mobihealthnews had a chance to sit down with Scripps Health’s Dr. Eric Topol, who is also Chief Medical Officer of the recently founded West Wireless Health Institute, on the sidelines of the Wireless Life-Sciences Alliance meeting here in La Jolla, California. Topol explained why he disagrees with Gartner analyst Wes Rishel, why EMRs are like the story of the Tower of Babel, how PHRs aren’t much better and why the Obama Administration needs to learn about the revolutionary potential of wireless sensors today.
via Dr. Topol: EMRs remind me of the Tower of Babel | mobihealthnews.
“We took a run at this five years ago and it fizzled out pretty quick,” explained Rob Mesirow, Vice President of CTIA, the international association for the wireless industry. “Quite frankly, it just wasn’t the time, the stars weren’t aligned, wireless data networks weren’t robust enough and medical data wasn’t there.”
“Now, the next generation of doctors, who are more comfortable with health IT technology along with stronger mandates from the federal level and robust carrier networks are coming together,” Mesirow explained during an interview at the Wireless Life-Sciences Alliance meeting in La Jolla, California. “Everyone agrees that healthcare industry is inefficient — and that’s putting it lightly.”
CTIA’s wireless health initiative really kicked off at its most recent event in Las Vegas last month, but the association plans on hosting events in Washington D.C. and bringing Gary West and Dr. Eric Topol from the West Wireless Health Institute to discuss wireless healthcare with policy makers on the Hill.
via CTIA: All wireless carriers want mHealth | mobihealthnews.
Wireless biometric sensors, connected health devices, mobile phones and online portals hold the promise of automating the management of chronic diseases. Some service providers, however, aim to do no such thing.
If you truly automate the process of measuring a patient’s blood pressure, for example, do you miss the key opportunity to engage that patient in their care regimen? If a chronic condition is automatically monitored wirelessly from a smart bandaid, will the patient have a convenient way to review that information or does the automation itself remove the ideal window for the patient’s review?
Zume Life founder Rajiv Mehta thinks automation does just that. We cannot remove the patient from this process, Mehta told mobihealthnews during a reception at the Wireless Life-Sciences Alliance here in La Jolla, California. If a patient is experiencing abnormal biometrics, like a higher A1c, then the service should give them a chance to explain why they think that may be, Mehta explained.
via mobihealthnews.
The impact of the economic downturn and the ever-growing cost burdens the healthcare industry have taken on, has had somewhat of a positive effect on driving opportunities for the use of wireless technologies within the healthcare industry forward. By investing in telehealth opportunities, a new positive pro-active approach, offers potential cost and time saving benefits when monitoring patients who are suffering from chronic diseases and/or ageing independently.
A number of medical device and mobile handset manufacturers are beginning to invest in telehealth and associated services, which could provide the support that is needed to drive these cost saving initiatives. Even Apple’s iPhone is jumping on the healthcare bandwagon, by introducing a new revolutionary application which enables the user to monitor their blood pressure and glucose levels. Thus, with the support from a number of smart phone manufacturers, which are already Bluetooth enabled, it, seems inevitable that Bluetooth will become dominant in yet another industry.
However, alternative technologies being considered by the Continua Health Alliance are beginning to make headway within this market; Home health hub manufacturer AT&T have invested in Zigbee’s healthcare device application profile and ANT technologies are being used in a number of supporting heart rate monitors and mobile phone applications. With this in mind, Bluetooth technology may not have an easy ride as it first thought.
via MobileTechNews – Healthy Growth for Wireless Patient Monitoring.