The National eHealth Collaborative (NeHC) on April 26 convened 80 representatives of consumer-facing organizations ranging from patient advocates to government agencies for the inaugural meeting of the Consumer Consortium on eHealth. The goal: To encourage individuals to become more engaged in health and healthcare throught the use of information technology.
“Empowering consumer/patients through...
Smartphone apps are increasing in popularity and are being widely used in healthcare as health apps, but more research needs to be conducted on their efficacy as patient adherence tools, according to a survey by Consumer Health Information Corporation (CHIC).
The survey was distributed to smartphone consumers at affiliated universities, businesses and posted on Facebook in April 2011. Survey...
Health-focused social networks may prove to be a viable source for chronic disease surveillance, according to researchers at Children's Hospital Boston.
Using a combination of Facebook-like tools and personally controlled health records, researchers at Children’s Hospital Boston have engaged members of an online diabetes social network as participants in public health surveillance, according to a...
Social media could prove to be a valuable method for gathering real time information on patient treatment to help determine drug effectiveness sooner, according to a new study of patients with ALS.
PatientsLikeMe, the world's leading online health data sharing platform. reveals the results of a patient-initiated observational study refuting a 2008(1) published study that claimed lithium carbonate...
Wayne Memorial Hospital has implemented the nurse call integration feature of the HealthAlert for Nurses technology from Fort Wayne, Ind.-based EXTENSION. The 316-bed facility can now automate the delivery of clinical information and nurse call messages.
"We knew we needed a short-term communications solution for our staff and most of the products we considered could provide that, but EXTENSION...
The Health Information Trust Alliance (HITRUST) announced its plans to support the healthcare industry in 2011 and beyond with initiatives aimed at maintaining the comprehensiveness and relevance of the Common Security Framework (CSF) and CSF Assurance program.
HITRUST has identified a number of key areas, including cloud computing, data protection, health information exchanges (HIEs), mobile...
While many doctors shy away from use of the Internet because of concern over HIPAA penalties, one company is advising the physician community to not become victim to HIPAA hand-wringing and fall out of sync with their colleagues who have learned how to responsibly utilize today's most valuable online visibility tools.
Avvo, the world's largest online directory for doctors and lawyers that...
Despite the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) reluctance to release guidelines on health care companies’ use of social media, a recent survey measuring the sentiments of social media “power users” in the health space revealed that the online community supports healthcare company engagement in social media and feels it has the strong potential to significantly benefit both consumers and the...
The American College of Surgeons (ACS), the largest surgical association in the world, is launching an online community powered by Within3 to support thousands of surgeons in the United States who practice in sparsely populated areas.
The community will offer a range of collaborative tools to connect the surgeons and facilitate the sharing of advice, research and other resources. Since many...
The Foundation for the National Institutes of Health (FNIH) and the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) announced Tuesday an extensive strategic partnership that will expand the already successful mHealth Summit. The largest event focused on mobile health, the 2011 mHealth Summit will be held from December 5-7 in the Washington, DC area.
Leveraging the strengths and...
