Prioritizing measurable clinical outcomes, defining an evidence-based, codified patient journey, and incenting strict adherence to treatment plans have been the base for many patient engagement initiatives. These seem to be logical ways to improve outcomes, reduce costs and encourage patients to follow post-care plans mapped to a journey designed to yield specific clinical measures. Yet despite the industry’s focus on patient centricity, the healthcare industry is still struggling to realize the
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Future of Medicine: Why Everyone in Healthcare is Looking at Your Wrist
When you look at your wrist, you’re looking at the future of medicine. Wrists offer the potential that nothing else in the health technology world can offer: round-the-clock, non-intrusive contact. For people enduring chronic illness and doctors treating it, this can mean, in the near future, a seamless, two-way flow of information about medication use and the circumstances where health events, such as asthma attacks, or hypoglycemic events occur.Children with asthma, for instance, using a smart
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What The Patient Engagement Metrics Aren’t Telling You
The tech industry loves to tout high-level metrics to garner attention for apps: the success of an app is often demonstrated by quoting staggering numbers of subscribers, weekly views, in-app session length, number of downloads, monthly average users, etc. And these statistics are not irrelevant -- they are useful for gauging product performance and often correlate to a successful product. For apps driven by ad-revenue, they are sometimes the most important metrics.But as I address elsewhere,
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Optimizing Revenue Cycle Management – What Will It Take to Get There?
The U.S. healthcare system is undergoing a major transformation, from many freestanding hospitals and individual practices to fewer large, integrated healthcare systems. One motivating factor is the promise of greater efficiencies when it comes to delivering more holistic patient care and improving core operational processes.Revenue cycle management is one process that’s primed for improvement. Poor billing practices can cost hospitals millions of dollars due to lost reimbursement or the
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4 Ways Healthcare IT Can Save Rural Hospitals
In business, disruption is often seen as a good thing, e.g., digital photography disrupting Eastman Kodak’s business so significantly that the company has scrambled in recent years just to stay afloat, the thing they once did better than anyone now largely irrelevant.So, disruption is negative for employees of old technology companies, but it’s a boon for workers in cutting-edge businesses and generally for consumers as well. Those who benefit greatly outnumber those who don’t.And disruption
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Does the Fax Machine Still Have A Place in Modern Healthcare?
Fax machines have been a common fixture in medical practices across the country since they reached peak popularity in the late 1980s; the convenience, reliability, and security of faxing meant it was, and still is, the communication medium of choice for the majority of healthcare organizations. But, technology has come a very long way in past 30 or so years, and expectations have changed - what was deemed to be convenient, reliable, or secure two or three decades ago, might not be anymore. So,
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How to Successfully Manage the Staffing Costs of Migrating to a New EHR
Few decisions are as important or as daunting as the one that leads to the implementation of a new EHR. When replacing best-of-breed clinical applications with an integrated EHR, a successful transition involves managing, not just technology but, equally as important, employees across multiple teams. The best and brightest in your organization are asked to focus on this initiative, but this new assignment leaves a gap in the maintenance and management of a healthcare organization’s legacy
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Why The Retailization of Healthcare Begins with Women
The face of consumerism is rapidly changing in the age of technology. Convenience, personalization, and long-term benefits are of paramount concern to developers as consumers increasingly prioritize experience over possessions. The five-star rating format and other consumer-friendly features of sites like Amazon, Yelp, and TripAdvisor have been shaping consumer behavior and expectations for more than a decade. Direct-to-consumer brands like BirchBox, ThirdLove, and StitchFix are revolutionizing
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Data Collection Challenges in Healthcare and How to Overcome Them
While each industry has its own regulatory and governance challenges when it comes to data collection, storage, and management, the struggles of the healthcare industry are unique. Often times, the data collected in healthcare is complex and is governed by extremely stringent regulations.Most healthcare providers collect data using a variety of forms such as patient intake forms, consent forms, treatment evaluation and health assessment forms among others. Once this data is collected, it
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7 Key Ways to Liberate, Rather Than Oppress Physicians
What if LeBron James spent half his day manning the ticket windows and phone lines for the Los Angeles Lakers? Would he be as great a basketball player as we know him? Or would he be completely satisfied with the road he went down? James is one of the best basketball players of our time, and none of his accomplishments would be nearly as extensive if he didn’t do what he did best- play the game.That is one of the biggest problems in healthcare. The physicians, the ones standing on the front
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