There are no visuals yet available but certification has been accomplished so standards and operation efficiency are met with Continua certification.  More information is to be released soon.  Recently announced Microsoft has also joined the collaboration efforts as a new member.  The link below has a bit of detail about how HealthVault connects with various devices too.

Microsoft Joins Continua Wireless Alliance and Issues New Guidelines for Certification For Interoperability

Who knows someday we may not even use a cell phone for calls anymore <grin>, couldn’t help that one.  The phone will connect with both devices and web based software and have the capabilities of securely sharing information.  Now after you have read this far, Japan gets first crack at it and it will be called the Docomo Prime phone.  The image included here is not the actual phone but rather images of the Fujitsu Prime Series phones.  BD

Fujitsu is beginning to preview a new type of phone that allows users to collect and share their own medical data. The prototype device, which uses Bluetooth technology to let people share their data, has already been certified by one major health care organization.

At the CEATEC (Combined Exhibition of Advanced Technologies) conference, which started Oct. 5 in Japan, Fujitsu unveiled the first prototype of this health care phone. The company also announced that the device has been certified by the Continua Health Alliance.

Once the medical data reaches the phone via Bluetooth, it can be sent to doctors and downloaded into EHR (electronic health record) applications on the handset.

Fujitsu said it will release more specific details of the phone when the commercial model arrives.

Fujitsu Phone Lets Users Collect, Share Health Care Records - Health Care IT from eWeek

Technorati Tags: healthcare management Systems,wellness,diabetes,drugs,compliance,Cener for Connected Health,Continua Health Alliance,algorithms,PHR,Fujitsu

Cloud Care is the name of the service and now to be able to have one device that connects and collects from other devices, it will no longer be necessary to have the information stored on a local PC.

FDA approves HealthPal – Bluetooth Device that Collects from Other Reporting Devices and Sends Information to PHR – HealthVault or Google Health

HealthPAL is the small, portable dedicated device that MedApps uses to collect data from connected glucose meters, blood pressure monitors, pulse oximeters and weight scales. The data is then sent over a secure server to an online portal like Microsoft’s HealthVault or Google Health for caregivers, physicians or the patient themselves to view.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., Oct. 5 /PRNewswire/ -- MedApps is pleased to announce its latest patent-pending innovation: The CloudCare™ Technology Platform.

CloudCare extends the power of the MedApps Remote Health Monitoring System by taking its core technology infrastructure to "the cloud". Cloud computing shifts the model away from the client-server standard, to web-based tools and applications that allow unprecedented flexibility and scalability.

Applying this platform to remote health monitoring technology will help eliminate many of the challenges that have prohibited wide-scale adoption. Firmware, drivers, and dynamic client profiles can all be kept in the cloud and managed remotely. CloudCare can enable a more patient centered healthcare delivery method by taking the focus off of the technology. Users, whether patients or care providers, are not required to have technical expertise to deploy, set-up and maintain equipment.

The CloudCare platform allows MedApps' HealthPAL to enter the ranks of consumer oriented services and devices with embedded cellular technology that are maintained through a cloud-based backend system, such as Amazon's Kindle, OnStar and the Apple iPad.

The Power of MedApps is Now in the Cloud -- SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., Oct. 5 /PRNewswire/ --

Technorati Tags: MedApps,wireless remote monitoring,HealthPal,HealthVault,Google Health,medical devices,healthcare,Health IT,Bluetooth,Cloud Computing,Personal Health Records

Cardo markets FDA approved products to include  Total Hip System, Cervical Plate/Screw System, Spine Pedicle Screw/Rod System, Patello-femoral Arthroplasty, and Uni-Knee Arthroplasty.  Perhaps some investors will show interest again as their timing in going public was in September of 2008 and enough said there as well remember what happened in that month and year.

Their products from what is shown on the website is a smaller surgical device and procedure and less invasive.  Perhaps they might have a second life with the other big companies and their lawsuits that are ongoing with knee and hip replacements.  BD

From the website:

“Cardo Medical creates reconstructive orthopedic and spinal surgery products through advanced engineering. Cardo Medical's superior engineering talent closely collaborates with leading surgeons around the country to create products that reduce or eliminate joint pain and allow our patients to achieve more active lives. Cardo Medical's cutting edge products are designed to reduce operative time, enhance surgical technique, shorten hospital stays, reduce recovery time and improve outcomes”

LOS ANGELES, Oct 7, 2010 Cardo Medical, Inc. an orthopedic medical device company based in Beverly Hills, California, announced today that it terminated 15 of its 30 employees in varying functions and that its Chief Executive Officer, Andrew Brooks, M.D. and President and Chief Operating Officer, Michael Kvitnitsky have agreed to forego their salaries for the foreseeable future.

The Company undertook these actions to reduce its operating costs and preserve cash while it continues to seek alternative sources of capital or some other type of restructuring. Most recently, the Company had been seeking funding through a private placement, but was unsuccessful. While these actions are expected to result in substantial salary, fringe benefit and other cost savings going forward, the reduction in staff will result in a scaled-back level of operations and decreases in net sales going forward.

Cardo Medical, Inc. Announces Layoffs - MarketWatch

Technorati Tags: Cardio Medical,hip replacement,knee replacement,orthopedics,medical devices,healthcare,surgery,investments

This is a great move in this direction to have the government stick their toe in the water here and get some exposure and data for that matter.  It will be protected and in most cases anonymized to strip the personal data. 

The government will have their own numbers from claims with federal employees to look for their own methods and to reduce risk and improve outcomes as well as track drug and pharmacy pricing.  Also this will help with information needed when it is their turn to negotiate with health plans.  BD 

The Office of Personnel Management plans to create a health claims database from which it can analyze and track health trends and costs based on medical claims submitted by physicians and hospitals for federal employees and others covered by federal health plan options.

The health reform law called for the creation of the database, which OPM will start Nov. 15, the agency said in an announcement.

The information will come from healthcare providers in the Federal Employee Health Benefit Program and the National Pre-existing Condition Insurance Program, a plan started in August under the health reform law, which offers coverage for high risk pools of individuals.

http://www.govhealthit.com/newsitem.aspx?nid=74811

Technorati Tags: Office of Personnel Management,data,healthcare,analytics,claims,data bases,healthcare reform,US Government

The CIOs o hospitals and medical centers do in fact have a lot of responsibility on their shoulders today. I mention technology as we see it today as that does have an impact as the best laid plans of yesterday may fall on their face tomorrow and they know this.  With being close at the the pulse of where everything has to take place, they are a very good indicator of what lies ahead.  These CIOs also have some very tech complicated issues they need to translate to layman’s terms as well to get funds, equipment, software and more and sometimes with a direction of Health IT changing maybe they only have a few hours to accomplish this. 

These departments today are pounded upon by others for the “right answers” and projections and sometimes others higher up in management cant’ comprehend why some of their opinions may change from week to week in staff meetings, which in essence shows they are out there doing their job if this occurs as it is what is today.  When taking a look at existing staff it might be fine today, but come tomorrow there’s something new added to the platter. 

We are way beyond IT and IS departments being able to create “magic” as they have done for a number of years and this does not reflect in any way on a lack of talent, it’s that left curve they deal with every day and every hour for that matter and I would also go so far as to say these folks have “brains that hurt”; and maybe that could be a good topic for a poll to see how many have “sore brains”.  These are the “creative technologists” that make it all happen.  You can read a prior post from earlier this year that explains this a bit more.

What is a Creative Technologist – Hybrid Executives - We Have a Big Shortage in Healthcare

“The job title itself is less important than being open to a hands-on and holistic view of technology as part of communication, as part of business, as part of the human experience, and therefore as part of culture.”

Without the creative technologist input, the rest can easily go downhill and CIOs are the creative technologists in our times today.  They sketch with technology, just like a visual creative can sketch with a pencil. In agencies with a more siloed approach, first, please rethink that – technology can’t live down the hall anymore; it’s part of everything that everyone in the company does

Thus I say today that every CIO is a “creative technologist” when you stop and think about it and their input should not be overlooked as there’s a lot of wisdom there if one listens.  BD

PHOENIX – In West Texas, where unemployment is at 2 percent, the popular chain Chili's had to close some of its restaurants because there were not enough employees to fill the jobs. Imagine what it's like for a healthcare system in that part of the country to recruit IT staff, says Gary L. Barnes, CIO of Medical Center Health System in Odessa, Texas.

Barnes served as moderator of a panel on IT staffing shortages Wednesday at the CHIME10 Fall CIO Forum in Phoenix. He was not alone in worrying about staff shortages. The four-member panel – from Maryland, New York, Massachusetts and Tennessee – shared similar concerns. To boot, a new CHIME survey released Wednesday revealed that 51 percent of CIOs across the country are worried they will have to put off planned implementation of electronic health record systems if they don't find the people to get the job done.

"We're running scared right now," Abel said.

Schade commiserated. "A small organization can't absorb turnovers," she said. "Once they have those openings, they have nowhere to go."

CIO survey forecasts IT staffing troubles ahead | Healthcare IT News

Technorati Tags: Health IT,technology,left curve,HITECH,CHIME,hospitals,medical centers,software,algoirthms,staffing,creative technologists

When you stop and think about it, we have some similarities in thought here between what’s happening in the US and India and granted there are some very poor in India that really need just some basics and are still fighting polio, that part being unlike here in the US. Vinod Khosla was able to power the opportunities here in the US of years past and now is working to challenge others in India of wealth to collaborate.

He states in this article that the culture should change in India to get the rich involved with investing in programs that have an impact on poverty.  He states that charitable giving is at 10%, much less than what other countries experience, like here in the US where we stand at 75%, and that number in itself for us is worth paying attention too as it’s a lot larger than I even thought.  Just like here too he states that social enterprises cannot be relied up on to address poverty.  Desmond Tutu did some good work in this area years ago, and the comments in this article remind of that. 

Medical Tourism Booming In India But Yet How About Their Own Citizens Needing Medical Care and Education Where Philanthropy Is Helping Fill Some Of The Gaps?

His model here is using some forms of capitalism to help out and at least with making an effort here we can see if this may prove to be beneficial with at least a challenge to others in India to begin thinking in this direction.  We have those same ideas here in the US so perhaps this paradigm will spread worldwide.  BD

MUMBAI, India — Vinod Khosla, the billionaire venture capitalist and co-founder of Sun Microsystems, was already among the world’s richest men when he invested a few years ago in SKS Microfinance, a lender to poor women in India.

But the roaring success of SKS’s recent initial public stock offering in Mumbai has made him richer by about $117 million — money he says he plans to plow back into other ventures that aim to fight poverty while also trying to turn a profit.

And he says he wants to challenge other rich Indians to do more to help their country’s poor.

An Indian transplant to Silicon Valley, Mr. Khosla plans to start a venture capital fund to invest in companies that focus on the poor in India, Africa and elsewhere by providing services like health, energy and education.

By backing businesses that provide education loans or distribute solar panels in villages, he says, he wants to show that commercial entities can better help people in poverty than most nonprofit charitable organizations.

Besides Mr. Khosla, entrepreneurs like Pierre Omidyar, a co-founder of eBay, and Stephen M. Case, a co-founder of America Online, have started funds with similar aims.

Khosla, Sun Co-Founder, Uses Capitalism to Help Poor - NYTimes.com

Technorati Tags: India,philanthropy,Vinod Khosla,money,medical care,healthcare,wealth,technology

In writing and following the daily news as to what is taking place here in California and all over the US, it appears reform is getting to be much more complicated than anticipated with waivers and insurance carriers battling with what they want to allow and it’s once again all boiling down to money.  We live in very complicated times and when Medicare was created we didn’t live in the same world; however it has been the backbone for healthcare for seniors and we will all get there one day. 

Sure there are rising costs all over the place and I feel many do not embrace or acknowledge the fact that technology throws us a new left curve every day, the innovative times we have today is nothing like any of us have ever seen, and in full respect to all, anyone in public office is not going to have a solid plan but rather it’s more like do the best you can and keep on top of daily developments and changes so thus the GOP wanting to revoke some of the work that has been done is only a step backwards to the 70s mentality.  It won’t work as we have lawmakers still trying to create laws that relate to a time when things were much simpler.  It is time to stop the blame shifting that is going on and to try to collaborate as best we can.  It’s not Gumby and Pokie anymore.

Insurance in the basic concept is taking expenses and spreading it out over a large pool of individuals  so everyone can get care and we have evolved far from that concept with companies rolling on the stock market and adding pressures of dividends for investors and all of this gets in the way of the basic concept here.  Allowing insurers to go public was a mistake years ago but we can’t go back and blame but rather should look at what we did and go forward with some better solutions as there’s no great white hope hanging around the corner. A year ago I predicted that HHS and all their responsibilities were going to be a very heavy Health IT area, and thus so, those who recognize this and have some first hand experience in how to put the wheels in action were going to be needed as you can’t guess at this stuff anymore and the IT folks are no longer in a position to take political statements and create magic processes to make it work.  There’s a ton more code and processes out there that didn’t even exist 5 years ago.

Wendell Potter Tell All Book–Deadly Spin–One to Put On My List as “He Knows Algorithms and How they Create Profits”

Right now we are gambling with human lives out there and creating a system to where czars can control who gets care and who does not, which is against the principles of what we stand for in the US, and if you don’t think this is true, read the news every day, I do.  Perhaps the biggest error or issue here is not having a private option as we seem to be lacking a check and balance system here and granted devices and drugs are giving some relief but perhaps not enough so what is the value of some of the innovation we are seeing?  We have a lot of neat things going on with potential cures and treatments, but when you look closer where’s the true funding coming from for what we need today – philanthropy.  Nobody was addressing malaria until the Gates Foundation gave it a focus as the profit structures for companies to work on this were not there and yet it kills many every year. 

A single payer plan is not that simple either but could be done with planning as you have Medicare contractors owned by insurance subsidiaries.  Pay very close attention today to company subsidiary action as super business intelligence networks are being created with combining and mining data and with the “for profit” structure we have today, competition if fierce as to who can gobble up the best companies to yield the biggest and best profits.  The payers have the data and infrastructure and for a single payer plan to work, the government would need to have this data as well. 

We teeter on a level of disruption and distraction that keeps us from focusing on core issues and seem to thrive on the next OMG story that comes out and yes there’s interest in some these stories but it should not be to the point to where it demands focus that takes us away from what is at hand.  We have citizens that hate technology and then we have the opposite of geeks that jump on every stick of software and innovation that pops up without proven functionality but it looks good and does one small process for them.  Small personal interest groups in a one step software application kills us with the over all picture.  The public will generally let one know if it is a hit or not and somewhat set the pace, like the IPad for a simple example, great consumer response and in the masses. 

Coming back full circle we are at a cross road to where we need to decide how to let the government work for us or if we are more content to gamble on investments when it comes to care, which has been the stage set for a number of years.  After seeing flash crashes and worse, is this a good option?  I don’t feel good about it as there’s too much at stake and we live in a time of a lot of uncertainties and this creates a whole new lot that maybe doesn’t need to be there.  The world will be full of uncertainties and adding more seems to be a very futile decision right now when we do have the power to at least limit some of this and thus the GOP plan is not much more than a roll back to the 70s which will fail us and I think we all kind of can see that, but need to maybe admit and realize this without casting our fate to the wind, which is pretty much what it is. 

So by the time all the fighting is done over profiteering and those with technology have used their algorithmic formulas to create profits where they did not exist before we will in fact end up with very little and end up being a country in a constant state of chaos as tempers will rise and the lifestyles we have enjoyed for years will continue on a downward spiral. There’s no 2 ways about it, those with the mathematical formulas have been in a position to do some good things, but on the other hand it has been one of the biggest spoofs dumped on a society that is not up to the literacy levels in all areas to comprehend. 

“Proofiness–The Dark Side of Mathematical Deception”–Created by Those Algorithms–New Book Coming Out Soon

We all need to come together and quit fighting and work together as a country or the “Spoof for Profit” movement will continue as there’s a lot that goes on behind the scenes that most are not aware of and mathematical formulas run 24/7 and if you have not taken notice, see what you get on the web today with companies throwing more algorithms at you to guide you in one direction or the other and keep in mind there’s pretty much always big profits behind the mathematical spoofs you see today. 

Not everyone presents spoofs out there but the growing number is certainly beginning to outweigh those who are offering accurate information and collaboration that we need to dig our way out and thus in light of this ugly situation today a single payer plan established by the government might in fact end up being a partial solution to at least cool down the pressure cooker.  BD

The House Republican pledge unveiled two weeks ago would turn back the clock on health care progress. Rep. Pete Stark (D-CA), Chairman of the House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee, today criticized the Republican plan to allow insurers to discriminate against people with pre-existing conditions.

"The Republican pledge is a health insurers' bill of rights, rolling back important protections for people with pre-existing conditions," said Chairman Stark. "As with health insurance contracts, read the fine print when it comes to Republicans and their supposed assistance for people with pre-existing conditions. Limited protections only apply if a person maintains continuous health insurance coverage, and the Republicans continue to allow insurers to charge them more and limit their benefits."

Insurance News - Republicans Would Permit Insurers to Deny Coverage to People with Pre-Existing Conditions

Technorati Tags: health insurance,healthcare reform,algorithms,spoof,Spoof for Profit,formulas,ethics,Single payer system,profits,greed,dividends

This is a California meeting; however I’m sure there’ information for everyone here who wants to participate and see what speakers will be talking about.  This is to be a hybrid meeting of both sides, the hospital management and physicians with looking for answers for innovation and keeping cost down and meeting the new rules and regulations for CMS.  BD 

LOS ANGELES--(EON: Enhanced Online News)--Leading healthcare experts from across the country are meeting in Los Angeles, October 25 - 27, 2010 to answer the question: How will physicians, hospitals and health plans have to innovate their business practices and work together to form health care organizations that are held accountable for aligning financial incentives with patient interests and improving the quality and efficiency of patient care?

The California Association of Physician Groups (CAPG) and the Integrated Healthcare Association (IHA) are co-producing the conference to provide an unprecedented opportunity to examine accountable care organizations -- which have become the centerpiece of federal health reform – and the specific models used in California.

REPORTER NOTICE: U.S. Healthcare Experts to Convene at National Conference in California to Prepare for Cornerstone of Federal Health Care Reform | EON: Enhanced Online News

Technorati Tags: National Accountable Care Organization Congress,integration accountable care oganization,healthcare reform

The last couple of days the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has been in the news quite a bit and the recent 60 Minutes expose on their efforts was great as they have not had a lot of press and somewhat wanted it that way. 

Melinda and Bill Gates Foundation - The Work Across the World–60 Minutes Takes a Deep Look and Talks With Melinda Gates While Touring Countries Where the Foundation Works

ABC News has committed over $4 Million for the project and the Gates Foundation is adding another $1.5 Million for the cause.  Medical correspondent Richard Besser, MD will be examining diseases and health conditions that affect some of the world’s poorest people.  Dr. Besser has 18 years as a health expert at the Centers for Disease for Control and Prevention and joined ABC last year.  Some of the efforts here in the US include buying time on television for the purpose of better shows and those that offer some educational value and most non profits have to wait for time available, not the Foundation, they bought the time which shows a level of commitment and importance. 

Gates Foundation and Viacom Team Up for “Get Schooled”

Back on track, ABC news will be open for those who care to contribute solutions and volunteers for those who want to get involved.  A couple posts from the past somewhat indicate where the Gates Foundation is headed and their levels of commitment.  BD 

Bill Gates Invests In Software Company That Predicts and Helps Generate Creating New Drugs

Gates Foundation Sold Off Almost All of Their Pharma, Biotech and HealthCare Investment Stocks

ABC News today announced a yearlong project to focus attention on the diseases and health conditions that disproportionately afflict the world's poorest people. The series, "Be the Change: Save a Life," will kick off in December and continue throughout 2011. Led by "World News" anchor Diane Sawyer and ABC News Chief Health and Medical Editor Dr. Richard Besser, the series will include reporting from all ABC News anchors across all broadcasts and platforms.

An ABC News website for "Be the Change: Save a Life" will be devoted to gathering stories, offering solutions, and acting as a clearing-house for people who want to know more, get involved, or volunteer.

ABC News will invest more than $4.5 million in the series, covering personnel and production. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is giving a $1.5 million grant that will specifically help fund overseas travel and foreign production costs. As with all reporting and sponsorships, ABC News has complete editorial control over the content of the series.

'Be the Change: Save a Life' With ABC News - ABC News

Technorati Tags: Bill Gates,Viacom,Bill and Medinda Gates Foundation,Television,healthy living,ABC News,poverty,healthcare,education,solutions

At Wellpoint/Blue Cross rules and regulations along with contracts are changing so once more we have more stuff online for companies to dig through and try to figure out what course of action to take.  It’s no wonder companies want to ditch health insurance coverage for employees as the time consumed to figure out if the health and status of their employees to be able to work with the algorithms of profit from most of the carriers any more takes time and most recently McDonalds brought that point to a head. 

The rules of the game anymore seem to be create another algorithm and pop it up on the web for those to muddle through and again it is not just Blue Cross but they are the poster child for this post.  These folks with their complicated formulas have just about reached the point of being one big administrative nightmare that everyone is getting tired of. For small companies where owners work and are busy with just keeping the business open today, they don’t have time for this and shine it on.  If this is not helpful enough owners can kill more time with ordering a big brochure and other information that usually is not layman friendly to try and dig their way through.  The calculator, from H and R Block is just about like filling out one of those online services for doing your taxes. 

As usual in standard press release language, they are pleased and happy to offer this.  I read so many the language on the final paragraphs is all just about the same anymore <grin> and must be fully templated at this point.  Last week after the long standing Framingham Heart Calculator was pointed out to have flaws, I hesitate to believe everything that is on the web today.  About 2 years ago I made a post about insurers living for and with the algorithms and darn if that is not even more so a fact today.  BD 

INDIANAPOLIS, Oct. 6 -- /PRNewswire/ -- In an effort to help minimize confusion regarding implementation of health care reform provisions among business owners, WellPoint, Inc. (NYSE: WLP) has created two new tools designed to help business navigate the changes in health care, a grandfathering tool and a tax calculator tool.

Both tools are available at www.wellpoint.com/healthcarereform.  The small business tax calculator tool and tax content were developed by The Tax Institute at H&R Block and also may be viewed by visiting www.thetaxinstitute.com.

The interactive grandfathering tool is designed to help businesses better understand what grandfathering means, if they qualify for it, and what options are available to them with regard to their health plan. WellPoint has also joined forces with H&R Block to provide a convenient, comprehensive tool to help small business owners understand the financial impact, as well as the opportunities that accompany the changes in the health care system.

The small business tax calculator can help users understand the following reform provisions:

• The small business health care premium credit for qualified employers with 25 or fewer employees and average annual wages under $50,000 (2010)
• Requirements to provide employee coverage for full-time employees who work for businesses with 50 or more employees (2014)
• Employer penalties for not providing coverage when at least one full-time employee is enrolled in a subsidized health care plan (2014)
• The excise tax on high-cost health plans, which applies to plans that cost more than $10,200 for an individual and $27,500 for a family (2018).

Read more: http://www.sacbee.com/2010/10/06/3083230/wellpoint-helping-businesses-navigate.html#ixzz11dhT6cbT

WellPoint Helping Businesses Navigate Health Care Changes with Online Tools - PR Newswire - sacbee.com

Technorati Tags: Blue Cross,Algoirthms,healthcare reform,tax credits,calculators,web page,Wellpoint,small businesses

Gosh we just cannot escape even a small glimpse of advertising in our face today and I am thinking here there’s a purpose for both professional advice and to have the sponsors pop in here too on this new website, Sharecare.com; and some of those responses may be more of “an idea or an opinion” so the word according to this article is to check with your doctor.  I’m going to do that anyway I would just rather use Dr. Google for some general information and then talk to my doctor, so why mess with this?  I don’t think I’m very comfortable having the possibility of United Health Care answering my questions as it appears they could be one of those in a position to respond.

I believe the whole idea here is to present information, question and answers and of course advertising in a more appealing format for the consumer.  I love Dr. Oz and he’s included in here too but it kind of looks like he’s being marketed pretty heavily as well and that’ was one of the reasons I liked him, none of the advertising in the way but it seems like that is changing too.  The New York Times provided the image above from a preview and again do I want Dove in here giving me advice when I know it’s really just marketing? 

With so much marketing out there today do you think branding is really that important any more, I’m certainly not worried much at all about “branding” any long and my message to some of those marketing today would be to please stay out of my face as I am already inundated with enough information and this is way too disruptive in my book to provide much use.  It’s changed since web pages with help first came on the scene and now it’s more of a clutter and more to dig though and determine what really is useful.  With doing this blog I get all kinds of stuff in email and I only publish what I consider to be helpful and informative and not a plug for Dr. Smith that has some earth shattering diet or cookies to sell. 

I think we have crossed the line and crowd sourced ourselves right out of a whole lot value here and I guess we can wait for the next bomb shell of a marketing idea to hit the web <grin>.  This is just so overdone and will stand to confuse consumers even beyond where it is now. I do talk with professionals too about stuff like this and much of it irritates them as well and makes it much more difficult in working with patients as they have to unexplain what is not relive to them.  You may feel different but I’ll check back in a year and see what this site is doing then and see how it ranks up with those who kill time on Farmville, which I have never even seen or have the slightest interest.  BD    

THE expression “sharing is caring” was coined long before the Internet and social media like Facebook and Twitter made it easier for information, opinions and advertising to be shared among multitudes.

Starting on Thursday, the Web site Sharecare.com is to arrive, offering what its proprietors call an interactive social Q.& A. platform to provide consumers with what they want to know on health and wellness subjects — with the A’s being contributed by, among others, marketers.

Sharecare.com will begin with content contributed by organizations like AARP, the American Cancer Society, the American Heart Association, the American Red Cross, the Cleveland Clinic, Johns Hopkins and the National Academy of Sports Medicine, along with medical professionals like Dr. Mehmet Oz.

Those contributors are to be known as experts on the site. There is another label, knowledge partners, for marketers that are paying an estimated $1 million to $7 million to become sponsors of Sharecare.com. The initial roster is composed of Colgate-Palmolive, for Colgate oral care products; the Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals division of Johnson & Johnson; the Medicines Company, a drug maker; Pfizer; Unilever, for Dove skin-care products; UnitedHealthcare, the health insurer; and Walgreen, for its Walgreens drug stores.

Anyone who reads content on Sharecare.com, whatever the source, will “have to work with their health care providers to make sure they’re making the best decisions about what the next steps would be” for any condition they want treated, Mr. Ewing said.

Advertising - Some of Sharecare.com’s Health Advice Will Be From Advertisers - NYTimes.com

Technorati Tags: Sharecare.com,marketing,heatlhcare,websites,drug stores,companies,retailers,insurance

I watched this video from the BBC on the hospitals being built to accommodate tourists and the care and doctors and the whole package being offered, but this week I also watched what the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation was doing over there with some of their money and efforts.  Polio vaccines and so many babies dying within a  month of birth.  In reading and seeing all of this, there appear to be 2 very different sides here and if this were going on in the US, I think we would be seeing extreme riots on the street! 

I realize medical tourism also brings money into their country too but after seeing both sides, it really does make one wonder what is going on and as this continues to grow are the poor citizens depending on philanthropy while the folks flying in for tourism surgery go to the best hospitals?  Below is the link to the 60 Minute video and see what you think? 

Melinda and Bill Gates Foundation - The Work Across the World–60 Minutes Takes a Deep Look and Talks With Melinda Gates While Touring Countries Where the Foundation Works

Granted there are tourists from other countries besides the US, but when you see the big polio problem that still exists and then compare to these big new state of the art hospitals, is something is wrong with this picture?  BD 

It is estimated that this type of medical tourism could generate more than $3bn a year for India. So could the Indian model of offering cutting-edge medical care, while keeping costs extremely low, be the way forward?

BBC News - Medical tourism in India booming

Technorati Tags: India,medical tourism,polio,healthcare,philanthropy,60 Minutes,medical care,business

The agreement constitutes limiting consumer choices to doctors and hospitals that adhere to rigorous quality measures the article states, so how rigorous this gets remains to be seen, but it will all come down to dollars.  In California we recently had a doctor file suit as he could not be accepted to Blue Cross even after agreeing to all the payments and terms of the contract.

California Doctor Files Suit Against Blue Cross for Denying His Application To Become Part of Their Network After Agreeing to Their Terms

The 10 hospital chain said too that collaborating will enable them to afford some IT infrastructure along the line.  To meet medical loss ratios that are in the Healthcare reform law, the insurers are demanding back more information and quality from doctors and hospitals. 

I am sure that increasing efficiency will happen but hopefully it will be in an environment that is both patients and doctor friendly as this is a problem today when the two sides come together.  The City of Hope battle is one good example with court cases flying on both sides as their battle is about money from Medicare and Medicaid.  BD

City of Hope's Hospital and Physicians Battle Continues As Healthcare Reform Turns Into One Big Blood Sucking Battle Relating to Business Intelligence Software, Costs and Ethics

The state’s largest health insurer and the area’s biggest medical-care provider have signed an agreement that holds doctors and hospitals more accountable for performance and quality service.

The three-year deal between Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois and Advocate Health Care, which operates 10 hospitals in Illinois, calls for Advocate to limit rate increases it negotiates from the insurance company. In addition, Advocate doctors and hospitals are being asked to meet performance targets tied to improved quality, safety and efficiencies of the medical care provided to patients covered by Illinois Blue Cross HMO and preferred-provider organization products.

“We are excited about the opportunity to enter into a new era of contracting and relationship with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois,” said Dr. Lee Sacks, Advocate’s chief medical officer. “By innovatively collaborating with health insurance companies … we will be able to afford the infrastructure investments and incentives for physicians to better coordinate care across the continuum. This will allow for elimination of waste and inefficiency found in more traditional approaches to care delivery.”

Blue Cross, Advocate raise bar on accountability | Chicago Breaking Business

Technorati Tags: Blue Cross,Advocate,hospitals,healthcare,HMO,contracts,business intelligence,investments,incentives

I don’t know about you but I have heard enough about all the ratings anymore and with so much competition and rhetoric out there, it means very little any more as the real items that count is the doctor you are consulting, the hospital you are in or the drug plan that is currently servicing you, but I guess all these press releases are meant to drive up business, although anymore they are all so “canned” and almost in every one there’s a comment on how ‘excited, pleased, enthused” etc. they are, not to mention boring and stuffed full of all kinds of marketing jargon.  So here’s a vendor that is now going to help drug and health plans up their ratings. As a consumer you will be delighted to read this, bragging rights below on how many lives they have under management…do you feel like a can of peas?  I think sometimes the folks who write this stuff forget that consumers read it too. 

“PharmMD now has millions of lives under management and has delivered savings in excess of three times the costs to its clients. Most importantly, it has positively impacted the lives of patients by giving all providers the information necessary to improve the management of prescription medications.”

This entire rating game really got old with me when I found HealthGrades listing dead doctors and couldn’t even archive those who are deceased.  They sell this information too and create other named sites that lead back to them, so again credibility on algorithmic ratings….nah…it doesn’t matter that much anymore.  There’s nothing wrong with having information to reference but gee the consumer is already over whelmed with enough in life right now so these items as such are just disruptive and nobody really cares.  I used to write software and normally am a big enthusiast and love to see some new innovative code out there but stuff like this doesn’t really show much value anymore and frankly is just another bunch of algorithms for sale and those transaction fees just keep rolling in profits. 

HealthGrades And Other MD Rating and Referral Sites List “Dead Doctors” on Their MD Information Pages And Even Include the Insurance Plans the “Dead Doctors” Honor

Next as consumers we will have to see all these health and drug plans tout their ratings which again makes no difference at all as your case is the one that matters.  Drug and Health plans I thought were already up to their ears in software, but in case not, there’s more on the way.  BD

NASHVILLE, Tenn.--(EON: Enhanced Online News)--PharmMD, the nation’s leader in quality Medication Therapy Management (MTM), announced today a new product, PharmMD STAR Solution, to help health and drug plans increase their Medicare CMS Star Ratings.

“We saw an opportunity to help both patients and health plans,” said Bo Bartholomew, chief executive officer of PharmMD. “This new technology solution ensures that patients will get access to the best care available and helps health plans qualify for new bonuses and rebates that are available through the health care reform bill.”

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services introduced CMS Star Rating to provide an easy-to-understand rating system for health and drug plans. CMS rates plans based on several criteria that range from 1 to 5 stars, with 5 being the best.

Beginning in 2012, health and drug plans that score at least a 4-star rating can earn bonuses of 1.5 percent and upwards to 5 percent after 2013. Those bonuses, however, are based on the scores the health plans earn this year. Currently, most plans would not qualify since the national average is around 3.25 stars.

PharmMD Launches New Product for Health Plans | EON: Enhanced Online News

Technorati Tags: algorithms. PharmaMD,software,ratings,drug plans,heatlh plans,press release,healthcare,data,CMS

Just recently in the news too is the new medical school with simulators so perhaps this procedure can be maximized through training.  The new facility was financed through private philanthropy, debt and school resources.  Unlike using the femoral artery in the leg, which almost guarantees and overnight stay for observation, going in via the wrist is a lot easier on the patient too. 

Stanford University Opens State of the Art Medical School

Such visits to the hospital are becoming more common lifesaving procedures today to unblock arteries clogged with plaque which reduce blood flow.  One physician said:

“I actually feel a little guilty when I have to use the femoral route,” Tremmel said. She performs almost all of her PCIs and angiography, a diagnostic technique using special dye and x-rays to look for heart disease, transradially. “

Transradial patients don’t require the nurse to pressure on the patient’s groin for about a half hour to help stop bleeding either and it’s a shorter distance to the heart and the patient is not required to lay on their back for 6 hours after the procedure and get a small bracelet type device and a bandage.  Many cardiologists are already familiar with the femoral artery procedure and thus retraining may need to take place in many hospitals for the “wrist” procedure to become more common. Transradial Interventions have an entire department of their own at Stanford.  BD

STANFORD, Calif.--(EON: Enhanced Online News)--You can have a percutaneous coronary intervention through your femoral artery or radial artery. Put another way, you can have a catheter stuck into your groin or your wrist. Not sure which you’d prefer?

“It’s a whole lot easier on the body”

Then consider Richard Francis, a local accountant and ex-Navy pilot, who had stents inserted through the radial artery in his wrist at Stanford Hospital & Clinics on July 15, two days before turning 67.

A coronary stent is a tiny mesh tube that helps open up blood vessels clogged with cholesterol, fat and other stuff that leads to heart disease. Stenting is usually preceded by angioplasty, which involves expanding a balloon inside the artery to crush the plaque. Sometimes angioplasty is used exclusively. In any case, procedures practically guarantee a night in a hospital bed if done the traditional way — through the femoral artery.

At Stanford Hospital, Coronary Procedure No Longer Requires Overnight Stay | EON: Enhanced Online News

Technorati Tags: Stanford Univeristy,medical school,healthcare,simulation,dummies,stents,procedures,outpatient,blood vessels,plaque,Transradial Intervention

Sorry, Blue Cross is not going to be on my list with my selections of Pandora radio stations and you know what, there’s a ton of folks reading this post that have no clue what Pandora is?  You so get only so many free hours a month without a paid subscription too.  I like the idea and use it, but even with this I have not found that I need a subscription as there are many source of music on the web and I do have low background music running all during my workday.  Gosh forbid the day comes when I can’t tell the difference between what is good workout music or not and need an insurance company to tell me that too.  This is no reflection on Pandora, just a commentary on behavioral studies (big right now with insurance companies) where everyone is trying to gain a piece of your brain and be able to modify your behavior in certain directions, even to the point of potential subliminal suggestions. 

I turned it on for a few minutes, not for me but it got about 5 minutes of my time and I like to choose my own music. It sure looks like insurers are really looking at any tingle of a consumer interest on the web to draw up some more business, that is if your body fits the algorithmic formulas and they don’t consider you a potential risk and money loser when they score you and your health.  BD

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn.--(EON: Enhanced Online News)--When you’re searching for tunes to tune up your body, the last place you’d think to turn to is your insurance company. But that’s exactly who’s bringing you music to help you improve your health. BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee has launched the first ever health insurance-sponsored Pandora music station.

To hear music from the BlueCross Pandora Radio Station, go to http://www.pandora.com/?sc=sh269595535411334344.

BlueCross Launches Pandora Internet Radio Station | EON: Enhanced Online News

Technorati Tags: Blue Cross,music,healthcare,marketing,Pandora radio,algoirthms,risk assessment,scoring,behavioral marketing

I don’t care what state one lives in, a visit to the long lines at the DMV is not anything one looks forward too, but now there’s something else to wait in line for in Washington DC and this is a free HIV test that has a wait of maybe 20 minutes to get the results too.  In addition a $15.00 credit is given for the expenses at the DMV.

We are starting to see more medical type testing appearing in non conventional surroundings, such as K-Mart for an aneurism test. 

Blue Light Special at K-Mart–Free Aneurysm Screenings at the Pharmacy Department September 20- November 5th

Gilead Sciences, a company that specializes in HIV drugs was responsible for making the grant possible.  Below is a listing from their website of the HIV/AIDS drugs they have available.  The company also has quite a few clinical trials in process, and some of those are outside the HIV/AIDS area to include a couple areas of heart disease.  BD

Atripla® (efavirenz 600 mg/emtricitabine 200 mg/tenofovir disoproxil fumarate 300 mg) is the first and only once-daily single tablet regimen for the treatment of HIV infection in adults. It is intended for use as a stand-alone therapy, or in combination with other antiretrovirals, and combines Gilead's Truvada® (emtricitabine and tenofovir disoproxil fumarate) with Sustiva® (efavirenz), manufactured by Bristol-Myers Squibb. (U.S. approval, 2006; E.U. approval, 2007.)

Emtriva® (emtricitabine) is a once-daily oral nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NRTI) used in combination with other antiretroviral agents for the treatment of HIV infection in adults. Emtriva is also available as an oral solution for use in pediatric patients. (U.S. and E.U. approval, 2003.)

Truvada® (emtricitabine and tenofovir disoproxil fumarate) is a fixed-dose once-daily combination pill containing Viread® and Emtriva®. It is used in combination with other antiretroviral agents for the treatment of HIV infection in adults. (U.S. approval, 2004; E.U. approval, 2005.)

Viread® (tenofovir disoproxil fumarate) is a once-daily oral nucleotide reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NtRTI) for the treatment of HIV infection in adults and adolescents in combination with other antiretroviral agents. (U.S. approval, 2001; E.U. approval, 2002.) Viread® was also approved in 2008 as a treatment for chronic hepatitis B in adults. (U.S. and EU approval, 2008.)

(CNN) -- Residents of the nation's capital can now get a driver's license and free HIV testing -- at the same time.

A Department of Motor Vehicles branch in southeast Washington is offering testing for the disease under a pilot program aimed at educating residents and reducing stigma.

"We realize that this is a nontraditional setting, but this program is about normalizing HIV and extending testing opportunities," said Angela Fulwood Wood, chief operations officer for nonprofit Family and Medical Counseling Service. "We chose the DMV because it offers a good cross-section of people."

Gilead Sciences, a California-based pharmaceutical company, provided a $250,000 grant to fund the program, according to Wood.

The first-day response was "excellent ... there has been a line waiting to get the HIV test," Vigilance said.

"Many people have to wait for some of the DMV services and the rapid HIV test takes only 20 minutes. It fits perfectly with the waiting times."

Residents can get tested for HIV as they wait for driver's license - CNN.com

Technorati Tags: HIV,AIDS,DMV,Washginton DC,Gilead Sciences,healthcare,screening,grants,pharma,driver's license

We come back around again to the question of both safety and money on this topic and I don’t there’s a doctor around who would hesitate ordering an image if he needed it for a diagnosis, but granted there’s the other side of the coin with a few that see this as an opportunity to increase income. 

Of course we need to look at the dose of radiation the patient is exposed to and technology is providing some input there with CT Scanners for one example like the one used at Miller’s Children’s Hospital with 320 bit exposure has a far lower exposure rate than the standard 64 bit used in many facilities.  Note too, the reversal here of the numbers as lower bit always used to mean less exposure and now we have 320  bit with less than 64 bit. 

320 Bit CT Scanners Offer Less Radiation Exposure Than 64 Bit – New Technology Making the Difference With One Rotation

Now when it comes to cost we have yet one more issue.  Back in 2008 companies such as Phillips were in the news with investing in MRI machines that were manufactured in China.  Other companies are paying attention to China, too. Siemens last September opened a medical research and development, manufacturing, service, sales, and marketing center in Shanghai.

Chinese MRIs, Coming to Your Hospital

“One of the most aggressive companies is Medtronic (MDT), which in December announced it was investing $221 million to buy a 21% stake in Shandong Weigao Group Medical Polymer, a Hong Kong-listed manufacturer of medical equipment based in China's northeastern Shandong province.”

This ripple effect also continue with the cost as a subsidiary of a major health insurance company has purchased a company in China that already has an open line of communication with the FDA to work with promoting more Chinese medical devices and drugs globally and to here in the US, as it’s not big secret today that insurers are looking at every angle to keep the cost of care and treatment down. When looking at companies as a whole today, it’s important to not forget what the subsidiaries are doing by all means.  In this case it is a subsidiary of a subsidiary of United Health Care so a little bit of a trail to chase here but by now we all know that Ingenix is the analytics arm of United with the vast offerings of algorithms all over the map so in essence we are seeing the involvement here of insurance companies taking a stake in getting devices approved from the front side of the game instead of the back side. 

UnitedHealth subsidiary (Ingenix Subsidiary I3) Acquires ChinaGate – Working to Sell Chinese Products Globally

From the website:

“We are familiar with the Chinese regulatory system and are well connected with most of the top urban class A  hospitals and clinical trial centers that are GCP certified by the China State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA). Moreover, since we worked many years in multi-national pharmaceutical companies ,we are well versed in ICH, European and United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requirements on Good Clinical Practice (GCP). “

Again, no doctor is going to shy away from ordering imaging if he/she believes it is in the best interest of the patient and with new devices that have lower exposure rates we are seeing improvement there, but we come back to the cost and how often does a facility buy a new device?   Diagnosis still remains a bit of a hit and miss as it has been for years as there’s no 100% methodology out there.  Certainly it takes more time as well as the staff time to do the imaging, but when it comes down to the cost, the value of a human life should be first priority as there’s also no doctor under the sun that wants to either miss a diagnosis or risk a malpractice suit as a result.  BD

The use of costly advanced imaging techniques in U.S. emergency rooms tripled in a decade, according to a study in the Journal of the American Medical Assn., meaning many more patients were exposed to higher levels of radiation.

Researchers from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore studied data on emergency room visits from 1998 to 2007, looking for evidence that "excessive use of medical imaging increases healthcare costs and exposure to ionizing radiation (a potential carcinogen) without yielding significant benefits to all patients," according to the JAMA report. They found that, while the use of the scans went from 6 percent of ER visits in 1998 to 17 percent in 2008, there was no corresponding increase in the diagnosis of life-threatening conditions or hospital admissions.

Dr. Raul Uppot, an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School, told the magazine that the study neglected to address a key aspect: The importance of negative results from the scans.

Visits involving the imaging scans took 126 more minutes than visits which didn't involve CT or MRI

Emergency room CT, MRI use triples in 10 years | MassDevice - Medical Device Industry News

Technorati Tags: ER room,diagnosis,imaging,MRI,CT Scanner,hospital,budgets,healthcare,admissions,patient,doctor,Ingenix,United HealthCare,radiation,medical devices,China