Cisco, Molina launch statewide telemedicine service in California
Networking systems giant Cisco and Long Beach-based community healthcare provider Molina Healthcare Inc. are launching a $10 million telemedicine pilot program designed to bring medical services to underserved areas throughout California. The California Telemedicine Pilot Project, which also involves several San Diego-area community health centers, and the University of California at Davis, will use Cisco’s HealthPresence network to give patients a more-informed interaction with physicians, according to John Chambers, Cisco’s chairperson and chief executive officer. Although HealthPresence has been piloted for two years in clinical settings, this initiative serves as a proof-of-concept for Cisco and its partners to demonstrate the value of a scalable, cost-efficient telemedicine network that connects facilities across the state of California, in real time, for activities such as patient care and education, as well as clinician-to-clinician consultation or education, Chambers said. http://newsroom.cisco.com/dlls/2010/prod_011510b.html

AMD, Texas Tech to expand children’s telemedicine program
AMD Global Telemedicine Inc. and Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center are expanding the center’s children-based telemedicine services program to 30 locations in rural Texas. According to TTUHSC Telemedicine Technology Manager Mark Watts, The Children’s Healthcare Access in Rural Texas (CHART) – the only program of its kind in Texas – has proven so successful and demand so great, that expanding the service is a logical course of action. Seventy-five percent of children in Western Texas live more than 90 miles from the nearest hospital; CHART gives those children more-immediate access to medical care while relieving families of associated travel burdens. Various AMD medical devices for primary care will be used to connect with video conferencing equipment thus giving clinics real time health diagnostics capabilities, AMD President Steven Normandin said. http://www.prweb.com/pdfdownload/3443594.pdf

ATA coordinating health relief efforts for Haitian quake victims
The American Telemedicine Association is coordinating health relief efforts for victims of the Haitian earthquake through its International Telemedicine Resource Center. According to ATA officials, the health fallout from the 7.0 magnitude earthquake on Jan. 12 is “sure to be felt for many years.” The next phase is to coordinate volunteer efforts for ongoing health services in Haiti. Many ATA members have volunteered services, hardware, software, and networks for ongoing health issues. ATA is working to match these donations to the organizations and programs that can best use them. Persons or companies that wish to donate services may do so at the ATA’s Web site.   http://www.americantelemed.org/i4a/pages...

Swedish researchers offer free cardiovascular image software
Researchers from the department of clinical physiology at Lund University and Lund University Hospital in Sweden have released a free cardiovascular image analysis software package to help bridge a gap between image analysis and cardiovascular research. According to a report in BMC Medical Imaging, the Segment software will allow loading of DICOM images from all major scanner vendors, simultaneous display of multiple image stacks and plane intersections, automated segmentation of the left ventricle, quantification of MRI flow, tools for manual and general object segmentation, quantitative regional wall motion analysis, myocardial viability analysis and image fusion tools. The software is freely available for non-commercial research. For commercial use, a commercial license is required and is provided by Lund, Sweden-based MEDVISO. http://segment.heiberg.se/   http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2342/10/1

NewCardio earns patent for new wireless cardiac diagnostic tool
Santa Clara, CA-based cardiac diagnostic technology NewCardio Inc. has received a patent from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for its new ECG telemonitoring device, CardioBip. According to NewCardio Chief Executive Officer Branislav Vajdic, the handheld device allows patients to easily generate and transmit synthesized, accurate 12-lead ECGs at physician-prescribed time intervals, during ordinary daily activity or when symptoms develop. CardioBip works without any cables, cumbersome leads, wires or inconvenient skin electrodes, as the device’s electrodes are integrated, offering potential compatibility with popular hand-held PDA platforms, Vajdic said. The patent comes immediately following positive results from two validation studies, which confirmed CardioBip’s ability to record, reconstruct and transmit an accurate, high-resolution 12-lead ECG, Vajdic added.  http://www.b2i.us/profiles/investor/ResLibrary...

Military asked to resume 3D human body mapping technology
A medical advisor to the U.S. military is urging the government to support development of modeling technologies in order to create advanced computer simulations of the human body. Former Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Program Manager Richard Satava said the lack of a patient-modeling technology has medicine “stuck in the dark ages.” DARPA was pursuing the technology for several years but recently dropped the project. Satava compared 3D human modeling to prototyping performed by General Motors when it develops a new car. “If General Motors is building a new car, they make tens of thousands of models and run them through virtual-prototype testing and evaluation,” he said. In medicine, “We don’t have anything like that.” Futuristic 3D records could be carried by soldiers on their dog tags; a medic could run a wounded soldier’s tags through a scanner and put the “holomer” up on a computer.   http://www.nationaldefensemagazine.org/archive/2010/...

Multiple-user telemedicine system for EMS crews underway
Toms River, N.J.-based Visual Management Systems Inc. and UDU, LLC are collaborating on an application that allows first responders to work together in real time over the Internet, regardless of geography, connection-type, weather constraints and other limiting issues. According to VMS President Jason Gonzalez, the Net Utility Vehicle (NUV) will allow multiple-users to actually work together remotely, not just teleconference images back and forth like many telemedicine apps today. Users will also not have to rely on any one connection type, but may utilize satellite communications, wireless CDMA, or other types of data connections. Gonzalez added that NUV also has applications in the military, veterinary and industrial markets, but due to current market demand should show the quickest return in the telemedicine industry.    http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/...

‘Smart’ pills may be wise medicinal move of future
“Smart” pills – sensor-filled medications that effectively communicate with doctors by transmitting medical information after patients have taken them – are becoming a key way for physicians to track medication compliance, according to a report in The Economist. Major players in the prescription drug industry, including Novartis and Philips, are investing in smart pill technology to address a serious need: up to one-third of prescription drugs are not taken as prescribed, or taken at all. This results in poorer patient health, which ultimately costs healthcare providers more than $100 billion annually. But while pharmaceutical firms develop intelligent medicines ranging from pills with sensors to alarmed bottle caps, some argue that such intense patient monitoring has an Orwellian effect, scaring patients into even greater medication avoidance.       http://www.economist.com/businessfinance/displayStory.cfm?story_id=15276730

Booz Allen wins grant for government health IT system
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has awarded McLean, VA-based Booz Allen Hamilton Inc. (BAH) a $400,000 contract to help develop a testing method and processes for certifying electronic health record systems. The contract calls for the consulting firm to help NIST build a testing framework for health IT, a certification “process document” and other planning tools. According to NIST Media Relations Officer Michael Baum, NIST has two goals for the program: to develop testing and certification documents to help set up a health IT certification program, and to set up a “proficiency testing framework” for authorizing certification and testing organizations.     http://govhealthit.com/newsitem.aspx?nid=72951

Most popular jobs of future include virtual doctors, nano-medics
Body part makers, nano-medics, and various virtual healthcare providers are expected to be among the top jobs 20 years from now, according to a report by Britain’s “Science: So What? So Everything” campaign. “The Shape of Jobs to Come” predicts that advances in science will make it possible for doctors to grow human organs, making that profession the most important job by 2030. And, advances in nanotechnology in creating sub-atomic devices and treatments “could transform healthcare as we know it,” requiring a new breed of doctor capable of administering treatment with these devices. Other top 20 jobs include memory augmentation surgeons, virtual lawyers, avatar teachers, and even social workers for people traumatized by social networking. The report is available at http://sciencesowhat.direct.gov.uk.      http://sciencesowhat.direct.gov.uk/images/stories/future_jobs_sheet.pdf

California turns to text messaging as swine flu info provider
California health officials are tapping into the potential of text messaging to help educate people about H1N1 or swine flu. According to California State Department of Health spokesperson Al Lundeen, the virus appears to strike a disproportionate number of younger people. At the same time, text messaging is becoming the most popular method of communication for people under age 25, making social media a “brilliant way” to get the word across about the availability of the swine flu vaccine. Persons can tap “No Flu” and their ZIP codes into any text-capable cell phone to find out where they can go for a shot. A similar program can be used to help state residents stay healthy during the regular flu season, state DoH Director Dr. Mark Horton said.   http://www.sacbee.com/296/story/2455123.html

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota introduce telemedicine pilot
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota are piloting a telemedicine-based healthcare program to its 10,000 members throughout the state. The Online Care Anywhere program allows patients access to medical care from home or work via a computer or phone, according to BCBS-MN President Pat Geraghty. Blue Cross is the first health insurer in the nation to offer online healthcare, the provider notes. During the program’s pilot phase, the company will work closely with its own employees to evaluate and refine this innovative care model, Geraghty said. Online Care Anywhere uses the services of regional health network Fairview Health Services and uses technology developed by American Well.    http://www.bluecrossmn.com/bc/wcs/idcplg?IdcService...