Health Management Technology articles from December 2003

Health Management Technology archives from December 2003

Robin's Classics.(From The Editor)
December 1, 2003... Now that "Heroes and Villains" has gone the way of Nehru jackets, here's a peek into a personal folder called "Robin's Classics." In case you think I loll around all day, reading quality proposals for articles, the following are brought to you...

GAO says IT reduces costs, improves safety.(Healthcare Costs)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... IT initiatives can help hospitals realize significant cost savings and improve patient safety efforts, according to a new report by the U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO). In one instance, a 1,951-bed teaching hospital saved $8.6 million...

Blues plan pays docs for online consultations.(e-Consults)
December 1, 2003... Physicians in select Blue Shield of California HMO programs will receive reimbursement for online medical consultations, webVisits, by Emeryville, Calif.-based RelayHealth, allows providers to consult patients electronically for nonurgent...

Overworked staff, poor communication leading factors in mistakes.(Medical Errors)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Some 43 percent of Americans believe overworked staff is the leading cause of medical errors in hospitals, caused in part by poor communication among hospital departments. But they also believe information technology will help alleviate those...

California hospitals adopt technology.(Patient Safety)(according to California HealthCare Foundation)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... More than one-third of California hospitals will implement three or more technology solutions by 2005, according to the California HealthCare Foundation (CHCF). CPOE topped the list at 46 percent. Pharmacy information systems followed close...

Health plans earmark $3 million for e-prescribing initiatives.(e-Prescribing)( Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts and Tufts Health Plan)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Two Massachusetts health plans have secured $3 million in funding for e-prescribing initiatives among member physicians. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts and Tufts Health Plan, in collaboration with Dallas-based ZixCorp, will offer...

Hospitals adopt digital technology at department level.(Digital Healthcare)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... While a handful of digital hospitals are set to open within the next five years, many of the nation's 5,000 acute care and specialty hospitals already use digital technologies at the department level or through unique collaborations. That is...

More demand to go mobile.(Briefly)
December 1, 2003... The market for healthcare mobile devices, applications and services is expected to grow to $1.2 billion by 2006, up from $50 million in 2002, according to a recent market study by Menlo Park, Calif.-based Spyglass Consulting Group. The study...

CHIME honors hospital-vendor collaboration.(Briefly)(College of Healthcare Information Executives)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... The College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME) presented its first annual Collaboration Award to Susquehanna Health Systems (SHS) and Siemens Medical Solutions Health Services Corp. Williamsport, Pa.-based SHS and Siemens...

HealthSouth rehab facilities get 5,000 tablet PCs.(Briefly)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... HealthSouth Corp. has selected Austin, Texas-based Motion Computing to deploy 5,000 tablet PCs to its nationwide network of 1,400 outpatient rehabilitation facilities. Motion M 1300 Tablet PCs, equipped with TherapySource software from Source...

AHIMA launches consumer health info Web site.(Briefly)
December 1, 2003... The American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) launched a new Web site to help consumers manage personal health information. Available at www.myPHR.com, the site offers a listing of common information and reports contained in a...

Smarter than you think: although many European and Asian countries embrace smart cards with personal health information, U.S. healthcare organizations are slow to adopt them.(Authentication/Biometrics)
December 1, 2003... Daily life is becoming more mobile, including in healthcare. It seems like everyone carries his own cellphone, and laptops and personal digital assistants (PDAs) allow physicians to get anytime, anywhere access to patient information. ...

The path to improved results: a Colorado hospital uses clinical decision support tools to lower LOS and its rate of unplanned readmissions and patient complications.(Decision Support: Case History)
December 1, 2003... In the quest to improve quality of care and control costs, hospitals continuously incorporate the latest medical knowledge, healthcare standards and best practices into their treatment protocols. Reliable, detailed, easy to-use clinical data is...

At the crossroads of change and constancy: while technology advances and IT improvements directed at patient safety dot the landscape, healthcare CIOs remain focused on objectives to improve their organizations' performance--and their own rewards, too.(CIO Survey)
December 1, 2003... There's an old saying: The more things change, the more they stay the same. For healthcare CIOs, their landscape and challenges are fluctuating, but many of the personal drivers of job satisfaction, career development and personal attainment...

More of a good thing: surgical information system upgrades help Pennsylvania hospital eliminate paper records and improve revenue management.(Surgical information systems: case history)
December 1, 2003... A spike in cases spurred a South Central Pennsylvania hospital to revisit its longstanding perioperative system, and to renew its investment with additional system modules. Hospital leaders knew that to keep pace with patient volume and to...

Early experiences in e-prescribing: the state of Florida deploys handhelds and prescription management software to Medicaid physicians, to drive down the cost of medications and to provide point-of-care decision.(PDAs & Handhelds)
December 1, 2003... E-prescription tools and medication management databases are gaining acceptance among physicians not because of an attraction to the hightech wizardry of zapping prescriptions from bedside to pharmacy, but because of the need to enhance patient...

Convertible notebook/tablet.(PDAs & Handhelds)
December 1, 2003... Providing integrated, concurrent access to WAN, LAN and GPS systems, the Toughbook 18 is a touchscreen PC that converts from a notebook PC to a tablet PC with one quick swivel. It utilizes an ultralow-voltage Intel Pentium M 900 MHz processor...

Lightweight handheld with keyboard.(PDAs & Handhelds)
December 1, 2003... Offering a nearly full-size keyboard, instant-on functionality and a light but rugged design with no moving parts, the MobilePro 900 provides a platform for capturing data, managing communications and presenting information while the user is on...

Large-screen tablet.(PDAs & Handhelds)
December 1, 2003... The Scribbler SC1000 is a wirelessenabled tablet PC with a Toshiba 12.1-inch XGA TFT 16-bit color screen and powered by a lithium-ion SuperPolymer battery. It features a Transmeta Crusoe 5800 1 GHz processor, 640 MB of RAM (expandable), a...

Small pocket PDA.(PDAs & Handhelds)
December 1, 2003... The PPT 8800 packs the power of best-inclass data capture and wireless communication options in a slim but rugged PDA-format device. It utilizes Microsoft Windows Mobile 2003 software for pocket PCs, an Intel XScale 400 MHz processor, 64 MB RAM...

Handheld with glowing keyboard.(PDAs & Handhelds)
December 1, 2003... The MX3-CE is a wireless handheld PC that provides a glowing keyboard for easier typing in dark environments. It comes with a 2.4 GHz 802.11b radio, Cisco, Aironet, Agere and Orinoco RF cards, and an optimized internal antenna. The one half VGA...

Bluetooth-integrated PDA.(PDAs & Handhelds)
December 1, 2003... Compatible with Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint file formats, the Tungsten T3 handhold provides wireless connectivity, a large, high-resolution color screen in portrait and landscape modes. Its 320-by-480 pixel color transflective TFT...

Transaction portal cuts costs: New York payers and providers discover that IT collaboration and the sharing of information affords savings that no organization could achieve on its own.(Claims Management)
December 1, 2003... Saving more than $2.4 million during the past year two provider organizations emplify how partcipating in a community health portal can result ill a sizable return on their technology investments. These savings are the result of an online...

Going with the flow: tracking system helps Midwest hospital streamline patient flow and lower emergency room divert rate.(Bed Tracking: case history)
December 1, 2003... Patient-flow problems once caused United Hospital's emergency department (ED) to have the highest divert rate in the Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minn., metropolitan area. By installing a bed tracking system as part of a housewide effort to streamline...

Remote intervention: South Dakota health ministry reviews records remotely to increase efficiency.(What Works: chart review/ASPs)
December 1, 2003... When complex code numbers drive a healthcare provider's payments, it must act to ensure that it receives the reimbursements it is due. But assigning the correct codes is a challenge when multiple facilities in several states are involved. ...

Security hotlist.
December 1, 2003... Information in the HotList is based on survey responses collected from companies with products in the category covered. The HotList is not intended to reflect the quality of products or services, nor is it intended to be an inclusive list of...

Web-based Infection Control.(New products & services)
December 1, 2003... Infection Control Assistant is Web-based software that automates hospitalwide surveillance for infection-related events and presents critical, real-time patient data to infection control specialists. Working in conjunction with Antibiotic...

LIS via internet/wireless device.(New products & services)
December 1, 2003... MODU-LIS II is a Web-based laboratory information system that can be used as part of a total LIS or as a stand-alone accessory to any other LIS. Offering real-time clinical results from any LIS or HIS via an HL7 interface, it provides access...

Mobile access to lab diagnoses.(New products & services)
December 1, 2003... PocketPath is a mobile application that allows physicians using PDAs to access diagnoses for completed cases in WindowPath, an anatomic pathology information system. It can be installed on any handheld device using the Pocket PC 2002 or Windows...

Wireless network management.(New products & services)
December 1, 2003... The Steel-Belted Radius Appliance is a stand-alone RADIUS server that combines Steel-Belted Radius/Enterprise Edition version 4.0 with a dedicated rack-mountable device designed for easy integration into a network closet. The server permits...

Uninterruptible NAS operation.(New products & services)
December 1, 2003... The Fortress 14JBOD is a base 2 GB, 14-bay NAS system that offers 12.25 TB of storage when fully expanded. Enclosure features include a low profile in a 3U fiber rackmount configuration; three 300-watt, hot-swappable, redundant, load-sharing...

Incentives for healthy lifestyles.(Thought Leaders)
December 1, 2003... Consumer-directed healthcare is garnering considerable attention these days, but much of it is about shifting costs to consumers without leaving them better prepared to make health decisions. Most consumer-directed healthcare approaches focus...