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eHealthBeat: Big Growth Predicted for Wearables

Vol.17 Issue: 26

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Thursday, July 14, 2016
Big Growth Predicted for Wearables

 
The wearable technology market is expected to grow substantially this year, hitting $30 billion by the end of 2016. Sales of smartwatches and fitness trackers are driving the increase with almost $11 billion, according to a new study. Despite the positive predictions, challenges are still present. The study from IDTechEx looks at wearables, including smartwatches, smart eyewear, fitness trackers, smart clothing, medical devices, and infotainment devices.

 
Number of HIEs Down, Bringing Validity into Question - Study

 
The number of community and state health information exchanges (HIEs) is declining as they struggle to remain financially viable now that the seed money is on its way out. A new national survey published in Health Affairs tracked community and state HIE efforts soon after federal funding ceased. The number of operational HIEs is down from 119 in 2012 to 106 in 2016, the first marked decline since tracking began in 2006. Only half of operational efforts reported being financially viable, but all HIE efforts reported a variety of barriers to continuation. These findings raise important questions about whether the current vision for HIE efforts will allow for the broad exchange of clinical data, or whether alternative approaches would be more successful.

 
Documentation in Paper Records is More Accurate than EHRs - JAMIA

 
Regarding clinical documentation, providers tended to chart more accurately using patient records than in electronic health records, according to a study in the Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association. However, EHR documentation is more thorough, on average. The researchers analyzed 500 progress notes from Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, Michigan. This study found that EHRs had a 24.4 percent rate of inaccurate documentation, compared to 4.4 percent on paper charts. Researchers concluded that further research is needed.


Mobile Apps Will Help Recruit for Precision Medicine Initiative

 
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced another $55 million award, laying the ground work for the PMI Cohort Program. Scripps and Vibrent are the main awardees, which received $20 million in funding for the first year and stand to pick up $120 million over the next five years. Over time, the data provided by the participants will help answer important health questions. Funding will be awarded in the latter half of this year.

 
Marketplaces With Higher EHR Vendor Dominance See More HIE Activity According to Study

 
 
Recent research published in Health Affairs suggests that hospitals are more likely to engage in health information exchange activity if they use the dominant vendor in the market. The study analyzed national data to look at the relation between EHR vendor market domination and hospital engagement in HIE activity between 2012 and 2013. They found hospitals using a specific dominant vendor’s EHR engaged in, on average, 45 percent more activity than those using a competing vendor. If the dominant vendor controlled a small portion of the market, roughly 20 percent, hospitals using that vendor engaged in 59 percent more HIE activities than hospitals not using the dominant vendor. The converse was also found to be true in this study.Health Affairs in publishedRecent research
 
To Fight TB, mHealth Needs Framework and Oversight

 
Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania published a report in Global Health: Science and Practices creating a framework for the treatment of tuberculosis through mobile health. The framework outlines the strengths and weaknesses of intervention categories, provides recommendations for additional treatment, and highlights areas for improvement, particularly direct observation of therapy (DOT). DOT is the global care standard in TB medication adherence monitoring. In the article, the authors believe that mHealth can help patients follow treatments and that health tools can be used in numerous ways in TB management.

 
 
Patients Favor Infection Management Education Through Mobile Apps

 
Those taking antimicrobial medicine desire insight on the drugs they are taking, as well as infection management. They are in favor of getting such information through applications and online resources. Research published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research found that 55 percent said they would be willing to use a smartphone or tablet to be better informed. Every participant in the United Kingdom-based study taking a prescription for infection desired further data.

 
AI Could Help Diagnose Alzheimer’s Early

 
Researchers from the VU University Medical Center in Amsterdam suggest that by applying artificial intelligence algorithms to MRI brain scans they can detect signs of Alzheimer’s earlier. The study, published in the journal Radiology, shows that the new system was able to classify the exact form of dementia the patients suffered using previously unknown scans with reported accuracies at roughly 90 percent. The hope is that through this screening, the risk can be intercepted before the symptoms present themselves.
California Law Would Make Ransomware a Felony

 
Senators in the State of California introduced a bill that would make use of ransomware a felony. Democratic State Senator Robert Hertzberg (D-Van Nuys) wrote the bill - SB 1137 - that has received support from lawmakers and the technology industry. This bill focuses on penalizing ransomware primarily on the state level. Likewise, the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act handles prosecutions on the federal level. The pending legislation followed headline-making ransomware attacks on hospitals and health systems earlier in the year. The bill is currently in the State Assembly awaiting a vote. One day after the bill was approved by the Senate, the Senator’s website was infected by ransomware.
UPCOMING EVENTS

 


Wednesday, July 20, 2-3 pm ET, Advisory Board on Business and Clinical Motivators - What’s Going on in The App Marketplace. Featuring Presentations from RTI International and IMS Health. 



Thursday, July 28, 2-3 pm ET, Council of Data Analytics Experts



Tuesday, September 27, 9 am- 4 pm ET, Executive Advisory Board of Privacy & Security



October 4-5, 2016 Innovation Showcase at House of Sweden in Washington, D.C.

 
Laura Crawford, M.I.S.

Advisor, Global Patient Outcomes and Real World Evidence

Eli Lilly and Company

To read the full article, please click here.
Beth Ann Killoran Named New HHS CIO

 
Acting Chief Information Officer for the Department of Health and Human Services, Beth Ann Killoran, has officially had the “Acting” removed from her title and is the new HHS CIO. She will be responsible for developing a “cyber-savvy” workforce, according to the blog post announcing her promotion. In addition, HHS makes clear that one of Ms. Killoran’s priorities will be cybersecurity and privacy.

 
OCR Releases Ransomware Guidance and HIPAA

 
In the case of a ransomware attack at a healthcare organization, the government will now consider it a data breach unless there is a “low probability” that information has been compromised. This is according to new guidance on ransomware regarding the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act from the Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights. “A ransomware attack usually results in a ‘breach’ of healthcare information under the HIPAA Breach Notification Rule,” adds OCR Director, Jocelyn Samuels, in an announcement. In the event of a breach, the organization must comply with breach notification provisions, including notifying those affected, the HHS secretary, and relevant media.
June 2016 Worst Month for Hospital Data Breaches on Record

 
In June, hospitals experienced 29 health information breaches, including a total of more than 11 million patient records. This number is significantly higher than any other month in 2016, according to a report from Protenus and databreaches.net. Eighty-six percent of the compromised data came from healthcare providers, while 11 percent were from health plans, and four percent due to stolen records.
NCBH Addresses Interoperability Workgroup on Data Sharing Between PCPs and BH

 
Colleen O’Donnell, Policy and Practice Improvement Specialist for The National Council for Behavioral Health, addresses the interoperability workgroup this week. She spoke on the need for a common frame of reference between physical health and behavioral health, integrated care models between primary care and behavioral health, and the challenges of sharing health information between the two. They found that the biggest challenge is that under HIPAA, no consent is required to transfer data, while under 42 CFR Part 2, consent is required for re-release of the data in addition to the initial release. You can find the presentation and audio at eHI’s website, here.
Digital Health Tools Sought by Most Canadians, but Not Used

 
In a newly released survey, Canadian firm, Telus Health, found that Canadians want digital health tools, but for various reasons do not use it. Nearly 90 percent of Canadians said in the survey that they want these technologies, believing it leads to better healthcare. Eighty percent of those surveyed agreed that electronic health records provide accurate information, and 75 percent believe EHRs help doctors diagnose more effectively. The survey was conducted between May 30 and June 3, 2016 and gathered responses from 1,009 respondents, with a margin of error of +/- 3.1 percent.

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