Over the last year, people across the U.S. have adopted telehealth in record numbers, signaling what people in the industry have long believed — virtual doctor visits and prescription delivery has the potential to truly increase access to high-quality, convenient care.
The meteoric rise of telehealth has also come with its challenges, one of the biggest being equity. A recent study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine details that the people who use telehealth in the
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Health IT & Digital Health-Opinion | Op-Eds | Guest Columns | Analysis, Insights - HIT Consultant
How to Bolster EHR Efficiency and Access to Offer Better Patient Care
Over the past few decades, technology has advanced health care in incredible ways. Between robotic surgery, training through augmented reality, and the use of wearables to enhance health data, the industry has embraced numerous advances to improve patient care.
However, the industry’s relationship with technology hasn’t always been seamless. While doctors and nurses work diligently to keep patients informed, more than 50% of clinicians suffer from regular burnout. The leading culprit?
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Telehealth Averted Healthcare Collapse During COVID – Will Inertia Kill Further Adoption?
Major, deep-rooted problems in the healthcare system were brought into sharp focus by the COVID-19 pandemic. Healthcare organizations in many regions – already stretched to near-full capacity before the pandemic – have been pushed to the brink of collapse. While they scrambled to respond, they began to lean heavily into the nascent tools and techniques of telehealth to keep the public safe. This shift has been corroborated by a recent Parks Association study identified significant increase in
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What the Shift to 5G Will Mean for Healthcare Cybersecurity
5G has spent years hovering on the horizon, its industry-revolutionizing potential waiting just out of reach for healthcare providers and consumers. But now, the wait is (almost) over -- and for some, it already is. Mobile 5G began to make limited appearances in major cities across the country in the latter half of 2019. Those limits won’t be in place for long; however, a more comprehensive rollout is expected to sweep through the nation this year.
5G’s entry onto the scene has the
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The Risks of Delaying Data Migration for Healthcare Systems
It only takes one data breach to paralyze a whole industry. Hospitality offers one prescient example. In 2014, hotel chain Marriott International was victim to a severe cyber attack, in which the information of 500 million clients was released. That scandal exploded to the political sphere as Chinese hackers were accused of trying to destroy competition in the hotel industry. Hotel reservations are one thing; just imagine the reaction to a similar hack exposing the medical records of entire
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Why Ransomware Poses a Threat to Both Providers & Patient Health
Ransomware attacks continue to wreak havoc on all types of organizations across almost every industry. The healthcare sector in particular has emerged as one of the top targets for ransomware gangs, and the impact can be more dire than for most others. According to new research by Tenable, ransomware is responsible for 46% of all data breaches in the healthcare sector, compared to 35% of data breaches across all verticals.
Just last month, a major hospital in Maryland lost access to a
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A Promising New Post-COVID World of Virtual Care
It’s a striking contrast to look at the world as it now in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic compared to what life was like prior to March 2020. To pre-pandemic eyes, it may even seem like an unrecognizable alien landscape with people everywhere donning facemasks, limited public gatherings, and tens of millions working from home rather than the office. Up until recently, commercial flights departed with few passengers, movie theaters and sports venues were largely shuttered, and many avoided
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6 Ways eConsults Mitigate Impact of Second Surge of COVID-19 for Providers
The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated telehealth adoption to help keep patients out of waiting rooms and emergency departments, in hopes to reduce exposure and spread of the virus. Even so, it should not be news to healthcare stakeholders that patients experienced delayed healthcare in 2020. An estimated 1 in 3 Americans delayed care during this time, with 53 percent of respondents in a recent large-scale survey stating that they are worried about catching COVID-19 if they visit medical
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Talking about Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities in Medical Devices Shouldn’t be Taboo
According to the National Vulnerability Database, 18,353 vulnerabilities were reported in 2020. That’s nearly three times the volume of vulnerabilities reported five years ago, and higher than any year in the previous two decades. Given the rise in connected devices, this increase is not entirely unexpected. If that’s the case, shouldn’t we be seeing more vulnerability disclosures related to medical devices?
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security Cybersecurity and Infrastructure
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Frontline Workers Need New Approaches to Treat COVID-19-Related Mental Health Issues
We’ve long known that the coronavirus pandemic would dramatically impact the mental health of health care professionals and the general population. But just how many of us have been impacted is stunning.
Fully 41% of Americans reported at least one adverse mental or behavioral health condition associated with Covid-19, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Essential workers had the highest reported rates of adverse mental health outcomes compared to all other
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