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 Effectiveness of telehealth alarms under study by Cleveland researchers Researchers from Case Western Reserve University and Cleveland State University, both in Cleveland, OH, are studying the effectiveness of a telehealth-based alarm clock toward waking chronically ill people in time to take their medicines. Over the next year, researchers will track the use of TeleCare monitors - alarm systems about the size of a traditional alarm clock - among 40 patients under the care of the Cleveland Visiting Nurse Association, according to lead investigator Elizabeth Madigan. Patient illnesses range from one or more cases of heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and diabetes, as well as depression, anxiety or difficulty making decisions. TeleCare tracks vital signs, and announces the time for a patient to take medications; the patient then plugs the device into a phone jack and attaches additional medical equipment to record use of medicine. Full Story Verizon Wireless, BL Healthcare in remote medical app trials Communications provider Verizon Wireless in Basking Ridge, NJ and remote health management system developer BL Healthcare in Foxboro, MA plan to jointly trial a series of "best of breed" remote healthcare applications that can improve customer care and reduce overall costs. According to Verizon Director of Healthcare Solutions John Maschenic, the effort will help healthcare providers "select various applications and services based on their patients' conditions and needs, giving the provider an active role in defining and managing a patient healthcare and wellness program." The two companies plan to use a series of third-party providers to help determine application effectiveness, Maschenic said. Full Story Australia to invest more than $2 billion in health IT in 2010 Australian healthcare officials will spend more than $2 billion [USD] on health information technology in 2010, according to a report by Sydney-based analyst firm International Data Corp. (IDC). The market research group expects the bulk of that investment to result from the government's push toward electronic health record implementation, as well as interoperability and security measures, business intelligence for next-generation hospital operations, and collaboration tools for improved communications across service providers. The heavy investment in health IT is expected to continue for at least five years, IDC Australia Analyst Melissa Martin said. The projected $2 billion for health IT in 2010 represents a small increase from the $1.84 billion spent in 2009, Martin noted. Full Story At-home telemonitoring process identifies respiratory sleep apnea A new telemonitoring system could provide a more-convenient, less-expensive way to diagnose and treat a respiration-related version of sleep apnea, according to research by a scientist at the University of the Basque Country in Spain. Apnea-hypopnea is a rare respiratory disorder that affects persons while they are asleep or awake, according to Dr. Alfredo Burgos. Current treatments require the patient to be asleep in a hospital while monitored. But the Sleep Apnea Monitoring (SAMON) system may be conducted while the patient is asleep at home, Burgos notes. Sleep study findings are then transmitted to a mobile device, and then to the doctor via e-mail. No medical skill or nursing help is needed to perform the at-home monitoring, greatly reducing the cost, he added. Full Story National EHR system poses major benefit to mental health patients Mental health patients could greatly benefit from the advent of individual electronic health records, according to the president of Australia's Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) in Melbourne. Dr. Chris Mitchell notes that 20 percent of the Australian population suffers from some type of mental disorder. These patients ultimately see several physicians, including a general practitioner, psychologist and psychiatrist, all of whom need to have access to up to date medical data. But patients with mental illness are currently part of an "at-risk" group that would suffer if the nation does not implement its EHR program, Mitchell said. The National E-Health Transition Authority (NEHTA) hopes to implement the program but is already four years behind schedule. NEHTA's new deadline for implementation is 2014. Full Story Rising telemedicine popularity drives Tandberg sales up 39 percent Telepresence system provider Tandberg posted a 39 percent increase in sales in the United Kingdom in 2009, largely due to increased demand for mobile- and telemedicine-related products, the company reported. According to Public Business Sector Director Steve Woollett, regulations and rising costs are encouraging healthcare providers to "do more with less," making telemedicine a more-attractive offering. Successful trials of remote healthcare efforts, such as long-distance ultrasound diagnosis, and a shift in the physician population, have also driven up telecare's popularity, Woollett said. Full Story Legislation would extend federal incentive plan to mental health providers Reps. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) and Tim Murphy (R-PA) have introduced a bill that would allow providers of behavioral, mental health and substance abuse services to qualify for federal incentives through the "meaningful use" of electronic health records. H.R. 5025, the Health Information Technology Extension for Behavioral Services Act of 2010, would extend incentive eligibility to behavioral and mental health clinics, substance abuse treatment professionals and treatment facilities, psychiatric hospitals, and licensed psychologists and clinical social workers. The 2009 federal economic stimulus act grants Medicare and Medicaid incentives to hospitals and physicians who implement and demonstrate meaningful use of EHRs beginning in 2012. Full Story Health IT could improve patient safety in hospitals, government says Patient safety continues to be a thorn in healthcare providers' sides, but health information technology could help, according to a joint report by the Department of Health and Human Services' Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). The agency's National Healthcare Quality Report and National Healthcare Disparities Report notes that little progress has been made in the past year toward preventing patient infection, regardless of what methods are being used. The report recommends that healthcare providers train employees to use health IT services, and calls for creation of a health IT infrastructure that regulates data collection while protecting patient privacy. Full Story Further Information CMS rule requires electronic prescriptions for Medicare D participants A recently enacted Final Rule requires pharmacies taking part in the Medicare prescription drug program to begin electronically submitting their Part D prescriptions to their Part D sponsors. The rule from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), which was published April 15, requires pharmacies to electronically send the Part Ds to plan sponsors unless the enrollee expressly requests that a particular claim not be submitted. The agency made the requirement after becoming aware of "an increasing number of instances in which network pharmacies are not submitting claims to Part D sponsors on behalf of Part D enrollees," CMS states. Full Story
Isaac Kohane, MD, PhD, and Kenneth Mandl, MD, MPH, of Children's Hospital in Boston and Harvard Medical School received a $15 million grant to advance health IT with funds from the HHS Office of the National Coordinator for HIT...Roy Schoenberg, president and CEO of American Well, announced that their newest telehealth product, Online Care Team Edition, will be implemented by the Hawaii Medical Service Association (HMSA) and the Blue Cross Blue Shield plan of Hawaii...Doug Porter has been appointed as the Administrator for the state of Washington's Health Care Authority...Governor John Elias Baldacci, Maine, signed an Executive Order establishing the Office of the State Coordinator for Health Information Technology...John Chambers, CEO of Cisco Systems, announced that their videoconferencing system used for telemedicine is being used by medical groups in southern California and the southwest...Vance Chunn, CEO and administrator of Cardiology Associates, announced that they had chosen Allscripts electronic health record for all 38 of its providers...Ron Winger, president and CEO of Heart Hospital of New Mexico, announced that TeleHealth Services will be the provider of its interactive patient education efforts...Debbie Knoke, CEO of Sequoyah Memorial Hospital, discussed their telemedicine capabilities and program with National Public Radio...Surachon Gunvijit, managing director of Prodigi, a Thailand-based teleradiology company, announced that TeleDiag, which offers remote radiology services to customers including the Thai International Hospital Koh Samui, Vejthani Hospital, Praram 9 Hospital, and others is gaining in strength…Please send us your news on Movers and Shakers in the field.
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