Twitter, YouTube and other Web 2.0 devices are industry’s hot marketing tools
Web 2.0 tools such as Twitter, YouTube, blogs, and Facebook are becoming the hot new ways for hospitals to attract and educate patients, entice donors, gain recognition, and recruit or retain top doctors. The methods, which allow facilities to show surgeries from operating rooms and have patients blog about their procedures over the Internet, are also inexpensive and give hospitals a way to stand out in this era of reality TV, according to an article in the New York Times. “The goal is to further our reputation as well as educate the community, who will ask our physicians about our care,” said Jill Fazakerly, marketing director at Methodist University Hospital (MUH) in Memphis. MUH recently conducted a video Webcast of an "awake" craniotomy, which was seen by more than 2,200 people, previewed by nearly 22,000 people on YouTube and resulted in three requested appointments. Critics say the methods raise questions about patient privacy and liability matters, but proponents note that hospitals have little choice in a time where patients carefully consider where to go for treatment. More than 250 hospitals now use YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, or blogs, according to the University of Maryland Medical System. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/25/health/...    http://www.or-live.com/methodisthealth...

Private firms begin testing use of telehealth devices for remote patient monitoring
Doctors, hospitals and high-tech companies such as AT&T Inc. are following the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) in the use of telehealth devices that enable them to perform long-distance tracking of patient progress, and intervene at the first sign of trouble rather than waiting until patients feel ill enough to seek help. Already used by 35,000 of VA’s patients, private health groups have begun tests that could result in widespread use of wireless medical devices within the next couple of years, according to Bob Miller, executive director of AT&T’s communications-technology research department. “A lot of this is old technology,” Miller said. “But we’re putting it together in ways that will help millions of people live dramatically better lives.” That “old technology” includes thermometers, scales and blood-pressure cuffs, combined with wireless data transfer on established systems such as Wi-Fi and Bluetooth^® that have been modified to save power. With these, doctors can see daily fluctuations in important indicators, change the treatment if needed, observe the effect in real time and tweak as necessary, preventing patient injuries and reducing hospital expenses. http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/...

School telemedicine programs may improve care for children with diabetes
A school telemedicine program can drastically strengthen diabetes care for afflicted students in grades kindergarten through eighth grade, according to a study by researchers at the State University of New York Upstate Medical University’s Department of Pediatrics and Medicine in Syracuse, NY. According to “School-Centered Telemedicine for Children With Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus,” use of a telemedicine program helped reduce the number of urgent encounters, phone calls and treatments given by school nurses by 83 percent over a nine-month period. Under traditional, non-telemedicine treatment, the number of diabetes-related visits declined by 33 percent during that same period. According to study co-author Dr. Roberto Izquierdo, researchers monitored 41 children of ages 5 to 14 with type 1 diabetes, with 23 enrolled in a telemedicine intervention program. During the first six months of the study, the telemedicine group experienced improved blood sugar control and fewer visits to the emergency department. In addition, “children in the telemedicine treatment group were more apt to feel better about their diabetes,” Izquierdo said. The study appears in the Journal of Pediatrics. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/...     http://www.jpeds.com/article/S0022-3476(09)00234-0/fulltext 

DoD-sponsored Web site offers veterans help with post-combat stress issues
A new Web site by the Department of Defense provides combat veterans with mental health resources needed to reduce the stigma associated with mental illness. The site “Real Warriors” at http://realwarriors.net , which went live May 21, allows users to participate in anonymous online chat sessions with mental health workers, and includes links to resources from social media outlets such as Twitter, Facebook and Digg. The site is hosted outside the military’s Internet domain because troops have reported that seeking help for mental health problems could harm their military careers, according to Army Brig. Gen. Loree Sutton. Sutton said the site offers “concrete examples of three combat veterans who candidly relate their battles with post traumatic stress disorder.” Many of the 1.9 million service personnel who have served in Iraq or Afghanistan are young, making the use of social media tools an ideal way to reach that audience, the general notes. One day after going online, Real Warriors had 477 page visitors, 6,000 page views and more than 100 users signed up as Twitter followers. http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov...    http://realwarriors.net/

U.S. health IT office to award millions in extension center contracts starting this fall
The Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONCHIT) will begin awarding contracts of up to $10 million each to establish a set of regional health information technology extension centers between October and December of this year. According to a draft plan on page 25550 of the Federal Register (Vol. 74, No. 101, May 28, 2009), ONCHIT plans to make two-year awards averaging $1 million to $2 million per center in fiscal 2010, beginning as early as Oct. 1, 2009 and ending Sept. 30, 2010. ONCHIT will also supply healthcare providers with “robust support” in an effort to “increase the probability that adopters of electronic health record systems will become meaningful users of the technology,” according to Charles Friedman, deputy national coordinator for health IT. The public may comment on the plan until June 11, with comments addressed to HealthIT-comments@hhs.gov.  http://govhealthit.com/articles/2009/05/27/...

Telemedicine’s influence on patient access seen among doctors, dentists and pharmacists
States are beginning to tap into the influence of telemedicine to improve patients’ access to care, according to a series of articles published by the Kansas Health Institute. In Kansas, an effort is underway at University of Kansas Medical Center to use Web conferencing technology to improve communication and decrease errors among pathologists and radiologists. The universities of Florida and Nebraska Medical Center College of Dentistry are examining the use of teledentistry to remotely assess dental patients, as well as train dental hygienists in rural areas. And a pilot study from 2002 in North Dakota on the impact of closure of pharmacies in rural areas has now led to 72 telepharmacy sites providing services to underserved residents – an action that could be duplicated by the Kansas Board of Pharmacy, which is reviewing new regulations on telepharmacies.   http://www.khi.org/s/index.cfm?aid=2195    http://www.khi.org/s/index.cfm?aid=2192   http://www.khi.org/s/index.cfm?aid=2194

ACS hits world e-health market with new secure smart card reader
Advanced Card Systems Ltd., Asia’s leading supplier of PC-linked smart card readers, has launched its eH880 Secure Smart Card Terminal and Software Development Kit for the world e-health market, the company announced. The eH880 is a digitalized system for managing information that provides the benefits of reduced storage space, pen and paper costs, and margin of human error as well as increased search capabilities and added data security, according to the Hong Kong-based company. The product’s optional software development kit includes an eH880 terminal, 25 testing cards, all necessary API documents, utility tools, demo programs and sample codes of ANSI C. The company notes that the eH880 is also a sign that the medical industry, long-reluctant to embrace information technology, “is at long last catching up.” http://www.acs.com.hk/press.php?prid=196

New health IT exchange solution pledges to keep data safe via ‘security on a cloud’ 
A Charlotte, N.C. company announces that it has developed a cost-effective alternative to sensitive information exchange in the health information technology industry: just send it “on a cloud.” SenditCertified’s ePackage™ product is designed to help healthcare providers, employers and insurers transmit sensitive data via a secure, Web-based private global network in a matter of minutes, keeping costs down while ensuring compliance with industry regulations, according to Chief Executive Officer Dr. Steve McAdams. Medical test results, medical health records, and other confidential information sent via SenditCertified travel from sender to receiver “without bouncing around on unsecure networks where information is vulnerable to hackers and identity thieves,” McAdams said. SenditCertified currently serves the government, security services, medical tourism, international business consulting and financial services industries. http://www.pitchengine.com/senditcertified/...

IBM, Slovenian Health Insurance Institute unveil nation’s first e-health card system
The Health Insurance Institute of Slovenia (HIIS) plans to roll out a new IBM-based national electronic health insurance card system by January 2010, allowing the small country’s healthcare providers to instantly check a patient’s health insurance status and process health claims online. More than 30,000 health professionals and two million patients will be covered by the new system, according to HIIS General Manager Samo Fakin. The action follows a successful pilot program completed this past March. The decision will “give Slovenia one of the most advanced health insurance systems in the world,” Fakin said. “Although a number of countries across the globe have electronic health insurance systems, Slovenia is the first to integrate both public and private insurance organizations – all national partners in healthcare.” The country’s old system, to be phased out over the next six months, required patients to update their insurance data on a card every few months at self-service terminals – a costly, inefficient, inaccurate and inconvenient method for health insurance providers and patients, Fakin said. http://www.ehealthnews.eu/content/view/1614/26/

American TeleCare named as one of nation’s ‘Brilliant Companies to Watch’
Eden Prairie, MN-based telehealth services provider American TeleCare Inc. (ATI) has been named as one of the nation’s “100 Brilliant Companies to Watch in 10 Smokin’ Hot Industries” by Entrepreneur magazine. The list, in the magazine’s June issue now on newsstands, reflects firms that “could reach new heights for growth” and carry a combined $5 trillion in business opportunity, even during the toughest of economic times, according to Entrepreneur Editor-in-Chief Amy Cosper. ATI appears on the issue’s list of 10 healthcare industry firms. ATI Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer Randy Moore M.D., M.B.A., said the selection reflects the company’s diversity in medical services. “American TeleCare is not just a technology company selling devices for collecting and transmitting patient data,” Moore said. “ATI solutions establish and sustain patient-centered connected care that brings expert care to patients whenever and wherever it is required.” http://www.prweb.com/releases/...

Orange, Alcatel-Lucent to partner on new e-health services for Europe’s elderly
France Telecom communications brand Orange and broadband services provider Alcatel-Lucent have signed a cooperation agreement to develop and jointly deliver “the next wave of innovative solutions” enabling e-health services for the elderly in Europe and emerging markets. The two Paris-based firms currently supply healthcare communications-related products to the European medical community, including Orange’s “Connected Hospitals” electronic patient information system, and “Telecare,” Alcatel-Lucent’s remote patient monitoring tool. “The health domain requires innovative, reliable, and secured communications solutions [that can] play a key role in the transformation of health systems,” said Pierre Barnabé, director of Alcatel-Lucent in France. “The marketplace is looking for trusted partners that understand a broad range of communications technologies and can simplify them in a turnkey solution.” http://www.alcatel-lucent.com/wps/portal/...

U.S., global information tech industries headed for first-ever losing year in 2009, says TIA
Due to poor economic conditions, the information and communications technology industry (ICT) is expected to post a 3.1 percent decline in revenue for the overall global market and a 5.5 percent drop in the U.S. market during 2009, according to a new report by the Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA). The losses are the first ever recorded in ICT during the association’s 23-year history of tracking the industry. The report, “2009 ICT Market Review & Forecast,” projects a 1.2 percent increase in global revenue for 2010, but much stronger 6.4 percent and 7.9 percent gains in 2011 and 2012, respectively. In the United States, ICT revenue is expected to drop by 6.4 percent over the next two years, but rebound by 14.4 percent during 2011-12 due to effects of the current stimulus package, according to the report. Ultimately, “broadband will be a driver for recovery in all areas, from healthcare IT to smart grid technology,” said TIA President Grant Seiffert. http://www.tiaonline.org/news_events/press_room/press_releases/...