Entries by admin

Manufacturing Airborne Bird Flu

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While the world has watched the number of confirmed cases of H7N9 in China steadily increase this week, two groups of scientists who once fell under scrutiny for performing highly controversial research on the H5N1 virus are feeling vindicated.

The big question being asked about H7N9 right now is whether it’s transmissible between humans. (So far, it doesn’t appear to be.) The teams of scientific researchers at the University of Wisconsin and the Erasmus Medical Center in the Netherlands know precisely what it takes for a bird flu to mutate into a potential human pandemic strain—because they’ve created these mutant viruses in the laboratory…

Creating the Patient Records of the Future

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The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) recently launched a challenge to redesign medical records. There were 230 submissions and winners focused on how to personalize and prioritize the information doctors need to know. Another important component that emerged: the need to access information from anywhere, at any time.

The Profitable Practice, a blog of Software Advice, a website that reviews the latest EMR technology, interviewed the winners of the top 3 awards. The interviews focused on learning more about how each company approached the project and chose the ‘pain points’ that their software would address. Here are a few highlights…

Submit Your Health Information or Pay a Fine?

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CVS Pharmacy recently sent out a memo to employees that has public health professionals—and the media—discussing just how far an employer can go to mandate employee health management. CVS employees will now be required to submit their weight, body fat, glucose levels, and other vital statistics to the company. If they don’t, they’ll be subject […]

New Study Spotlights How Influenza Spreads

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Science Daily reports that “people may more likely be exposed to the flu through airborne virus than previously thought.” The article cites a University of Maryland School of Public Health study that concluded “there are nearly nine times more influenza virus present in the smallest airborne droplets in the breath exhaled from those infected with […]

Collaboration and Communication Key to Health Information Sharing Success

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A recent article from Healthcare IT News, citing a poll of hospital and health system business leaders, found that 71 percent are more than halfway complete with their EHR adoption. While this seems like promising news, only 48 percent of those polled believed that they are ready to meet initial Stage 1 Meaningful Use requirements. […]

2013: The Year of the EHR Switch?

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A recent article in HealthCare IT News cites Black Book Rankings showing that “as many as 17 percent of medical practices could be switching out of their first choice EHR by the end of the year.” 17,000 active EHR adopters were interviewed for the study, which found that Stage 2 Meaningful Use requirements had made […]

World Health Organization Warns of NCoV Spread

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With flu season winding down, public health professionals may soon have a new virus to focus on—the coronavirus. Coronavirus is in the same family as SARS and the common cold. According to a recent CNN article, coronavirus was found in Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Kingdom. Six people have died from the virus […]

Pittsburgh’s Health Monitoring Systems Helping New Jersey Department of Health Monitor Effects of Superstorm Nemo

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(Pittsburgh, PA)—While Superstorm Nemo is only expected to produce an inch of snow in Pittsburgh, areas to our north and east are bracing for the worst. North Side based Health Monitoring Systems is helping public health officials in New Jersey, which is preparing for 12-18 inches of snow, to proactively monitor this potential public health […]

New Study Questions Thinking About How Vector-Borne Pathogens Spread

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A study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences suggests that the “trail of the most rapid transmission of human infections does not lead through large, public gather places, but from house-to-house.” The study took place on the island of Iquitos in Peru as researchers sought to discover how dengue fever outbreaks […]

Energy Drinks Related to Increased ER Visits?

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A recent study by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration asserts that emergency rooms across the country are treating increasing numbers of patients who experience complications from consuming energy drinks. The study refers to the drinks as a “rising public health problem,” adding that 20,000 ER visits in 2011 were linked to the […]