Welcome to the weekly edition of Healthcare IT Today Bonus Features. This article will be a weekly roundup of interesting stories, product announcements, new hires, partnerships, research studies, awards, sales, and more. Because there’s so much happening out there in healthcare IT we aren’t able to cover in our full articles, we still want to make sure you’re informed of all the latest news, announcements, and stories happening to help you better do your job.
News and Studies
WHO/Europe and HIMSS have signed an agreement to collaborate on digital health, with the entities saying the partnership will allow for a more aligned approach to digital transformation in Europe. Under the agreement, WHO/Europe is set to launch a strategic partnership initiative to engage HIMSS and other key partners in a transatlantic coalition for digital health, while HIMSS will provide resources to help WHO/Europe assist more health systems across the continent with their digital transformation efforts.
Research from payment and analytics company Clarify Health found that mental health utilization for pediatrics has increased significantly since 2016. Inpatient admissions for mental health increased 60% from 2016 to 2021, while ED admissions increased 20%. This compares to just 5% for office-based and outpatient mental health services. Insurance coverage seems to be creating disparities in where children receive mental health care, as children covered by Medicaid are twice as likely to go to the ED while those covered by commercial insurance are more likely to be admitted for inpatient services.
The American Telemedicine Association joined 375 industry stakeholders in urging the U.S. Senate to permanently extend the telehealth flexibilities and waivers put in place during the public health emergency. The Senate is currently considering a two-year extension of these flexibilities, which include lifting location limitations and in-person requirements for mental health, as they are due to expire at the end of the year.
The latest survey from the Medical Group Management Association found that practices with high marks in four performance categories – operations, profitability, productivity, and value – collect nearly 9% more accounts receivable in the first 30 days after service and have less outstanding A/R after 120 days. High-performing specialty practices also collect at least 10% more copays at the time of service.
Specialty prescribers deemed delays and denials as the most challenging part of their job, according to a recent Surescripts survey. About two-thirds of specialty prescribers said outdated prior authorization processes and missing patient information are the top causes of these delays. In addition, more than 80% said the time to therapy for new specialty medications should be faster – no more than two weeks.
Partnerships
- Snowflake announced two partnerships: Cloud-based business intelligence platform Sigma Computing has teamed with Snowflake to release an integrated data cloud, while Arcadia’s de-identified EHR and claims data is now available on Snowflake.
- Data management company BridgeHead Software is collaborating with CereCore to deploy its software in cloud, on-premises, and hybrid environments.
- The Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons is expanding its use of Theator to develop surgical video-based assessments.
- Health research collective Truveta added four health systems to its research data set: WellSpan Health, Centura Health, MetroHealth, and Virtua Health.
- NeuroReality has teamed with XRHealth to make its virtual reality stroke rehabilitation tool, Koji’s Quest, available in XRHealth’s virtual clinics.
- Automated cybersecurity provider Forescout Technologies is partnering with First Health Advisory on risk mitigation services for Internet of Things devices in healthcare.
Products
- Connected patient data provider Medicomp Systems received a patent for the methods of evaluating findings in a patient medical record and identifying the most applicable clinical protocols.
- Interoperability and workflow platform Edifecs launched a point-of-care prior authorization tool.
- Patient engagement and scheduling platform Relatient launched a chatbot known as Dash Chat
Sales
- Dartmouth Health deployed Qstream, a microlearning platform, to help properly insulin to diabetic patients. The pilot project saw a 66% reduction in nursing administration errors, while 85% of program participants reported increased confidence in diabetes management.
- Device implementation service provider BrightInsight selected Lyniate as its data interoperability platform.
People
- AI company Infermedica hired Amanda Bury as Chief Commercial Officer and Dr. George Gellert as Medical Advisor.
- Care journey platform SeamlessMD hired Jeremiah McGuire as Vice President of Sales. He recently held a similar role at WebMD.
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