete and accurate snapshot of the child's medical history, Sanchez said. Texas is the first state to use the Health Passport, but others may follow. http://www.govtech.com/gt/406492?topic=117677

British GPs pose data security risk, health service exec says
General practitioners in Britain have been identified as a data security risk, according to the chief executive of the National Health Service (NHS). Executive David Nicholson has asked other NHS chief executives to check that their organizations are encrypting removable data and re-emphasizing that information risk management should be "high on their agendas." He also notes that Information Commissioner Richard Thomas has identified a risk relating to "the dispersed nature of GPs" and their independent status. "Each practice is legally responsible for holding data securely," Nicholson said. "We are looking at the national contract and considering how best to secure compliance with standards through contractual means in the future." In the meantime, primary care trusts should be reminded to conduct a risk assessment on the transport of patient identifiable data, Nicholson said. http://www.ehiprimarycare.com/news/4196/... and http://www.connectingforhealth.nhs.uk/systemsandservices/,,,

Health system needs 'fundamental change' but should include electronic data use
Eighty percent of respondents to a new Harris Interactive survey believe the healthcare system needs "fundamental change" or complete rebuilding. But electronic data use is a major benefit to whatever system is in place, according to other results: Nearly nine of 10 adults believe it is important for doctors to be able to access test results electronically, and the same proportion of adults (89 percent) believes it is important for doctors to be able to exchange information with other doctors electronically. Eighty-six percent of respondents support doctors' use of computerized medical records, and 71 percent endorse use of electronic prescribing to improve patient care. http://medseekblog.typepad.com/medseek_weblog/... and http://www.commonwealthfund.org/usr_doc/...

Australian officials hit restart button on Victoria state's $331 million e-health plan
The Australian state of Victoria has scrapped plans to implement a HealthSmart Information Technology program by 2009 and has gone back to the drawing board, hoping to have a plan in place between 2009 and 2013. When it began in 2003, the $331 million [USD] program was to have been completed by 2007 and provided the state's hospitals, rural alliances and community health providers with a high-speed, high-capacity network. But this April, Victoria's auditor-general Des Pearson said the projected program was "overly ambitious" and was at least two years behind schedule. In August, the Victorian government allocated an additional $81 million [USD] for the program in its 2008-09 budget. The project has also received more than $1.2 million [USD] in federal funding from October 2007 to June 2009. To date, more than half of the original budget has been spent and only 24 percent of the planned installations are complete, according to Pearson. http://www.australianit.news.com.au/story/...

Online video from sales reps growing in popularity among physicians
Online videos from sales reps are becoming one of the fastest of all communication channels with physicians, while more traditional channels - such as teleconferences and dinner meetings - appear to be on the decline, according to a report from Manhattan Research. Currently, about 45,000 U.S. physicians meet via online video with their sales reps, and more than 300,000 more show interest in interacting with sales or other company representatives online. And, those physicians already engaged in video detailing with sales reps report that they are, for the most part, "highly satisfied with their experience." http://www.med20.com/blog/2008/09/...

HIPAA violation tracking system, three others exempted from Privacy Act
The Department of Health and Human Services has published a final rule exempting four federal computer systems, including the HIPAA tracking system (HITS), from several provisions of the Privacy Act. HITS tracks alleged violations of HIPAA's administrative simplification provisions. According to the rule, HITS does not fall under the Privacy Act because its purpose is "to support investigations of complaints, determinations as to whether there were violations as charged in the original complaint, referral of violations to law enforcement entities as necessary, and maintenance and retrieval of records that contain the results of the complaint investigations." The other exempted systems of records under the final rule are the Automated Survey Processing Environment Complaints/Incidents Tracking System covering complaints against health care facilities; the Organ Procurement Organizations System covering complaints; and the CMS Fraud Investigation Database. http://www.healthdatamanagement.com/news/privacy27015-1.html?type=printer_friendly

Public comment sought on European Commission eHealth mandate report
The European Committee for Standardization (CEN), the European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization (CENELEC) and the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) have developed a joint project, eHealth-Interop, designed to address the European Commission's mandate on standardization in the field of eHealth. The three-team group has issued a report on its findings regarding the mandate and is currently seeking public comment. The report is available at www.ehealth-interop.nen.nl/publicaties/2877; public comment will be accepted until Oct. 22. http://www.ehealth-interop.nen.nl/

• Canadian Society of Telehealth conference
  October 4-7, 2008 - Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
  Joint meeting of Canadian Society of Telehealth and International Society for Telemedicine and eHealth
  
  
• 2008 AHIMA Convention and Exhibit
  October 11-16, 2008 - Seattle, WA
  The 2008 AHIMA Convention and Exhibit presents incomparable opportunities to connect with colleagues and learn from key leaders who influence change in health information management. Take advantage of the exceptional educational sessions, explore the exhibit hall and network with fellow HIM professionals.
  
  
• 2008 5th Annual Connected Health Symposium
  October 27-28, 2008 - The Conference Center at Harvard Medical, Boston, MA
  Who Provides, Who Decides, Who Pays: Consumers, Clinicians and Business Models in the Connected Care Era

To showcase your event here, please email us at events@telemedicinealerts.com

In the Current Issue of the peer reviewed publication Telemedicine and e-Health

Long-Term Future of Telemedicine in Germany: The Patient's, Physician's, and Payer's Perspective
Christian Thielscher, Charles R. Doarn
Telemedicine and e-Health. September 2008, 14(7): 701-706.
In-depth interviews were conducted of 20 key decision-makers in Germany on the application of telemedicine in Germany's healthcare system. The individuals were leaders of influential organizations, including associations and sickness funds. They felt that telemedicine will play a role and patients expect this to enable better care. The integration of the "Gesundheitskarte" or smart card is a key tool in the adoption of telemedicine in Germany. Full Article

Published 10 times a year in print and online, Telemedicine and e-health covers all aspects of clinical telemedicine practice, technical advances, enabling technologies, education, health policy and regulation and biomedical and health services research dealing with clinical effectiveness, efficacy and safety of telemedicine and its effects on quality, cost and accessibility of care, medical records and transmission of same.

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Telemedicine and e-Health is the Official journal of the American Telemedicine Association.
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