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.
Research and Studies
Nearly 80% of healthcare’s data breaches can be attributed to hacking and IT incidents, according to a recent report from managed security services provider Fortified Health Security. That represents an increase from just 45% five years ago and suggests a need to shore up cybersecurity best practices. The number of breached records ticked up only slightly, from 49.4 million in 2021 to 51.4 million last year. Among industry stakeholders, providers are by far the biggest targets, as they accounted for 70% of all breaches in 2022.
The latest New York Healthcare Innovation Report from DHNY showed that the mood in the healthcare ecosystem in New York City mirrors that of the rest of the country, as 47% of healthcare leaders surveyed are concerned about the economic outlook and its potential business impact for 2023. A tepid investment market in 2022 is a big part of the reason why: New York-based companies raised $3.9 billion in 2022, a 57% drop from the $9 billion raised in 2021, while later-stage companies saw their share of funding drop from 85% to 61%.
A University of South Florida study using data from virtual mental health platform Brightside Health concluded that bupropion doesn’t increase anxiety, which is contrary to longstanding clinical belief. The study, published in the Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology, compared bupropion to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) over 12 weeks of treatment in nearly 8,500 patients.
Partnerships
- Inovalon EASE all-payer claims management is now available on the PointClickCare Marketplace.
- Oncology data and analytics company COTA joined the Clinical Research Data Sharing Alliance.
Products
- Definitive Healthcare expanded its Atlas Dataset, increasing prescription claims coverage by 60% and all-payer claims coverage by 20%.
- Chronomics Inc. diagnostics subsidiary Hurdle launched three at-home tests: HbA1c, Vitamin D, and Testosterone.
- Cardiac remote patient monitoring technology from Implicity was named the solution of choice for the German Society of Cardiologists in Private Practice.
- VR-based digital therapeutic MyndVR is now a covered benefit of Agewell New York, a managed care organization based in the New York City area.
- A study in the Journal of Vascular Access validated Vasc-Alert surveillance technology for its ability to predict potential stenosis in dialysis patients.
- Chronic condition medical supplier CCS launched its Scientific Advisory Council, with members bringing leadership experience from Abbott, Humana, and Medtronic.
Sales
- Atlanta Women’s Health Group chose eClinicalWorks Cloud and healow, replacing five separate systems for patient management and clinical reporting.
- The Canadian province of Nova Scotia chose Oracle Cerner as the EHR for its One Person One Record care modernization initiative.
- Trinity Health tapped Strive Health to support the value-based kidney care program for regional network subsidiary Loyola Physician Partners.
- California-based Enloe Medical Center expanded its Aruba deployment, adding Aruba EdgeConnect SD-WAN gateways and Aruba Location Services.
- South Carolina-based AnMed selected XSOLIS‘ CORTEX platform for utilization management.
- Israel-based HMO Clalit Health Services is implementing CommBox, an omnichannel communications platform leveraging WhatsApp.
- Israel-based Sheba Medical Center chose MDClone as the data analytics platform for the ADAMS Center, a hub of performance and quality improvement projects.
Awards
- The National Science Foundation awarded $20 million to the University of Buffalo to establish an institute to develop AI systems that identify and assist young children with language processing challenges.
- The National Institute for Health Care Management Foundation awarded $500,000 in journalism grants, with health equity, mental health, and drug spending among the research topics receiving awards.
People
- AHIMA members elected Jennifer Mueller as President/Chair of the Board of Directors. Mueller is the vice president and privacy officer at the Wisconsin Hospital Association Information Center.
- Referral management and e-consult platform AristaMD promoted Eric Urquiza to Senior Vice President of Operations and Client Experience.
- Voice-powered AI assistant Suki named Dr. Stephen Kahane to its Board of Directors.
- The Pharmaceutical Care Management Association named Express Scripts President Adam Kautzner as Chairman of the PCMA Board of Directors.
- DirectTrust is seeking nominations to its new Board of Directors; the nomination deadline is March 20, and the three-year term begins in June.
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