Novartis has launched Novartis Biome, a digital health innovation lab network, and a set of worldwide innovation challenges it calls the HealthX World Series. "The idea is to give the health tech ecosystem a boost and clear 'on-ramp' to work with Novartis," said Robin Roberts, head of innovation and strategy.
Although most hospitals are using an EHR system, interoperability is still an obstacle, with nearly 75% of hospitals using more than 10 disparate outpatient vendors, and only 2% of hospitals using a single vendor at all affiliated practices, according to HIMSS Analytics' State of the Market 2018 report. Researchers also found that 45.3% of hospitals are still learning about blockchain and have not implemented any related programs within their organizations, while 65% reported currently using cloud or cloud services, and 50% of respondents provide telehealth services.
Cofense's The State of Phishing Defense 2018 report showed that "payment notification" appeared in 58% of health care phishing attack campaigns, making it the top subject in phishing attacks this year, with "attached invoice" and "new message in mailbox" also being prevalent. Seven percent of emails sent across the health care sector are malicious in nature, compared with 10% in other industries, findings showed.
A panel at the MedCity Engage conference in San Diego on Nov. 6 will delve into the methods companies are undertaking to improve price transparency and the potential impact that price transparency could have on lowering larger healthcare costs. "That consumer anxiety when we get sick is exacerbated by not knowing how it will cost is unacceptable," said urgent care company Solv CEO and co-founder Heather Fernandez.
A joint statement signed Sept. 26 by Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie and Defense Secretary James Mattis about the alignment of their departments' EHR projects was released Wednesday. "The joint statement between DOD and VA represents tangible evidence of our commitment to change how we deliver veteran-focused, provider-friendly care," and the effort "will ease the burden on service members as they transition from military careers and will be supported by multiple medical providers throughout their lives," Wilkie said.
More small businesses in Long Island, N.Y., are following the national trend of offering employee health benefits as a way to recruit and retain talent in a tight labor market. K&M Truck Repair was able to recruit workers after offering company-paid long-term disability and life insurance, as well as fully paid health and dental insurance for employees.
Companies can make health insurance more valuable to their employees by ensuring plans match up with current medical practices and considering the stages or severity of patients' medical conditions, writes Pam Handmaker of Trustmark. Companies should have plans that cover routine testing and procedures, reward good behaviors, and pay claims quickly.
People can have different ideas about fitness based on their personal goals, such as running a marathon, or how they want to look, says Shawn Arent, director of the Center for Health and Human Performance at Rutgers University. Arent says some important measures of fitness include aerobic fitness, muscular strength, body composition, power and flexibility.
Finnish researchers used a cohort of more than 400,000 patients with and without diabetes and found an increased risk of death caused by accidents, alcohol consumption and suicide among those with any form of diabetes, especially among insulin users, compared with those without the condition. The findings in the European Journal of Endocrinology revealed the importance of assessing mental health and providing support to diabetes patients.
Researchers found an 11% increased risk for type 2 diabetes among people who lived near ready-to-eat food outlets, compared with those who lived in areas more than 1 kilometer away from fast-food outlets. The findings, based on nearly 350,000 individuals across the UK, were published in The Lancet Planetary Health.