Former ONC deputy coordinator is new AMA president-elect
Robert M. Wah, M.D., who served as the first deputy coordinator for the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT from 2005 to 2006, this week was named president-elect of the American Medical Association.
Poor USB security puts info for 6 million Medicare beneficiaries at risk
A Medicare contractor's failure to adequately implement security controls over USB devices put sensitive information for more than six million Medicare beneficiaries at risk, according to a report published this month by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Office of Inspector General.
VA claims system now in all regional offices
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs this week introduced a new application that enables disability compensation claims to be processed more quickly, in a more end-to-end electronic environment. It integrates with its internal Veteran Benefits Management System (VBMS), which officials say has been installed in all 56 regional offices.
Project ECHO expansion to help rural docs provide mental health services
Community health providers in New Mexico will consult weekly on complex cases with mental health experts through videoconferencing under an expansion of the successful rural telemedicine program Project ECHO.
FDA sends device identifier rule to OMB for final review
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration submitted a proposed final rule on unique medical device identifiers this week.
4 ways technology can improve pediatric care coordination
Wider implementation of available technology, such as mobile applications and web portals, could improve care coordination for children with complex chronic conditions, according to a report published this week by the Verizon Foundation and Boston Children's Hospital.
Facebook boosts organ donor registration
Researchers from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore found that a social media push boosted the number of people who registered themselves as organ donors 21-fold in a single day, they announced this week. To that end, the researchers suggested that social media could be a tool in addressing America's current stubborn organ shortage.
Strategies for health IT success from risk managers
Debating the role of becoming an expert in health IT, risk managers across hospital systems in the U.S. shared their tips for health IT success in a recent report published by the Emergency Care Research Institute (ECRI).
Telemedicine patients more likely urban, educated
Urbanites are twice as likely as those in rural areas to take part in telemedicine, though participation rates for both remain low, according to a report on broadband use released by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration.
5 focal points for telehealth efforts
Orem, Utah-based research firm KLAS has released a report taking a closer look at the state of telehealth. More than three-fourths of providers interviewed indicated that their efforts are focused in five disciplines: home monitoring, psychiatry, stroke, neurology and intensive care. FierceHealthIT decided to take a deeper dive into the five focal disciplines. Slideshow
Novel technology isolates unknown viruses
Researchers at Saint Louis University have developed a way to screen for previously unknown viruses. Their technique involves next-generation genetic sequencing approach called transcriptome subtraction, according to an article published at Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications.
VA says claims backlog continues to shrink
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has made "significant progress" in trying to work through its backlog of more than 800,000 disability claims, an agency official told congress last week.
Healthcare attorney: 'Secure the human' to keep patient data safe
For healthcare providers looking to ensure the security of electronic patient information, it's just as important to solidify employee knowledge as it is to encrypt data and implement improved IT solutions, said Lee Kim, an attorney with Pittsburgh-based firm Tucker Arensberg who also serves as chair of the mHIMSS Legal/Policy Taskforce.
Providers navigate potential uses for Google Glass in healthcare
Rafael Grossman, a surgeon at Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor, can think of a few ways he'd use Google Glass, as outlined in a recent blog post.
3 telehealth issues that elevate health leaders' worry-meters
By one estimate, 1.8 million patients will be treated via telehealth worldwide by 2017, a sign of the growing acceptance of remote medical services. But as with any emerging trend, there remains much to be worked out. To that end, René Y. Quashie, senior counsel in the healthcare and life sciences practice at law firm Epstein Becker Green, writes in a blog post at Lexology of telehealth issues that should keep healthcare leaders awake at night.
Med groups express concern over proposed HIPAA changes
A host of medical groups are up in arms over a proposal by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services in April that potentially would allow protected mental health information to be reported to a federal gun background-check database.
FDA calls for increased health IT cybersecurity efforts
With hackers and cyberattacks increasing as threats to medical devices, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration this week published new guidance calling for developers and healthcare facilities to beef up security efforts while creating and using those devices.
Lucile Packard suffers second data breach in six months
Lucile Packard Children's Hospital has suffered its third data breach in four years, and its second in six months, this one effecting potentially 12,900 patients.
Navy Medicine CIO: We are communicating with VA on EHR efforts
The CIO for Navy Medicine insisted this week that the Department of Defense is maintaining open communication lines with the Department of Veterans Affairs on electronic health record efforts.
Beacon programs share patient engagement IT lessons learned
Four women gave honest insight into the lessons they've learned in their individual Beacon Community programs--in central Pennsylvania, southeast Minnesota and Western New York--at the Government Health IT Conference & Exhibition this week in Washington, D.C.
