Monday, April 19, 2010

Health Informatics News

Health Informatics News

Legislation Introduced to Extend Health IT to Behavioral Health

Posted: 19 Apr 2010 08:57 AM PDT

Last week, Congressmen Patrick J. Kennedy (D-R.I.) and Tim Murphy (R-Pa.) introduced the Health Information Technology Extension for Behavioral Health Services Act of 2010. The legislation would extend the incentives for the meaningful use of EHRs by ensuring the eligibility of many behavioral and mental health professionals, psychiatric hospitals, behavioral and mental health treatment facilities, and substance abuse treatment facilities. Murphy said that delivering health IT to this sector “bridges the care for those with mental and physical illness, and that “to best diagnose and treat patients, mental health professionals need complete, up-to-date medical histories.” ARRA, which provided $20 billion in incentives and grants to healthcare organizations to establish interoperable health records, had previously excluded mental health providers, including clinical psychologists, clinical social workers, psychiatric hospitals, substance use treatment facilities and mental health treatment facilities.  

Oracle Buys Phase Forward

Posted: 19 Apr 2010 08:55 AM PDT

Redwood Shores, Calif.-based Oracle has agreed to acquire Phase Forward , a Waltham, Mass.-based provider of applications for life sciences companies and healthcare providers, for approximately $685 million (or $17.00 per share). Phase Forward’s SaaS-based Integrated Clinical Research Suite manages clinical development and safety processes from Phase 1 clinical trials through regulatory submission and post-approval monitoring. Through the acquisition, users will be able to more effectively and securely capture, contribute, access and share data, says the company. Phase Forward management and employees are expected to join Oracle as part of the Oracle Health Sciences Global Business Unit. The transaction is subject to stockholder and regulatory approval and other customary closing conditions and is expected to close in mid 2010.  

Survey: Privacy compliance has declined

Posted: 14 May 2006 01:56 AM PDT

Three years after federal rules governing the privacy of patients' medical records went into effect, compliance seems to have declined for 6 percent, according to an annual survey conducted by the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA). Read more about this at here.

E-book: Making E-Health Work

Posted: 14 May 2006 01:53 AM PDT

E-Health has become an integral part of present-day healthcare delivery. With healthcare consumers, increasingly the focus of most health systems, the widespread implementation of health information and communications technologies offers cost-effective opportunities to meet their increasingly sophisticated healthcare needs.Bankix Systems Ltd has released its latest e-book. It is a 200-page in-depth analysis of the issues involved in "Making E-Health Work," the e-book's title. Read more about this e-book at here.

Consumer tools: UCompareHealthCare Offers Free Reports on Hospitals, Nursing Homes and Physicians

Posted: 11 Mar 2006 01:01 AM PST

"UCompareHealthCare has just unveiled its Web site, ucomparehealthcare.com, which features free reports on the nation's nursing homes, hospitals and physicians to help consumers make informed healthcare decisions. I checked the web site and found it very informative for health consumers to help them make informed decision about their choices of doctors, hospitals and others." Read more about this at UCompareHealthCare

Articles: Direct to Consumer: Women are a powerful, but untapped, audience

Posted: 03 Feb 2006 12:04 AM PST

"Women influence many family decisions—from choosing what's for dinner to selecting the medications their children take. In fact, nearly two-thirds of women are responsible for family healthcare decisions, according to a 2004 national survey conducted by Plan for Your Health. Many women also assume the care-giving role outside their nuclear families. Today's middle-aged woman may also look after her parents and in-laws too, often determining how long they can live on their own and how to best care for them. In addition, she often influences the important health decisions of grandchildren, co-workers, and friends." Read more at PharmExec.

Consumer tools: Really Personal PHRs

Posted: 27 Jan 2006 01:05 AM PST

"If we're committed to fostering the adoption of personal health records, we should take a page out of the consumer marketing textbooks — not the primers of health IT marketers. This was my conclusion after attending a recent meeting in Washington, D.C., sponsored by the Markle Foundation, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Agency for Healthcare Quality Research and Quality. " Read more about this at iHealthBeat .

Consumer trends: Manhattan Predicts Online Health Trends

Posted: 27 Jan 2006 12:06 AM PST

"US healthcare specialist Manhattan Research has published a summary of the major trends for health and pharmaceutical marketers to consider in 2006. The trends chart the increased use of the web and other new technologies as a health information and communication tool for both patients and physicians." Read more at Daily Research News Online.

News: Wall Street Journal Looks at Tools That Identify Low-Cost Care Options

Posted: 26 Jan 2006 01:07 AM PST

"The Wall Street Journal on Thursday looked at efforts by insurers to provide patients with tools - including a cell phone Web browsing service - to help them find low-cost treatment options. Lumenos, a unit of WellPoint, in February will launch the cell phone service, which lets patients type drug names into their cell phones' Web browsers and get lists of lower-cost alternatives. The program is designed so that patients can ask their physicians about cost-effective alternatives while they still are at their appointments." Read more at iHealthBeat.

Consumer tools: Consumer Health Complete Now Available from EBSCO Publishing

Posted: 25 Jan 2006 12:09 AM PST

"In continuing with the company's goal of providing the most comprehensive collection of online health and wellness resources, EBSCO Publishing has announced the release of Consumer Health Complete (CHC). This full text database is designed to support consumer and patients' information needs as well as foster an overall
understanding of health-related topics." Read more at Managing Information News.

Humana drops HMO docs

Posted:

4/18/2010 © Daytona Beach News-Journal Humana is limiting its Medicare HMO network to doctors on a 'capitated' arrangement, meaning that they have agreed to a pre-fixed, per-patient price, regardless of the treatment provided.

For docs, flying solo loses its lure

Posted:

4/18/2010 © St. Petersburg Times In 2005, hospitals were the employers in 23 percent of the physician jobs that a national recruiting firm was hired to fill. In 2009, that figure rose to 45 percent. Doctors want to practice medicine, not run a business.
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