Tinnitus basically means – unpleasant buzzing or ringing in one’s ears. But, despite being a bit annoying, it sounds harmless, right?

In reality, tinnitus should be treated very seriously especially because it is not a disease per se; it is a symptom of an underlying condition. In some cases, it can suggest that there is a tumor on a vestibular nerve or in a brain tissue. When this unpleasant symptom occurs make sure to contact your doctor for further diagnostics.

An increasing number of researches established a connection between blood pressure disturbances and tinnitus. Find out more about this condition, and how the blood pressure affects it.

Blood Pressure—Definition and Disorders

Blood pressure is defined as the force of blood pushing the blood vessels. It has two components—systolic (pressure when the heart beats) and diastolic (pressure when the heart rests). The normal blood pressure for adults is the systolic pressure below 120 mmHg, and diastolic pressure below 80 mmHg. Higher or lower values do not necessarily mean that the person is ill. Some activities such as running or even stress can cause elevated blood pressure. On the other hand, consumption of certain foods, for instance garlic, can cause lowered blood pressure.

When it comes to high blood pressure or hypertension, as a condition it can be dangerous for one’s health, and even fatal. It can cause heart attack, stroke, peripheral artery disease, eye disease, etc. Low blood pressure (hypotension) can be responsible for fatigue, dizziness, lightheadedness, fainting, vision impairment, confusion, nausea.

Digital Health

The convergence of digital technology with health is rapidly and confidently taking its steps to the future. Digital health area focuses on improving outcomes by making information for efficient patient monitoring in hospitals, disease management or it can simply serve as a proactive preventive care. Digital technology also found its application in blood pressure monitoring.

It is easy to conclude that blood pressure control is important. The higher it is the higher is the risk of developing health problems in the future. To avoid any future complications, every household should have a blood pressure monitor. Choosing the right one is not an easy task, since there is a whole variety available on the market.

The basic types of home blood pressure monitors come in arm-cuff and wrist-cuff models. The principal is the same – the cuff is inflated to temporarily cut off blood supply. The cuff is subsequently released ant the point at which blood begins to intermittently flow is sensed. This is the systolic pressure. The diastolic pressure is detected when the flow goes from an intermittent to continuous flow.

Arm monitors automatically inflate the cuff and display the readings. Some models offer the option to download results to a computer, making the data easy to share with your doctor. Multiple user memories allow more than one person in your household to monitor and record their blood pressure.

Wrist monitors are fully automatic, compact, lightweight and portable. The only flaw is their sensitivity to body position.

The latest digital techniques produced upper arm blood pressure monitors. Its simple to use one-touch measurement allows the user to get precise data of their heart’s health. Many modern blood pressure monitors have varying features, storage capacity and smartphone connectivity.

One other digital innovation is the opportunity to combine blood pressure monitor and blood pressure calculator. This tool enables you to find out whether your blood pressure is low, normal or high. It is very simple to use. You just have to input your systolic and diastolic blood pressure values into the tool (mmHg). The app immediately calculates your average blood pressure. In addition, there is a chart on average blood pressure by age, so you can compare your values to those in the chart.

Doctor’s advice is, however, always the primary guidance.

What is tinnitus?

Do you suffer from ringing in your ears or noises in your head? If so, it doesn’t mean you are going crazy. You may be suffering from a condition perceived by one in ten adults, called tinnitus (lat. tinnire – to ring). According to Roberts et al., tinnitus can be described as – conscious perception of a sound that is not generated by any source outside the body. Besides ringing and buzzing, these sounds are sometimes more complex, fluctuate over time, and can be perceived in one or both ears or be heard diffusely in the head.

Is There a Connection Between Tinnitus and Blood Pressure?

There are some studies about hypertension in patients with tinnitus which suggest the existence of a connection between these two conditions – Novak et al.’s study on “Tinnitus in systemic diseases”, included 1200 patients treated form tinnitus, and 47% of them suffered from hypertension. Sogebi’’s study – “Characterisation of tinnitus in Nigeria” (2013) showed that 15.2% of the 79 patients suffering from tinnitus were also suffering from high blood pressure. Research conducted on the Positive Association between Tinnitus and Arterial Hypertension analyzed the presence of arterial hypertension in tinnitus and non-tinnitus patients. Based on the sample of 144 patients in the tinnitus group and 140 in the control group, an association between tinnitus and arterial hypertension was established.

The pathophysiological mechanisms of tinnitus are still unclear. Abnormal blood flow through the blood vessels in the brain may cause tinnitus. According to “The Handbook of Tinnitus” (Adrian, D. and El Rafaie, A., 2000), this can subsequently, lead to an increased spontaneous firing rate of neurons in the central auditory system of the brain and the overall reorganization in the auditory modality.

Some animal experiments indicated that high blood pressure has the ability to cause damage to cochlear microcirculation. To be more accurate, stria vascularis, which feeds the organ of Corti, suffers the highest impact. Przewoźny et al.’s study revealed that this can lead to a decrease in the oxygen partial pressure in the cochlea, and the disturbance of the ionic K⁺ recycling.

Additionally, some blood pressure medications can cause tinnitus. Antihypertensive drugs can cause an adverse effect by damaging the patient’s labyrinth.

Low blood pressure or hypotension can also cause a similar sensation due to insuficient blood flow to the brain, which might result in buzzing in the ears, dizziness, and lightheadedness.

Conclusion

To sum up, tinnitus can be caused by many serious conditions, such as brain tumor, atherosclerosis, neck injury, vestibular nerve damage, high or low blood pressure, and even blood pressure medications. As a symptom, especially if it occurs only in one ear, it can point to a tumor on a vestibular nerve and it should not be taken lightly. Next time you experience this annoying ringing, don’t delay your visit to the doctor – it just may save your life!

Technology encompasses a vital portion of the healthcare lifecycle including diagnosis of disease, subsequent treatments and continuous monitoring. The medical technology sector is currently estimated to be around USD 4.9 billion and is poised to grow at Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 17% (Source CII-Deloitte Report, Sep 2017). Hence, there is a great probability of its profound usage for overcoming healthcare gaps.

It is observed that there is a huge dearth of healthcare resources and facilities in India- low ratio of number of available physicians to the ever-increasing population, shortage of hospital facilities compared to required capacity and low health insurance coverage. Therefore, technology usage and improvisations are essential for making healthcare easily accessible and available to one and all. Key focus areas may include developing relevant regulations, providing attractive incentives for healthcare investments, devising medical equipment and innovations tailored to Indian market and tapping the right manufacturing verticals.

Some Alarming Statistics of the Indian Healthcare Market

• Deficiency in hospital bed capacity is 2 million
• 75% of Indian population is not covered by any health insurance policy
• 315 million people are affected by tropical diseases.
• Less than 1% of healthcare providers have accreditation
• Evolving and ageing population with share of geriatric age group to increase from 11% in 2025 to 20% by 2050. Of this number, 200 million (elders) will be afflicted by Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs).
• Rural India encompassing about 70% of India’s population is equipped with less than one-third of nation’s hospitals

Evolution of Technology in Healthcare

Medical Technology has gone a long way since its inception.  Before the invention of the stethoscope, the physician’s diagnosis of illness was done by physical examination of the body and symptoms narrated by the patient. Later in the nineteenth century, the ophthalmoscope, thermometer and sphygmomanometer were introduced but the medical role of hospital was still limited. The usage of X ray (invented in 1895), electrocardiograph and concept of diagnostic laboratory was implemented in the hospital care in early twentieth century. This had a profound impact on transforming medical diagnosis from a personal act to a scientific event. Today, thanks to disruptive technology trends and latest innovations, healthcare has entered a new dimensional era.

Some Vital Technology Applications in Healthcare

• Digital Health Technology to help save premature babies– Globally, pre-mature births majorly contribute to death of young children. Sadly, India is amongst those countries combating this with highest number of pre-mature births (approximately 3.5 million babies a year). These infants can be saved by using speciality care` of Integrated Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) which utilizes technologies like Internet of Things (IoT), Cloud Computing, Predictive Analytics, Artificial Intelligence along with an Integrated Digitized Health Record application. NICU aids in making the right informed decisions, linking outputs of medical equipment and improving the clinical care which can help save babies.
• Usage of Electronic Health Records(EHR) and Electronic Prescriptions(EP). EHR is a digitised comprehensive report of the patient’s overall medical condition that enables better health care services by addressing all aspects of patient care, including safety, treatment effectiveness, patient-centricity, communication, education, timeliness, efficiency, easy transmission and facilities informed decision making. EP is a one of the latest advancements that enables physicians to generate and send prescriptions to pharmacies electronically thereby reducing medication errors, enhancing patient safety with complete access to their medical history and expediting the process of medicine procurement by reducing waiting times.
• Using Telehealth and Tele diagnosis for Better Reach: India’s rural population has remote access to healthcare facilities. Telehealth leverages on electronic information and telecommunication technology to aid and promote long-distance clinical health care, patient and professional health-related education, user training, addressing public health issues and online medical education. Thereby it drives volume, increases quality of care, and reduces costs by reducing readmissions and unnecessary emergency department visits. Tele diagnosis is remote location diagnosis and is based on data evaluation transmitted from instruments that monitor the patient and a transfer link to a diagnostic centre. It eliminates the need for  patient’s physical presence at certain stages of the examination process.
• Usage of Information Technology (IT): Using IT in healthcare services can aid cost reduction, increase the accuracy and response times of patient care, enhance service capacity, decrease inventory levels and improve the overall quality of patient care. Thereby it is used in many systems today for Health Management, Hospital Management, Patient Management and the like for providing integrated information with quick accessibility and authentication. Innovations like using 3 D printing in healthcare provides customization and personalization of medicalproducts, drugs, and equipment. Other latest breakthroughs include E-ICU’s, Minimal Invasive Techniques, Robotic Surgery, Doppler Tests and Stem Cell Implantations that have saved numerous lives and made the route of diagnosis, treatment and recovery easier.
• Impact of Mobile Apps and Social Media: Various mobile apps overcome the need for periodic hospital visits for routine check-ups. They integrate with home based healthcare devices like glucometers and blood pressure monitors for sending patient information to physicians, giving periodic reminders on follow-ups and medications and raising alarms for medical emergencies. Likewise, engagement of patients and caretakers through social media empowers them for making informed healthcare decisions.

Conclusion

Medical technology can be utilized for bridging the gap between providers and patients, encouraging preventive healthcare concept to ensure and ingrain 24/7 wellness and overcome the hurdles of infrastructure, vast geographical distribution and cultural diversity of India and financial constraints.

With the current technological advances, we are endowed continuously with trendy yet functional gadgets and devices that could make our lives easier and more comfortable. From highly responsive smartphones to wireless communications, most of us are already enjoying these developments unknowingly.

Since our technology encompasses almost every activity that we do, it would not be surprising that it even healthcare has been digitalized already. Digital health, as it is technically called, involves the use application of technology with health and health care.

Since this new breed of technology is on the rise, it is worth noting that digital health may pose several benefits that could be advantageous to everyone, especially in maintaining a healthy diet. On this article, we are going to dwell on digital health in the kitchen, and how it helps in keeping a healthy diet.

Digital Health Defined

Digital health involves the confluence of digital technologies with health care to improve the efficiency of healthcare delivery. It includes the utilization of information and communication technologies to address the issues and challenges faced by people regarding health. They may come in software and hardware services such as web-based analysis, mobile phone applications, or remote monitoring sensors.

Digital health is not only concerned about the development of technologies methods and techniques to manage illnesses and health issues, but it also promotes a healthy lifestyle and wellbeing.

Digital Health in the Kitchen

It is a known fact that most of us struggle to gauge what we should and should not eat. Most of the time, we fail to meet the recommended nutritional goals, so we end up not being able to maintain a proper diet. This is where digital health enters in our kitchens.

At present, there are a lot of technological services that are leaned towards digital health. Many of these services are aimed to keep watch of what we eat and how we eat our food. These innovations also guide us on the food that we should eat based on our present conditions or our genetic background.

Below is a list of some of the devices and applications that could help you manage your weight and keep track of your diet, hence maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

Apps for smartphones

When we talk about weight management, we can utilize several phones applications that focus on tracking our weight and our lifestyle. Many apps could estimate the ideal amount of food that you should take so that you could reach your weight goal.

There are also apps that let you track your exercise using the information that you enter. Instead of manually tracking your diet, the apps could do the work for you including counting the calories consumed and burned throughout the activity, and the amount of weight lost from constant exercise.

Smart kitchen utensils and appliances

Innovative smart kitchen utensils and appliances are on the rise with regards to digital health. Aside from being used for aiding those with motion disorders, they also help you in preparing a healthy meal.

A smart herb garden, for example, is a little indoor gardening solution. You only have to plug it in and add water. Then, technology will do its magic. The device aims to grow healthy herbs more conveniently. Juicero is another smart device that helps you in your diet. It creates a healthy and fresh juice without taking too much effort.

Of course, it is worth noting that these devices are part of smart home technology, a significant addition to our houses which is meant to simplify our tasks and make our lives better. In this case, smart home technology is a vital tool in ensuring that we maintain a healthy diet.

A Step into the Future

The use of digital health is seen to be a vital way to maintain a healthy diet. While it may still have a long way to go, it is worth noting that digital health has already made a significant impact in our society as a whole, and it will keep on improving lives as we progress.

https://medcitynews.com/2017/11/make-digital-health-work-2/

On – 06 Nov, 2017 By Arundhati Parmar

Existing digital health products, if deployed comprehensively across the country, could save the US $7 billion a year in healthcare spending, according to a new report from IQVIA, which until yesterday was known as Quintiles/IMS Health.

“For the first time we’ve sought to create a model that looks across five different patient population groups where there’s been a proven reduction in acute care utilization, typically hospitalization, when consumer mobile apps are used,” Murray Aitken, executive director of the IQVIA Institute for Human Data Science, said in a conference call with press about the new report. “Diabetes prevention, diabetes care, asthma, cardiac rehabilitation, and pulmonary rehabilitation — in each of those five areas we took the results from published research and modeled that to estimate that if these available apps today were used by all patients who could benefit from them, the US healthcare system could save $7 billion per year. So that’s just for five areas. If that level of savings was achievable across all disease areas, we’re looking at annual savings of something like $46 billion.”

The report follows up on research that IMS Health published in 2013 and 2015, and IQVIA concludes that the market is much more mature than it was then.

“What we’re reporting in this edition is a significant growth in the impact that digital health is having on patients and healthcare, and a maturing of the environment to play a meaningful role in patient care,” Aitken said. “We’re seeing more innovation. Importantly we’re seeing more evidence of the impact that digital health can have on outcomes as well as cost. We’re seeing an increase in adoption of mobile health apps and we’re seeing acceleration in all of these areas. We report that there are now more than 318,500 consumer apps that are health-related available for download. That’s nearly double the number from two years ago. There’s about 200 new apps added to the marketplace each day.”

While general wellness apps still make up the majority of health apps, chronic condition management apps are catching up and now make up 40 percent of all health apps. Also, the app landscape is still top-heavy: just 41 apps make up half the downloads, with more than 10 million downloads each. Meanwhile, more than 85 percent of health apps have fewer than 5,000 installs.

“When we look across the full spectrum of apps that are now available, the apps seem to be getting better based on user experience, certainly compared to what we saw in 2015,” Aitken added. “We note in the report that 55 percent of apps in our database have user ratings higher than four stars; that compares to 31 percent of those launched in the two years prior to 2015.”

In addition to the apps themselves, the report looks at the growing amount of efficacy data available about these apps, based on searches on ClinicalTrials.gov. As of February, there were 869 active trials using digital health technology worldwide and 540 in the US.

IQVIA also notes that a lot of the barriers to adoption that they observed in 2013 and 2015 are starting to come down little by little, as more privacy and security guidelines have been published, app formularies are being established, and the shift to value-based care is continuing.

“We still have a long way to go,” Aitken said. “We don’t want to overstate the extent to which mobile health apps have become mainstream, but relative to four years ago there’s a lot of progress that has been made.”

http://www.mobihealthnews.com/content/report-todays-technology-digital-health-could-save-us-7-billion

On – 07 Nov, 2017 By Jonah Comstock

https://medcitynews.com/2017/11/survive-irbs-successful-digital-health-pilots/

On – 02 Nov, 2017 By Swatee Surve

When traveling, it’s easy to get lost in the experience. New sights and cultures pave way for new experiences and places to explore. It’s also the perfect way to relax and break away from your daily routine. But, traveling can also be a stressful experience.

There are different time zones to navigate, jet lag, foreign food, and sleep deprivation. The lack of familiarity can often lead to a decreased physical wellbeing, increased levels of stress, and the potential to struggle with eating well. This can result in returning fatigued and feeling worse for wear despite being on a restorative restful vacation.

It’s easy to forget the importance of your health, both physically and mentally when traveling. But this is when it’s even more important. Traveling can be hard on the body, but with a little preparation and carefully planning, it doesn’t have to be.

One of the best travel buddies you can pack in your luggage for a healthier travel experience are natural vitamins and supplements. Not only do they help counter the stresses of travel, but that can serve to reduce stress, fatigue, and increase your energy levels.

So while you tackle the array of tempting street food offers, here are the best supplements to take for your travels.

Multivitamins

Wherever you go, your multivitamins should too. A high-quality multivitamin like Nature Bounty’s ABC Plus, can help protect against potential run-of-the-mill illnesses that may trouble you while traveling such as infections or the common cold.

Multivitamins can also provide protection against degenerative diseases like osteoporosis and heart disease. Studies have shown that multivitamins promote optimal health and wellbeing, boost mood and energy levels, manages stress and maintains muscle strength, and improves your skin.

Adaptogenic herbs

Fatigue and stress are commonplace while traveling and make for miserable travel companions. Luckily, adaptogenic herbs can serve to strengthen your body’s ability to respond to stress, fight fatigue and cope with anxiety.

There are several herbal varieties available, but it is recommended you bring the three main adaptogenic herbs; Asian ginseng, Ashwagandha, and Schisandra. Like activated charcoal, there are several ways to take adaptogenic herbs. But the easiest method while traveling may be pill form.

Activated charcoal

Traveling can introduce your immune system to numerous harmful toxins. To remedy this problem and naturally rid your body of toxins, make sure to pack some activated charcoal.

Activated charcoal has a variety of uses. But for most travelers, its main benefits are to serve as a potent natural remedy to trap toxins and chemicals in the body, to treat insect stings and mild infections, and relieve bloating and gas.

Depending on your desired use for the supplement, activated charcoal can be bought as a pill, liquid, or powder. Activated charcoal in tablet or capsule form is the most versatile as they can be ingested to help with gastrointestinal issues or mixed for other purposes.

Digestive enzymes

Nutrition can often take a backseat when traveling. There are planes and trains to catch, adventure to be had, and overindulgences aplenty. It’s not the easiest to maintain a high level of discipline when traveling. This is why it’s important to pack digestive enzymes.

Digestive enzymes act as a catalyst to promote optimal digestive health. It efficiently breaks down our food into essential nutrients, relieving digestive distress as well as any digestive discomfort that may come up while on the road. This can include constipation, bloating, gas, and travel-induced sluggishness.

Probiotics

Maintaining gastrointestinal health is important while traveling. Optimal gut health plays a vital role in a body’s physical and mental health, as well as our immune system. Bad eating habits while traveling, long nights, and travel-related stress can severely affect the functionality of our body’s probiotic colony.

Taking probiotics with you while you travel ensures your immune system continues to operate at a high level. Probiotics can also enhance digestion, reduce the effects of gastrointestinal bugs, and promotes good bacterial growth. Probiotics are most effective when taken on regular basis.

Digital Health

Technology has also contributed tremendously to keeping travelers in tip-top shape while they travel. Not only do they make travel easier, they also ensure you stay healthy no matter your next destination. To supplement your nutritious supplements, consider these three digital health solutions.

Weight management

Staying in shape can be a challenge in the best of times, let alone when you’re traveling. The stresses of travel coupled with new, exotic foods often mean that travellers feel like they’re taking five giant steps back when it comes their health. Digital solutions like the QardioBase smart scale and TomTom fitness-enabled smartwatch means you can keep on top of your fitness as you enjoy your trip.

Both keeps you informed of your body composition, enabling you to continue achieving your goals.

Well-being

For more mature individuals or retired folks, traveling can present some unique challenges in maintaining overall well-being. For seniors vacationing, the Omron Evolv and Lively Wearable are two portable solutions to uphold good health. The former is a light and portable blood pressure monitor to check blood pressure levels anwhere and anytime. While the latter provides urgent care assistance whenever assistance is required.

Rest and relaxation

Managing multiple timezones can be stressful on the mind and body. To battle fatigue and ensure your body catches up on its much needed rest, consider packing a sleep tracking system like NightWave or ResMed S+. Both assist in helping you get a deeper state of slumber so you’re well rested for the adventures ahead.

Travel can be a liberating experience. It can be the perfect time to throw caution to the wind and live spontaneously. But one thing that should never be left to chance is your health. The last thing you want while abroad is to be stuck in bed with a debilitating illness or worse. Wherever your passport takes you, make sure these five essential supplements follow suit.

http://hitconsultant.net/2017/11/14/using-technology-avoid-medical-mistakes/

On – 14 Nov, 2017 By

https://rockhealth.com/the-future-of-virtual-medicine-what-the-cms-mdpp-ruling-means-for-patients-and-digital-health/

On – 20 Nov, 2017 By Bill Evans

http://digitalhealthage.com/digital-health-can-improve-mental-health-workplace/

On – 20 Nov, 2017 By Guest

Healthcare costs are rising globally and so are the patient’s expectations on their treatment roadmaps and its possible consequences. Therefore, there is a challenging proposition faced by today’s healthcare organizations. They have to repeatedly address battling conflicting priorities with the available resources and existing constraints.

Some of the challenges faced   include-

– Delivering high quality healthcare services with minimal costs

– Maintaining thorough patient safety

– Addressing hospital security issues

– Scaling up to latest technology innovations

– Reducing medication errors

– Encouraging retention of qualified and trained medical staff

– Preventing outbreaks of any infectious/contagious diseases

– Proactively participating and undertaking preventive medication programmes

Hospitals are a vital component of the healthcare sector and play a crucial role in patient outcomes. They are undergoing magnificent transformations as they are making the transition away from traditional fee-for-service/volume-driven services to more of fee- for -value services and addressing community health. This poses sufficient risks and calls for strategies and solutions to mitigate the same.

Some Major Hospital Risks and Solutions for mitigating them

Risk #1 -Ensuring Patient Safety – Patient Safety is one the most critical aspects of hospital management. It is very challenging to ensure high-quality error-free patient care, simultaneously maintaining the hospital’s reputation. Patient Safety pertains to:

– physical safety in terms of minimizing the risk of all infectious diseases like Swine Flu and Ebola, medical equipment hazards, shortage of emergency medicine and also preventing potential risks such as power failures and absence of emergency care staff

– maintaining confidentiality of patient data so that unauthorized access is prohibited.

– tackling incidents like infant kidnappings, missing patients, violence and addressing theft of medicines and other medical equipment and hospital assets.

Solution: Adoption of adequate hygienic standards, fool-proof integrated security mechanisms, required disinfection techniques, preventive medications including vaccines and immunisation methods and appropriate waste disposal mechanisms for thwarting spread of infection diseases to both patients and caretakers. For retaining confidentiality of patient data, strict adherence to regulatory issues and deployment of sophisticated Hospital and Patient Information Systems with   right authentication and access is recommended.

Risk #2- Ensuring high productivity with minimal costs – Hospitals are one of the most demanding and people –centric buildings which need to be available 24/7.With substantial increase in healthcare costs, energy demands and number of aged patients worldwide, there is tremendous pressure to achieve more with less resources without losing quality of health care services.

Solution: Adoption of Supply Chain Techniques in Healthcare, Hospital Infrastructure and Facility Planning and Adoption to latest energy saving resources can drive cost cutting measures and give a competitive edge to hospitals.

Risk #3-Meeting Regulatory Compliances-Hospitals must be equipped to meet various complex rules and regulations. This framework defines guidelines and expectations for health care quality, reimbursement and delivery. Though these were designed to enhance quality and efficiency of patient care, the entire adherence process involved is perceived as burdening and impractical.

Solution: Adopting standards, well defined processes, Total Quality Management and Benchmarking in Health Care and meeting specified deadlines for Compliance issues aids in efficiency and better outcomes. It is to be noted that this initiative must be deployed and supported system wide by the complete hospital chain.

Risk # 4 – Understanding and achieving Patient Satisfaction through value for service models –Though Patient Satisfaction may not be directly quantifiable, the comfort and health of patients is vital in reducing length of hospital stay and preventing readmissions. Patient satisfaction also has a direct impact on hospital’s income.

Solution: The hospital should adopt strategies that are value based and focus on long term benefits rather than merely looking at short term gains in fees based on volumes. Hospitals should align their entire staff, both medical and non-medical, for   thinking and working towards this initiative.

Risk # 5 – Taking Investment Decisions on Technology Integration-Hospitals cannot function appropriately using disparate and disjoint health information systems. Hospitals must   integrate their service portfolio throughout the full continuum and not merely cater to ‘inpatient’ components. For achieving that, integration with all concerned healthcare providers and systems is needed. Getting patient information instantly and in real-time since time pays a crucial role in not just meeting needs but also in saving lives by aiding physicians in decision making and information sharing.

Solution: Making Information Technology investments in hospitals wherein its goals and incentives offered are in synchronism. This ensures that authentic medical information is available for decision making at finger tips anytime and anywhere but with controlled access to retain its security.

Besides these, hospitals also face challenges in dealing with staff shortages, increased compliance demands, tacking environmental issues and gearing up for future healthcare innovations.

Summary

As demands of healthcare are soaring up, hospitals have to adopt patient centric approaches for delivery of value-based care along with cost efficient measures. To achieve this, Healthcare Consulting Services(HCS) play a major role in developing strategies that seamlessly aid hospitals in their efficient and productive functioning. The expertise and balanced management approaches of HCS not only drives the hospitals to successfully combat current challenges, but   also, proactively equips them in being ‘future ready’ for technology innovations and patient demands in the days to come!

Technology in healthcare

In the modern world, technology has proved to play a critical role in every industry and in all aspects of our lives. In the health care industry, technology helps improve and save countless lives due to its efficiency in operations. Medical technology hence sustains health around the globe in the various spheres of the field including biotechnology, development of modern medical devices and the management of health facilities. Complex technologies have since been developed to help increase the level of health care by most governments. The significant impact of technology on modern healthcare is evident from the doctor’s and patient’s perspective. The ability to treat many different forms of diseases has been positive with development of new and easier medical procedures (Mark, 2012).

All together, the use of modern technology should help reduce the high number of deaths and new diseases to the people’s lives. In the modern health care industry, there is a high dependence on medical technology which cannot be overstated due to the many brilliant innovations by the health care practitioners thus improving the overall practice in terms of better diagnosis y doctors, surgical operations as well as overall improved patient care. Moreover, technology in the health care industry is used in many other ways. Electronic health records have been implemented in most facilities across the globe with advanced patient monitoring services advanced surgical robots as well as other modern technology tools. Furthermore, the right medical practices require one to understand the entire devices and the uses of the specific equipment. Adequate testing of the equipment is thus required before full implementation into the health facilities.

However, medical technology is often prone to failure due to several reasons. One of the main reasons is the human aspect in the technology. For any form of technology to be fully operational, the user must be fully aware and well trained in the use of the specific equipment. Having a low understanding or experience of the equipment may often lead to a malfunctioning thus eventual failure. Failure on the human part will definitely lead to failure of the entire medical technology (Moss, 2013). Technology can also fail by giving a wrong diagnosis for an intended purpose. More often, medical technology is developed using technology that involves software and systems which depend on certain elements for proper functioning.

The system may in some cases suffer from internal breakdown thus giving the wrong results in a diagnosis. For example, most medical technology equipment have software that depends on memory, hence the infestation of viruses into the system often leads to a disruption in the proper functioning of the equipment hence the technology is prone to failure of its intended purpose. Many past studies have shown that better surveillance of patient-safety technology is essential in the medical industry.

According to the Veteran Health Administration Center in US, the use of highly complex and confusing electronic equipment often poses many serious challenges in the proper functioning of the health facility thus affecting the effectiveness and the quality of medical services. The body affirms that the more complex a medical system is, the more difficult it becomes for a user to trace back the root causes of the sickness. There should be integration between the type and level of technology used and the users for an objective effect. In some cases, technology equipment used in hospitals has often been recalled due to the inability to function as expected and provide the desired results (Mark, 2012). For example, in 2016, the International Food and Drug Administration reported that many radiology devices including complex linear accelerators as well as CT scanners were recalled. The reasons were both inabilities from the technology side as well as the inability for the user to use the technology. Moreover, software issues in the technology, system compatibility as well as clinical-decision support all account for over half of the radiology device recalls.

The main results of failure of medical technology can be intentional with some being unintentional (Moss, 2013). Failure of technology often results to a wrong diagnosis of the patient which has many adverse effects both to the patient and the doctor himself. For example, a wrong diagnosis due to failure of technology may lead to many deaths of the patient as well as further complications in the death of the patient. From the doctor’s perspective, patients who suffer from a wrong diagnosis often do not visit the facility in future and may sometimes institute legal proceedings against the facility. The effects are that this leads to bad reputation in the society which may lead to eventual closure of the institution.

Failure of medical technology often impacts on the doctor’s job in several ways. For example, deaths or complications arising from failure of technology is viewed by many as failure or ignorance on the part of the doctor. Such failure may lead to a lot of intentional malpractice by a doctor who has adverse effects on the patients and the society at large. Malpractices mainly affect the trust relationship between a doctor and a patient which damages the entire reputation of the doctor. Malpractices caused by failure of technology may lead to loss of value of the profession whereby many young people may not have the desire to engage in the career.

To solve the problems caused by malpractices and failure of technology, the health care facility should make use of the appropriate technology and ensure adequacy of users of the technology. Moreover, continuous training should be adopted by the facilities to ensure users are well informed of the appropriate technology (Mark, 2012). Ethical values should also be embraced to reduce chances of malpractices by the doctors and achieve the desired medical results by the technology.

The MACRA program has been placed to give clinical providers the time to consider their options. However, since its implementation, the large number of changes has disconcerted majority of the industry and several of them remain confused as to what is required of them and what choices they should make to comply. And mostly, many are concerned about the readiness of their colleagues to make these choices.

The deadline to start collecting performance data for the QPP (Quality Payment Program) Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) was Monday, the 2^nd of October. These clinicians opting to submit only ninety days of quality data must hand it over to the CMS by the 31^st of March, 2018.

Fewer than one in four practitioners feel up to the task of meeting QPP requirements, according to the American Medical Association. Over a span of five years, the CMS has committed over a hundred million dollars to assist small practices in meeting the requirements of the MACRA program; however, many are still struggling to understand it, and some wonder if the money put in has been sufficient.

The importance of choosing metrics

Choosing metrics has boomed in importance because it has become the determining factor in what questions providers will ask and the ultimate changes in clinical behavior. However, it is a daunting task because there are more than three hundred options available; and for multi-specialty practices, there are an exponential number of options.

As for improving clinical service, there are over ninety options, and many are specialty specific. According to officials, the goal is not just attaining a bare minimum, but getting a running start to the future years.

The long-term impacts

Many clinicians are not concerned about the long-term effects and merely wish to elude a penalty for this year. It is advisable to have a long-term strategy to manage MIPS.

By this decree, clinicians that score above the MIPS performance threshold are rewarded with escalating incentives; and those that are below it are penalized. A logical approach to maintaining and optimizing your score on a regular basis would be beneficial.

The MIPS score, however, is not just about reimbursement; it is a permanent mark on clinician’s record. There seems to be a general disregard, or maybe ignorance, about how deep this program runs and the lasting long-term effects. Since it is not something that will disappear every year, as the widespread misconception seems to be, trying to craft an effective strategy would be rational.

Modern digital solutions

For now, major healthcare organizations seem to be relying on tools that have been provided by the government to analyze, calculate MIPS scores and do their best to optimize. While many have not looked outside of what EHR vendors and the state have provided, there are several other MACRA solutions available. All major EHR vendors provide solutions for MACRA, and you only need look in the right place.

Some vendors began providing guidance to their customers on the best way to leverage solutions to meet the QPP requirements from the middle of 2016.

Such tools allow physicians to verify their eligibility and calculate their performance score by computing, data measured from the EHR, the quality categories of MIPS, etc. The tools allow them to further input their improvement techniques and activities. The reporting capabilities of these systems are by far greater than expected. They support the program requirements wherever necessary.

This is one such example of a good EHR. With the increase of such vendors, the health industry has seen an increase in analytics and thereby an increase in productivity and performance.

However, healthcare providers are fixated on finding better tools that capture data more efficiently without losing sight of patient records and health history.

Many clinicians prepare themselves for the submission and anticipate great scores. They wonder how CMS applies the algorithm to score them – the score that is displayed on the dashboard and scorecards.

Some healthcare IT companies provide a combination of tools that help users decide which measures will increase their score and how to adopt improvement methods that will help them reach their goals.

The market requires tools that not only validate the current year’s data, but also compare it with the previous year’s statistics to give an optimal report. With this comparison, the reports can provide insight on the steps to take moving forward and improving the quality of healthcare.

Caution to the providers – Be aware of outlier clinicians as their activities have to be accentuated to provide optimal scores.

Challenges still remain

However, with all the effort and development the IT industry has put in, there are still many challenges that clinicians have to overcome in order to prepare for MIPS and MACRA.

The hurdles are not too high; however, the complexity of the program to not be undervalued. The potential it has to provide better healthcare for lower costs is greatly advocated by the government.

Since the government has taken the initiative to get the system implemented, many physicians and clinicians tend to get overstressed. The link between CMS based programs and clinicians’ burnout is predicted to increase. However, it is not a cause for concern as the scores might be low only because they didn’t have access to CMS cost and quality data.

Keeping providers concerns in mind, the 2018 QPP proposed rule has allowed for exemptions. It is predicted that with all the exemptions in place, only a meager 36% of healthcare providers will be eligible for MIPS.

Health care providers should take note that this system is going to be full-blown implemented and it is better not to reach out to these exemptions as local competitors with higher scores can affect their business.

If the work has to be done anyway, why not start now. Start preparing for the MIPS validation and align practice improvement goals, keeping the score in mind. This system is a blessing for both the providers and the healthcare seekers. It reduces the cost for the health care seekers and improves the quality of the service provided by the healthcare providers opening them up to more business.

If you enjoyed this article, you are recommended to read about the 2018 proposed MACRA rule here.

Diabetes has always been at the forefront of technological advances in patient care.

Testing patients to determine how well their diabetes is managed started with measuring the presence of sugar in the urine and gave way to measuring blood glucose by finger prick testing.

According to the best endocrinologist in Dubai, these simple yet groundbreaking advances have been overshadowed by the development of incredibly intelligent devices to help patients with diabetes manage their condition.

Measuring Blood Glucose

One of the key features of improving the outcomes for patients with diabetes is ensuring that blood glucose levels are as near normal as possible throughout the life of someone with diabetes. Whilst finger prick methods can help with this, these only give snapshots of the blood glucose levels throughout the day.

CGMS

The last few years have seen the rise of a technology known as continuous blood glucose monitoring (CGMS). Rather than pricking a finger 10 or more times a day, a sensor can be attached to the skin that has a fine fiber which measures glucose levels in the blood immediately under the surface of the skin.

This information can then be collected by a device which can display the minute by minute recordings, give alarms when glucose levels are too high or low or changing too quickly. One example is the Dexcom 4G which relays the information to a small device with a digital screen and this can be used to help fine tune diabetes treatment.

Delivering Insulin

The initial device to deliver insulin was a glass syringe with a long metal needle which could be sterilized after each injection and re-used for years on end. Things have moved on in leaps and bounds since these early days.

There are now a myriad of pens, needles and ports for delivering insulin to patients with diabetes which are sterile, unobtrusive and highly accurate whilst being flexible to suit the needs of the patient.

However, at the forefront of this insulin delivery technology are insulin pumps which deliver insulin under the skin continuously throughout the day (CSII). The idea is not new and pumps have been around for years, but they were initially large, noisy devices which caused many problems for the patient using it.

MEDTRONIC 640G

Now, there are devices available in the region, such as the Medtronic 640G, which are small (the size of a pager), almost invisible when being worn and have highly intelligent functions which allow for the optimization of insulin delivery and control of blood sugar concentrations for an individual patient.

Using a CSII device can help a patient with diabetes improve their blood glucose control, reducing the patients’ chances of life-altering complications such as blindness or kidney failure. CSII treatment can also reduce the likelihood of hypoglycemia – low blood sugars – which can lead to life threatening losses of consciousness, impair driving ability, and even lead to memory loss and dementia.

MEDTRONIC 670G   

Soon, new devices, such as the Medtronic 670G, will be available in the region and will provide the first opportunity for a real-life “artificial pancreas” to be used. These devices will combine the monitoring function of the CGMS and the insulin delivery of a CSII.

However, in addition, they will have a type of “brain” function that allows for some of the calculations and adjustments needed to control blood sugar levels to be kept in the best possible range to be undertaken by the device and not the patient.

The Future of Diabetes Management Technology

These and other devices in development, will transform the landscape of insulin delivery and treatment in the next decade and will hopefully improve the life of patients and their families with diabetes.

One important feature in all of these processes, whether it is using a CSII or CGMS in trying to achieve excellent control of diabetes, is access to the correct support and advice from trained professionals familiar with the use of these devices and the management of diabetes.

Valiant Clinic has five clinical staff (a consultant endocrinologist, two diabetes educators, two dietitians) trained in the use of CSII and CGMS with a strong background in the management of diabetes and prevention of its complications. When contemplating these treatment options, it is essential to liaise closely with the experts from this healthcare clinic to ensure the best possible treatment plan for you or your relative.

The healthcare sector could be on the verge of a cybersecurity crisis. The findings of a study from Ponemon suggest that consumers have a misplaced confidence in the ability of healthcare providers to keep their personal information safe. Two-thirds said they trust providers to protect their data, while only a quarter trust credit card companies. In reality, healthcare organisations account for 34 per cent of all data breaches, while financial organisations account for only 4.8 per cent (IRTC Data Breach Report). Organisations that don’t take action to close the gap between reality and consumers’ expectations are risking significant damage to their reputation and financial strength.

Healthcare hacks are on the rise. The industry suffered 450 data breaches in 2016, up from 253 in 2015, according to a report by Protenus. Their impact on patients and providers can be tremendous. In 2015, US insurance company Anthem Blue Cross suffered the largest healthcare breach on record, when 80 million patient records were compromised, costing the business $115m in settlements. This year’s WannaCry ransomware attack hit around 40 NHS trusts and their hospitals. Hackers gained access to computers and effectively shut down the entire system, which led to operations and appointments being cancelled or postponed. The emergency measures put in place to address the attack cost around £180,000.

The main cause of healthcare breaches is unauthorised access or disclosure, resulting either from insider threats – employee error, negligence or criminal activity – or external threats, in the form of hacking, skimming and phishing.

The patient data goldmine

Healthcare organisations are a prime target for cyber attacks because of the lucrative personal identifiable information (PII) held in the records they keep, which can be used for identity theft. In the US, there have been reports of medical records selling for $5 apiece on the black market.

The industry is also widely perceived as easy to infiltrate due to having rather weak security technologies and processes. The size and distributed nature of the NHS, combined with its disparate systems and software, lack of resources and possibly inadequate incident response plans, have been cited as potential reasons for its vulnerability to the WannaCry attack.

The impact of a data breach

Half of all consumers have been notified by an organisation that their personal information has been lost or stolen as a result of a data breach in the past two years, according to the Ponemon study. As a result, 65 per cent lost trust in that organisation, and one in four ended their relationship with it.

The same study found that the stock value of 113 companies declined an average of five per cent the day a breach was disclosed, resulting in millions of pounds of losses. They also experienced up to a seven per cent customer churn.

A shot in the arm

Financial organisations appear to have a better understanding than healthcare providers of the value of the information they manage, spending two to three times more on cyber security according to the SANS Institute. Healthcare must catch up.

Mobile working, increasingly complex supply chains and the use of cloud-based services mean organisations no longer have a well-defined ‘boundary’ around the data they hold. As a result, traditional security measures are failing to safeguard against breaches, so organisations must rethink their approach. This is particularly vital in light of the looming General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which will impose huge fines on organisations that don’t take adequate steps to secure the personal data of EU citizens.

With so much at stake, cybersecurity can no longer be viewed as an IT problem. It’s a business problem – and senior executives must be involved in developing and implementing a holistic security strategy designed to protect brand credibility, customer loyalty and profits.

There are a number of best practice steps a healthcare organisation can take to strengthen its security posture.

Appoint a dedicated chief information security officer (CISO). It’s their role to educate the board in the merits of investing in appropriate security defences.

Invest in people and technologies. Adequate budget must be allocated to invest in skilled staff and up-to-date security enabling technologies. Access is healthcare’s Achilles heel, so implement an integrated identity platform that will manage, monitor and protect privilege access and credentials for all users, applications, endpoints and infrastructure.

Plan for the worst. An effective data breach preparedness plan is critical. This should include procedures for communicating with investors and regulators.

Build a culture of security awareness. Employees with access to high-value data are a potential chink in your armour. Training and awareness programmes will increase their understanding of the risks and threats, and get everyone working together to protect information.

Carry out regular vulnerability audits. Assessments will identify any security holes in a computer, network or communications infrastructure, so they can be addressed.

Participate in threat sharing programmes. Similar organisations can often be targeted by the same threat, so collaborating with partners and companies you trust can offer a better and often faster way to prevent and detect attacks.

Patient information is becoming more valuable and attractive to cyber criminals. So far this year, breaches are on track to top 2016 totals, with well over 25 million individual records already exposed. A comprehensive security strategy is the only way to defend the organisation against attack, by preventing unauthorised access to and disclosure of data, and ensuring the confidentiality, integrity, availability and resilience of systems and services.

A step-by-step guide on how providers can make a smooth transition from fee-for-service to value-based reimbursement.

Introduction to APMs

At a time when the healthcare industry is adapting to a shift in reimbursement methodology from fee-for-service to value-based reimbursement, many hospitals find themselves in an unfamiliar position of maintaining the balance between delivering a high quality of service while reducing the total cost of care for their patients. For healthcare providers, this means integrating alternate payment models (APMs), specifically bundled payments, to improve the patient’s continuum of care.

While some critics may see this as a potential threat to their organization, initial findings point to a tremendous upside opportunity to achieve greater financial savings while increasing the quality of patient care – a classic win-win scenario for providers.

In an effort to ease hospitals into the process, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) mandated the first bundled payment model, the Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement (CJR) model beginning October 1, 2016. The five year program applies to nearly 800 hospitals across the country with the goal of  holding hospitals accountable for the entire cost of care for MS-DRG 469 and 470 (hip and knee replacements.)

Following the first year of implementation, CMS rewarded a select group of hospitals who have met (or finished below) their spend target with a bonus. Those hospitals that did not meet the spend requirements will not receive any reconciliation. After the first pilot year, providers will be held accountable by CMS in the form of a financial penalty if they’re unable to meet the target rate.

Although the first pilot year for CJR only just concluded, hospitals can expect a similar experience for other bundled payment models.  Whether the bundle is voluntary or mandated, CMS or Commercial, hospitals can apply the same strategies to:

• Monitor and report trends highlighting areas of unnecessary spending
• Collaborate with physicians and other providers

Because bundled payment models represent some of the most common and high volume surgical procedures, it’s essential that your organization has developed a strategic bundled payment plan in order to meet the target rate.

Generally speaking, this 3-part engagement strategy can be applied to all bundled payment models:

1. Initial assessment of your organization’s current ability to meet CMS regulations
2. Action plan for implementing a bundled payment strategy
3. Monitoring performance to forecast performance and revenue in bundled payment models

Step 1: Initial Assessment with Episodic Benchmark Data

Building an engagement strategy is a lot like building a skyscraper; it requires a sound foundation that can only grow when a team is committed to maintaining order within the process.

Before an organization can develop a strategy for analyzing and reporting trends in data analytics, it’s essential to gather all episodic data to perform an initial assessment on how cost-effective those services currently are. In other words, you can’t measure what you don’t know.

To get some initial bearing on where your organization stands for developing an engagement strategy, ask yourself these two questions:

• How does my organization perform today in terms of spend?
• Do I have the right team in place to lead the bundled payment initiative?

In an effort to ensure that all hospitals provide the same high quality of care for some of the most common surgeries (such as CJR), CMS assigned these spending targets based on a variety of factors.

“CJR hospitals will receive separate episode target prices for MS-DRGs 469 (Major joint replacement or reattachment of lower extremity with major complications or comorbidities) and 470 (Major joint replacement or reattachment of lower extremity without major complications or comorbidities), reflecting the differences in spending for episodes initiated by each MS-DRG. CMS will also use a simple risk stratification methodology to set different target prices for patients with hip fractures within each MS-DRG.” (CMS.gov).

“At the end of a model performance year, actual spending for the episode is compared to the Medicare target episode price for the responsible hospital.” (CMS.gov)

Understanding how your organization does perform today in meeting the CMS target rates is the best way to gauge the areas within your service line that needs the most attention for reducing unnecessary spending.

If your organization discovers that it’s already prepared to meet the spend target, ask yourself “Are there other areas within the post-acute process where we can further improve the patient’s continuum of care while cutting costs by reducing patient readmissions?” If not, begin investigating the root cause of the issue by asking “Do I have enough accurate data to highlight areas of overpayment?”

Look for factors that have the biggest influence on price reduction such as comparing utilization, readmissions, and spending to regional benchmarks. Then, you can utilize these data analytics to create an estimate for financial risks and/or opportunities.

After assessing the strengths and weaknesses in your current bundled payment plans, now is the time to evaluate your APM team to ensure that everyone knows their role and understands the impact that their role has on the entire revenue cycle.

Do I have care coordinators/nurse navigators following patients throughout the entire episode of care? Do I have a physician champion to spearhead the initiative with physicians (i.e. CMO, Lead Cardiologist, Practice Manager, etc.)? 

Having the right mix of talent within your APM team is essential to putting your plan into action, but keep in mind that it requires a strong and experienced leader who understands that it may take a few rounds of trial-and-error to compile the right team.

Step 2: Action Plan

After establishing a solid foundation centered around the right personnel, you can begin implementing the engagement strategy. However, keep in mind there is a learning curve (especially for providers who were not included in the CMS pilot tests).

This action plan consists of a four-part checklist designed to provide a sustainable bundled payment plan for any organization, regardless of its size. These are the four parts:

• Design a physician engagement strategy
• Create a strategy related to the post-acute network (where applicable)
• Design a strategy for improving or maintaining quality
• Define the role of care coordinator/navigator

When developing an engagement strategy, remember to factor in the impact that other services have on your net revenue. Physicians, for example, play a large role in not only ensuring that patients receive the same high quality of care that they expect, but they also look at the entire care continuum and eliminate any procedures that could jeopardize the patients’ ability to rehabilitate properly.

Because physicians play a significant role in keeping the healthcare provider’s spending below the target rate, many organizations have reviewed gainsharing opportunities with their physician groups. For example, this incentive can be a 50-50 split of the reconciliation payment from CMS (assuming the healthcare provider finishes below the target rate) between both parties.

The next phase may involve collaborating with post-acute providers in your network to improve the quality of the patient care while cutting costs. This can only work if both parties have open lines of communication for tracking spending trends and conducting education sessions designed to teach healthcare professionals how to spot areas of excess spending.

Be aware, however, that not all providers are willing to participate (or might not be the right fit for a partnership) in these post-acute networks. Before you agree to a partnership, you should assess their willingness to partner, review their quality ratings, and assess their LOS/spending.

Lastly, an organization must appoint a care coordinator/navigator to be in charge of tracking patients and managing all bundle disclosers, waivers, and progress reports. This person will serve as the APM team leader so they’ll need to have a fully comprehensive understanding of bundled payment plans and how to lead their team day-in and day-out.

Step 3: Performance Monitoring

After your organization has developed a strategy for executing your bundled payment initiative, the final task lies in your team’s ability to track and report performance updates. In its simplest terms, performance monitoring comes down to two things:

• Providing Routine Data Analytics
• Providing Routine Calculations

Finding areas within your service line where spending can be reduced without sacrificing the quality of care is not something that your team performs once and then you’re done; it requires routine monitoring by a team that’s trained to spot certain trends in all areas of post-acute care.

When reviewing routine data analytics, your team should monitor spending and trends by patient, care setting, facility, and physician. This lets you narrow down your focus on a specific data set and prevents you from mistakenly adding data records from another point on the care path.

The same applies for reviewing routine calculations. These calculations should measure your organization’s overall financial performance as well as gainsharing estimates to provide a comprehensive cost analysis.

Prepare Now for Bundled Payment Success

At the end of the day, the shift from fee-for-service to value-based reimbursement comes down to one thing: planning ahead.

Although no team can manage their engagement strategy error free, it’s important for the APM team to be informed and address these variances before it negatively affects your reimbursement.

Healthcare providers that followed this three-part engagement strategy proved to be top performers, finishing in the top 10 percent of all hospitals in the CJR program.

In the first year of the program, these healthcare providers averaged a total reconciliation payment of $178,000 (81% higher than the average participating hospital – see Figure 1 below) or $1,445 per episode (21% higher than the average participating hospital – see Figure 2 below).

It’s also worth noting that only 382 out of about 800 hospitals required to participate (less than 50%) actually received a reconciliation payment from CMS.

Fig.1

Fig.2

Again, the key to collecting maximum reimbursement within bundled payment plans is taking the time to prepare a thorough engagement strategy for your organization. This planning requires extensive research into trends and data analytics so take advantage of the opportunity to plan ahead and get your feet wet before they become mandatory and more wide-spread.

Simply put, if a provider has concerns about their ability to meet the CMS target rates, follow the steps outlined above and ensure that your APM team stays current with CMS’s updates, giving the APM team time to adjust their current engagement strategy.

1. Check Your Hospital And Doctor Records

Who hasn’t experienced some hassle obtaining a medical record? Whether it is to show old records to a new physician, to get immunization records for school, or to have the x-ray handy to show off to your friends, having access to your medical records just flat out makes sense.

Unfortunately, this isn’t always as easy as it sounds but the growing acceptance of patient portals it is becoming easier to literally look up your records on your phone. Since your records are protected under HIPAA and are private, you will need a login and password from your doctor or hospital to see them; but once you have login credentials many portals have their own apps that let you keep your medical records at your fingertips. You can check out a more comprehensive guide on connecting to your medical records here.

2. Get Real Time Price Information About Medical Procedures And Prescriptions

A major topic in modern society is the debate over healthcare. One of the major flaws we see in our healthcare system is the lack of transparent and consistent pricing schemes for procedures. There are many culprits as well as rather reasonable reasons these occur in healthcare but kickbacks for insurance companies are a major focus of this. Mostly, this is because the private insurance framework of our country greatly disenfranchises the uninsured and underinsured through favoritism for insurance companies by healthcare networks.

Several tools are being developed though which allow patients with and without insurance get accurate location based estimates on what medical procedures and medications should cost. My two favorites are Healthcare Bluebook and GoodRx. Healthcare Bluebook focuses on medical procedures, while GoodRx focuses on prescription and over-the-counter drugs. Both allow patients to enter their location and medical needs and get real time price comparisons. This creates transparent pricing of healthcare services for public consumption, which hopefully leads to informed consumers and lower prices.

3. Receive Your Lab Results Without A Doctor’s Appointment

While it might be difficult for patients to understand the results of most lab tests done in medical settings, there is definitely a profound need for many to check their lab results by themselves. This can be an extremely good thing when a patient is awaiting a life changing lab result to reduce stress, or simple positive/negative tests which won’t always require a follow-up visit. This method can save time for unneeded doctor’s appointment and provide patients more mobility to visit new doctors and get second opinions.

There are two major lab test providers in the US (Quest and Labcorp), which are estimated to cover over 90% of lab tests done. Both companies have recently begun allowing the public to view their lab results online simply by verifying their identity. These can usually allow patients to view results as soon as they’re available as well reference them securely online at anytime. For a step by step guide on how to connect to Quest and Labcorp I would check out a tutorial here.

4. Video Chat With A Doctor On Your Phone Or Computer

Not feeling well? Think you should see a doctor but putting it off? Well why not give a doctor a call, or even better yet have a video chat with one online. Is talking with a doctor online crazy, or a good idea? Well, with telehealth tools such as Amwell and Healthtap this has become reality and is making talking to a doctor more convenient and affordable. Both these platforms allow you to schedule video chats with doctors on your computer as well as having android and iOS apps available to do it from your phone. From here you can talkr to a doctor about how you’re feeling and they can give their advice and opinion, prescribe you a medication, or refer you to a service such as a lab test you may need.

In addition to video and call chat, they also have a variety of other features, one of my favorites being Healthtap’s ask a doctor. With this feature you can propose a question to be answered by a credentialed and qualified doctor for free through the Healthtap app.  Insurance policies haven’t yet caught up to telehealth and it’s difficult to get reimbursement for an independent video chat using these companies but they are still very affordable for their convenience at around $50 a consultation.

5. Have A Pharmacy Deliver Your Medication

Need to refill your prescription but don’t feel like getting out of bed? Tired of making the trip to CVS every month and waiting online? Well great news, now it is easier than ever to have your medications setup for home delivery. For instance CVS home delivery is available from many locations around the US now. There are even specialty pharmacies dedicated to home delivery you can have your prescriptions sent to which will take care of everything, all you need to do is be there and sign when they show up.

Express Scripts is also an example which has a national home delivery program for their pharmacy and is available almost anywhere. There is also Capsule which has made it very easy for New York City residents to do this in the city from even local mom and pop pharmacies. Also, many local specialty pharmacies offer this along with other services such as packaging each dose separately to help people with many prescriptions manage proper usage such as Maple Pharmacy. So next time you need to go to the pharmacy, consider these services instead.

6. Keep Continuous Track Of Your Body

We’ve all heard of Fitbit, Apple Watch, and maybe some lesser known health and wellness trackers like Jawbone, Misfit, or Withings. This explosion of monitoring devices is part of a larger push towards integrated and holistic approaches to staying healthy and informed about our bodies.

In 2017 there is starting to be hundreds and maybe even thousands of health monitoring devices on the market and with default Apps on iPhone and Android, Apple Health and Google Fit. They are becoming more useful, easier to use, and are starting to be connected to our doctors and caregivers.

Whatever your lifestyle or health needs there are continuous or home monitoring systems available that connect and store data in one place on your Smartphone.

Measurements that can be monitored include blood pressure, heart rate, ECG and heart activity, blood flow, weight, temperature, activity, respiration rate, stress levels, calories consumed, and many more. The great thing about many of these monitoring systems is their ability to work continuously and transfer the data to your phone wirelessly using Wi-Fi and Bluetooth technology.

For example there is a new device out called the HealBe GoBe which using advanced technology to automatically track calories consumption by continuously, and painlessly monitoring your blood using light waves. Another example is the Kardia heart monitoring system which can monitor heart rate, ECG and has built in algorithms to detect potential heart problems such as arrhythmias automatically and alert your doctor. These are just a few examples of the current applications of health monitoring being used right now, but the possibilities are limitless and will become more advanced every passing year.

Technology has greatly affected our lives. It has produced the inventions that make our lives easier and more convenient. Things that seemed impossible decades ago can now be done with a click of a button and with less time involved. For one, you can now talk and see people real-time – even if they’re located countries away from you – all thanks to video chat application, handheld devices and of course, the internet. Aside from improving how we communicate with others, technology has also paved the way for innovations which revolutionized the healthcare industry. There are health technology innovations which only seemed to appear in sci-fi movies, but now, we can use these to prolong or improve our health as well. If you still don’t have any idea about any of these, take the time to read this list below as it contains key health technology innovations that have revolutionized the healthcare industry:

1. Healthcare Education: Augmented Reality

There is now a company which allows medical students to study different parts of the body through 3D imaging. Once students or future doctors can view everything in 3D, it’ll be easier for them to determine the source of the illness or what’s really going on inside the body of a patient. And no, nothing is to be injected whatsoever in the patient for the students to see what’s inside. What makes this technology remarkable is the fact that it’s interactive. It has an engaging user interface and comes in with a stylus, which responds to your every movement. You can use the stylus look inside a patient’s’ skull with a touch of a button, for example.

2. Electronic Aspirin

This is the perfect solution if you’ve been experiencing frequent headaches in the past. And yes, having headaches can become a hassle especially if you still have a lot on your plate or if you’re meeting a deadline. There is now electronic aspirin, and the process involves a small nerve stimulating device to be implanted in the upper gum on the side of your head. This is the part of your head where you usually experience a headache. This technology works by blocking SPG (sphenopalatine ganglion) signals at the very signs of a headache. Once the electronic aspirin is planted in your head, you can kiss those headaches goodbye!

3. Robotic Nurse Assistant

You don’t have to worry that no one will take care of you once your nurse files for a week of vacation because a robotic nurse assistant will always be at your service – literally. Aside from reminding you of when to take your medicines, robotic nurse assistants also work by carrying you from your bed to your wheelchair and vice versa. You no longer need any human resource just to do that. What the robotic nurse assistant does might seem simple, but it will do wonders, especially for overweight people who are required to use their wheelchair regularly for their treatment.

4. Remote Patient Monitoring

People living in remote areas can now get themselves checked with the help of remote patient monitoring. This innovation can help a lot of people living in rural areas, especially if they have medical conditions which should be taken cared of immediately. The remote patient monitoring technology works by collecting a wide range of health data from the patient which could include blood pressure, vital statistics, and heart rate. This information is then sent to doctors and nurses who are situated in primary care settings, intensive care units, and hospitals. Even if distance is involved, these professionals can still remotely monitor their patients. These tools help healthcare achieve its “triple aim” which is to improve patient outcomes and access to care and make health care systems more cost-effective for everyone.

5. 3D-Printed Prosthetic Limbs

Some accidents are so severe that people involved might lose an arm and a leg. There are people who need complete sets of arms and legs for them to function every day – and 3D-Printed Prosthetic Limb are something that they should be overjoyed about. Prosthetics have been used in the healthcare industry for years, but now that it can be made through 3D, everything can come off more natural for the patients and the healthcare providers as well. 3D-printed prosthetic limbs mean lesser waiting time for the patients so they wouldn’t spend too much on hospital bills and accommodations. Prosthetic printed limbs also indicate that patients can now use something that’s more personalized for them and their need.

If you’re someone working in the healthcare industry or if you know someone who needs medical attention, the innovations presented in this article can become a very big help to you through many different ways. There are a lot of ways that technology can help modern society, and the healthcare industry is one avenue to inject that help. And since technology is fast-paced and is still changing day by day, you can expect that this list will continuously grow with more health technology innovations.

With an aging and growing population, there is an ever-increasing need to find smarter and more efficient ways to deliver healthcare. To bring this about, healthcare professionals are turning to technology for answers, and there are four areas, in particular, that are bringing spectacular results. Here, we’ll look at how the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain, and RFID technology are helping to reshape healthcare in 2018.

1. Internet of Things

The internet of Things is having an impact in many areas of our lives, so it’s no surprise that it is used by healthcare professionals. Being able to link the multitude of medical devices used every day to the internet so all the data they provide can be collected, analyzed, and stored in a central location can bring enormous benefits.

One example where this is happening is with the treatment of diabetes. Pharmaceutical giant, Roche, is currently developing a long-term glucose monitoring system which uses a sensor implanted below the patient’s skin. Using IoT technology, the sensor can send real-time blood glucose levels to an app on the patient’s smartphone. This helps the patient self-medicate effectively and thus reduces the burden on the healthcare system.

Other developments include a connected inhaler that is being used to help sufferers of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and a Bluetooth-enabled coagulation system that lets anticoagulant patients check the speed at which their blood clots and thus lowers the risk of stroke or internal bleeding.

As the use of IoT continues, we’ll see more devices transmit results to healthcare providers. This can mean many everyday tasks, such as taking blood pressure and pulse rates, can be automated, giving nurses and doctors more time to concentrate on urgent matters.

2. Artificial Intelligence

AI has a great deal of potential in healthcare. It can undertake large volumes of work and the more data it gathers the smarter it gets. For example, it can analyze millions of samples in a short space of time and discover patterns that would have taken years by traditional analysis.

One area where AI is having an impact is in the development of virtual assistants for medical professionals. Dragon Medical Virtual Assistant, developed by Nuance, is used by half a million clinicians to streamline their workflows. The software used includes voice recognition technology, voice biometrics and text-to-speech, strategic health IT relationships, and EHR integration.

AI is also having an impact on more clinical matters. A new ‘virtual doctor’ known as ‘doc.ai’ is now being developed that can interpret lab results. The first version of the software will be able to interpret blood tests and report these to doctors and to patients themselves. Doc.ai uses natural language processing to explain test results to doctors and patients via an app. If patients are unable to understand, the app can refer them directly to a human doctor.

3. Blockchain

For those who haven’t heard the term before, blockchain is a data storage system similar to a database. However, instead of having data stored on a centralized system and controlled by a single entity, it is stored across a network of personal computers called nodes.

With blockchain, all the data can be shared publicly but permission must be granted to allow access. The system uses cryptographic keys to ensure that only authorized users have access to relevant information and that the data is stored securely.

The system has many potential benefits, such as the tracking of pharmaceuticals sales, authentication of patients’ records, preventing the tampering of data from clinical trials, and in the collaboration between clinicians to provide patient care.

It is believed that blockchain provides the potential to store medical and patient data far more securely than at present.

4. Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID)

RFID has many applications within healthcare and 2018 is set to see its use expand even more. Its main use lies in its ability to help organizations keep track of things.

One area that hospitals must monitor is the growing and changing supply of medicines. By replacing manual or barcode tracking with RFID, hospitals can massively reduce the amount of time taken to count medicines whilst providing accurate, real-time information of current stock levels – helping ensure that supplies do not run out. This can be achieved simply by attaching RFID tags to each medicine package and by using, fixed or handheld readers and shelf antennas.

RFID can be used to track people as well as medicines. With the use of RFID wristbands or smart cards, such as those available from Universal Smart Cards, hospitals can verify patient IDs and medical information, locate where patients are in the building and even reduce waiting times.

For example, it is possible to have patient information stored on RFID wristbands and for this to bring up the patient’s medical records when connected to a database. This can ensure, in emergencies, that practitioners have immediate access to life-saving information.

Wrapping up

From the humble stethoscope onwards, technology has always been an integral part of healthcare. In 2018, however, we’re going to see technology play an even greater role. We’ll benefit from the data-gathering and monitoring capabilities of the IoT, be tested and analyzed by AI, have our data secured by blockchain and keep an accurate track of everything with RFID.

For people who wear contact lenses, caring for them should be just as important as caring for your body, any other aspect of your health, and your home. Below are five tips to guide you for contact lens care, and several websites to assist you as well. Following these steps will allow you to keep on top of your eye care so you can purchase contact lenses online with ease.

Kierstan Boyd says that the most important step is to follow the instructions you receive. There are many ways contact lens care and eye care can go wrong and adversely affect you, so by following the advice below and from the websites provided, you’ll ensure quality use from your lenses, which will in turn, help you take care of your eyes.

1. Keep your Hands Clean

OPSM provides a list of dos and don’ts when caring for your contact lenses. One good tip is the way you handle your contact lenses. OPSM offers this advice: “Before handling your contact lenses, wash your hands thoroughly with soap and dry with a lint-free towel.” This is to avoid transferring dirt and germs to your eyes that can potentially harm them. Many websites also advice avoiding moisturiser usage before handling your contact lenses. Making sure your hands are clean and the contact lenses are in good condition will help you place them in properly and as a result, allow you to see. OPSM advise placing contact lenses in before you do make up, and taking them out before removing makeup.

2. Keeping an eye on the expiry date

Just like you would keep an eye on food expiry dates and medicine expiry dates, contact lenses have expiry dates too. All About Vision states that contact lenses expire within a year. OPSM sells a variety of packaging, that contain two, six, three, thirty or ninety lenses, so you can buy them online or in-store on a regular basis, such as monthly. Where All About Vision indicate that they will last up to a year, having these monthly options ensures that there are options available, whatever your need. OPSM says to never use your lenses after their expiry date, as does All About Vision, so keep an eye on these dates and you’ll never be caught out.

3. Minimise contact with water

When handling your contact lenses, you should avoid getting water on them. The American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) recommends removing your lenses before going swimming as well as ensuring that your hands are dry after cleaning the contact lenses, as discussed in point one. This will ensure the life of your lenses, and reduce any negative impacts on your own vision. Ask your eye care professional about options for lenses to suit sports, or other options to help you see underwater when you cannot wear your contact lenses.

4. Wear and Replace Contact Lenses on Schedule

The AAO recommends following your eye care specialist’s plan when it comes to replacing your contact lenses. As some of you will be purchasing your contact lenses online, endeavour to keep this plan handy so you will never be caught out. Depending on your needs, it will differ from person to person. Ensuring you follow your plan, and only your plan, will be beneficial for health and will allow you to work out when you need to replace your lenses, and where you might be looking to buy the contact lenses that you wear.

5. Never store your contact lenses in water

All About Vision’s Gary Heiting says that you should never store your contact lenses in water, as it can still contain bacteria and cause infections in your eyes as a result. Nor does it disinfect your contact lenses, but invites bacteria and germs onto them, making them unwearable. Instead, Gary states that the best and only way to clean them is in the solution provided, following the instructions that come with them.

After following these five tips, you will be able to purchase contact lenses online, care for them and ensure your monthly supply gives you the best it can give you.

Useful Apps

Technology is nearly touching every aspect of our lives, and contact lenses are no exception. This section will highlight some contact lenses related useful apps.

Contact Lenses Tracker

With this app, you won’t have to keep wearing expired contact lenses anymore. The app will give you a notification if your contact lenses expired, and will keep pushing you to changing them.

LENSPAL

This is an interesting app that provides you with timely tips (when you track your daily progress), advice, and videos personalized to your needs, making your transition to contact lenses much easier. You can also set reminders for yourself like when to remove or replace your contact lenses, and when to have a visit to an optician.

1-800 Contacts

If you need a fast and easy way to order your contact lenses, this app is for you. Ordering contact lenses with this app is very simple. If you are a first time user for instance, you would scan the lens box in order to upload your prescription or paper Rx for quicker shipping. You then use your phone camera to make a payment using your credit card, or you can simply use Paypal. You can then reorder using your secure account, or even set an auto-reorder so you don’t run out of contacts.