healthcare technology

Could Apple Really Fix Healthcare for Physicians and Patients

By Paul B. Kaiser on January 28, 2018

Apple has been playing in the healthcare arena for the past few years, and they’re is still working hard to make the Watch an integral part of the wearable technology mix. But now Apple has taken on a whole new aspect by helping the physician help their patients. By using their technology, software and hardware, Apple may soon be the key to successful health outcomes for patients by storing medical records. By making the accessible to both patients and physicians in a secure environment is a long overdue promise. I hope they can do it.

So what is Apple’s plan?

Apple announced a new health effort as part of iOS 11.3. The new Health Records section in the Health app lets you gather and view all your medical records as well as the participating hospitals – see below. So that means that those hospitals and clinics will be able to push this data to your phone directly. You’ll receive a notification alerting you that you just received a new medical record. Data is encrypted on your phone and protected by your passcode.

Health Records is going to be a new menu in the Health Data section of the Health app. You’ll be able to add any file to this menu as long as it’s a CDA file (Clinical Document Architecture). Some hospitals already email you those files or make them available on their website. But Apple wants to automate this process.

The new Health Records section is available to the patients of the following medical institutions as part of the iOS 11.3 beta. In the coming months, more medical facilities will connect to Health Records offering their patients access to this feature. Further information for health institutions is available here.

Johns Hopkins Medicine – Baltimore, Maryland
Cedars-Sinai – Los Angeles, California
Penn Medicine – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Geisinger Health System – Danville, Pennsylvania
UC San Diego Health – San Diego, California
UNC Health Care – Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Rush University Medical Center – Chicago, Illinois
Dignity Health – Arizona, California and Nevada
Ochsner Health System – Jefferson Parish, Louisiana
MedStar Health – Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia
OhioHealth – Columbus, Ohio
Cerner Healthe Clinic – Kansas City, Missouri

Why will Apple make the difference?

Apple does four things very well. They know how to automate operations, simplify tasks, create an intuitive interface, and provide trust. The apps on iPad, iPhone, and Apple Watch are capable of helping medical professionals deliver personalized care.

“Our powerful hardware is built to keep up with the demands of healthcare organizations to make work faster and more efficient. And intuitive apps provide easy access to critical health information, so healthcare teams have all the resources they need to make the best decisions for their patients.”

An intuitive, familiar interface.

Apple’s advantage is to build on a platform people are already familiar with. “Apple devices and iOS apps allow patients to learn more about their conditions or treatment, doctors to view lab results and radiology images, and nurses to send and receive secure communication or to help ensure patient safety when administering medications.”

Apple can continue patient care at home.

At home, iOS apps enable patients to stay connected to their care teams between office visits. Healthcare organizations can use off-the-shelf apps or use CareKit to create apps that empower patients to manage their health. iPhone, Apple Watch, the Health app, and HealthKit-enabled apps and medical devices make it easy for patients to record their health data and share it with their care teams.

Clinical trials and medical research.

Medical researchers can take their studies into the real world by building apps with ResearchKit. The open source framework streamlines the process, making it easier for researchers to enroll participants, capture informed consent, and gather medical information more frequently, rather than only during periodic visits.

Safe and secure data.

We build every aspect of our iOS devices with security in mind. Touch ID allows doctors to use their fingerprints as passwords to access patient charts instantly. Regular software updates protect iOS from emerging security concerns. And we build in safeguards to ensure that both third-party and in-house apps can access data only in ways that are authorized by the user. This gives patients ultimate control over what is shared with their care teams or other apps.

Healthy Gadgets, VR and Connected Toilets at CES 2018

By Paul B. Kaiser on January 13, 2018

The number of innovations displayed at CES is never in shortage. So I’m highlighting only a few in this article with some links to the top winners. The bottom line is if you can imagine adding the internet to any type of gadget, it’s happening. Some very cool healthcare gadgets, enhanced VR and of course toilets are all in the consumers eye. And when you’re done laughing at the toilet IoT idea, let me tell you, it makes good sense. It cleans itself, it’s heated and it is voice activated. Definitely a dream come true.

May I introduce – the “Toto 750”.

Hey Google – Flush The Toilet

I hear angels when I see this toilet.

numi

Numi intelligent toilet with KOHLER Konnect is Kohler’s most advanced toilet. The Numi offers personalized experiences that let users fine-tune every aspect of their experience to their exact preference, from ambient colored lighting to wireless Bluetooth^® music sync capability to the heated seat and foot warmer. Numi delivers hands-free control, personalized cleansing functionality, and exceptional water efficiency.
Features of Numi with KOHLER Konnect can be controlled through voice-command, the KOHLER Konnect app, or the remote.

hey google ces As you’ve probably heard, Google has dominated CES 2018 and will be the driving force behind many gadgets. Google announced on their blog that Google assistant will be everywhere, on every device.

“The Google Assistant is your personal Google. It lets you have a conversation and ask about everything under the sun and, best of all, it’s available wherever you need help—at home or on the go. Over the past year, we’ve been working to bring the Assistant to more devices in more places and now it’s available on more than 400 million devices.”

The Google Assistant gives you an easy, hands-free way to control your home, whether it’s helping you dim the lights from the comfort of your couch or play your dinner party playlist. It’s already lending a helping hand in speakers like Google Home, Mini and Max. In fact, we’ve sold more than one Google Home every second since Google Home Mini started shipping in October. And with so much excitement around speakers, we’re making the Assistant even more available—this week we’re announcing that the Assistant is coming to new voice-activated speakers from Altec Lansing, Anker Innovations, Bang & Olufsen, Braven, iHome, JBL, Jensen, LG, Klipsch, Knit Audio, Memorex, RIVA Audio and SōLIS.

But there are also moments when a screen would make the Assistant even more helpful, like when you need to learn how to cut a pineapple, and the best way is to watch a video. Today, we’re announcing that the Assistant is coming to smart displays. These new devices have the Google Assistant built in, and with the added benefit of a touch screen, they can help you get even more done. You can watch videos from YouTube, video call with Google Duo, find photos from Google Photos and more. You can also get recommendations for your favorite content, right on the home screen.

Starting later this year, the Assistant is coming to new smart displays from four companies, including JBL, Lenovo, LG and Sony. To learn more about how smart displays were built, visit the Android Developers blog.

Cool Health Gadgets

Gadgets that focus on improving users’ health and well-being were in ample supply this year at CES. Philips launched a wearable headband to enhance sleep. Prevent Biometrics released a mouthguard that could detect concussions. Swim.com and Spire Health Tag collaborated to design a “smart swimsuit” that could help swimmers track their water workouts. Neutrogena unveiled its SkinScanner, which attaches to an iPhone and syncs with the Skin360 app to help users assess their skin health from home.

The SkinScanner product was made in partnership with a New York-based company called Fitskin. It’s a tool that slides onto the top of your iPhone and uses 12 LED lights and a 30x magnification lens to capture an up-close image of your skin. It also has a moisture sensor, around the rim of the lens. You open the app, press the device right onto your face, and take a series of images. Glamour shots these are not: these are close-up readings of your skin’s moisture levels, wrinkles, and pore size.

The L’Oreal UV Sense may help prevent Skin Cancer

The smaller a device is, the more wearable it becomes, and that’s one of the reasons that L’Oreal’s UV Sense is so intriguing. It’s a UV sensor no bigger than a thumbnail that tells you, via your smartphone, how much sun exposure you’ve received each day. The benefits are twofold: Not only could this help prevent skin cancer, it’s also a key step on a micro-wearable computing journey that could revolutionize the world.

Best of CES

See the list of CES winners

Photo by John Locher People walk through a display of television screens during CES International, in Las Vegas
Gadget Show LG, Las Vegas, USA – 09 Jan 2018

When it rains, it pours. And on the first day of CES 2018, the monstrous gadget expo that drew an astounding 184,000 people to Las Vegas this year, it rained. Hard. Traffic snarled, Google’s parking lot tent at the Las Vegas Convention Center flooded, drones were grounded, autonomous cars sat parked.

The next day, a power outage plunged the entire show floor into darkness.

It would be fair to say that CES 2018 gave us plenty of ominous reasons to remember it, but fortunately for us, there also were plenty of fun things to see when the lights were on. From the usual spate of wall-sized TVs to servile robots, crazy-fast PCs, and new VR headsets, all the usual culprits were in attendance. But we set out to find the best of the best for our annual Top Tech of CES awards.

Nice overview of CES 2018

The Buzz about Artificial Intelligence and Machine

By Paul B. Kaiser on October 12, 2017

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) are the hottest buzzwords since fidget spinners. They are being thrown around every time there is a new tech product announced. Granted some of that is warranted with the new phones and buzz about self driving cars, but tech company’s are using the terms interchangeable and many don’t know the difference. What do the terms really mean? Is AI the same as ML?

The quick explanation is the concept that machines can process data and learn from it. Then the machine will make decisions from that learning. No humans required. Artificial Intelligence is just the broader term around machine learning that machines are in fact “smart.” Big technology companies like Google and Nvidia are currently working on developing machine learning applications. They are pushing computers to learn the way a human would learn. How does this work?

Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning Everyday Examples

We are using AI everyday and its so embed in our lives we may not even recognize it. Why do you think the smartphone is called a smart phone? It is constantly learning about you and predicting. When you use maps, or you search it learns about your habits and learns to correct for it or suggest to you anyway. The next big thing will be self driving cars. They will be making decisions that you would have normally made. Check out this self driving car.

Four industry’s that will use AI?

The financial industry will use AI to predict the stock market.
The transportation industry like Tesla, Google and Uber are all making cars.
Business and marketing will use AI to help predict consumers habits or analyze their purchasing habits.
Finally, the healthcare industry could see a radical change. AI doctors could make diagnosis based on input from the patient. Virtual doctors are already paving the way for patients becoming comfortable with a non-personal experience. The areas they could provide value is:

Preventative care… Predicting disease outbreaks on both the individual and the community level.
Diagnostic care… Automatically classifying image data, such as scans, x-rays, etc.
Insurance… Adjusting insurance premiums based on publicly available risk factors.

Conclusion

AI and ML are here to stay and will continue to be part of our lives. Hopefully not take over our lives – that’s on us to make the technology work for us, not for them. There are definite benefits to AI and ML in our tech. However, it’s not all roses.

While AI and ML seem like cool concepts, there will be a downside, particularly in the unemployment area. Robots will replace humans in their jobs. It’s happening now. Amazon is using just as many robots as they are people to process orders. The biggest hurdle is humans trusting robots to do certain tasks, like driving or making a diagnosis. While these things are possible, people will take some time to be comfortable with the idea.

I assume that robots will have their own set of rules and regulations. Much like Isaac Asimov wrote in I Robot, the robots must follow 3 laws:

A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm;
A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law;
A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law

One last thought is to consider how Google Photos recognizes and learns images.
How does it recognize your sunsets, people’s faces and your pets. See how this works in the video below.

Are Virtual Doctors really the future or medicine?

By Paul B. Kaiser on August 7, 2017

So, you come down with a cold and you want to get a prescription for your cough and stuffy nose. You’ve been down this road 100 times in your life and dread going to the doctors office, waiting an hour in the waiting room, getting everyone else sick, only to get the script you normally get. Why can’t you call or FaceTime a doctor for simple illnesses? Actually, you can, but not many are taking advantage of it yet. Insurance companies see it as a supplemental process, but I suspect it will become more popular as price pushes us towards a virtual doctor.

Virtual doctors and telehealth are becoming popular, but not as quickly as you’d think. There are plenty of start-ups in this area but patients have just haven’t latched on yet. Insurance companies need to raise the awareness and support. Telehealth as the use of electronic information and telecommunications technologies to support and promote long-distance clinical health care, patient and professional health-related education, public health and health administration. The technologies include; videoconferencing, the internet, streaming media, and wireless – your phone.

“Patients Using Telehealth Services Will Explode to 7 Million by 2018” – HIT

virtual doctor

Top Telehealth players in the game right now

CareClix

Founded in 2010, CareClix coordinates with board-certified physicians around the world to provide a variety of telehealth services, including high-definition video examinations and remote consultations. CareClix also operates a provider care group, allowing physicians to offer their patients general and specialized services on demand around the clock.

On the patient side, the CareClix platform allows you to file and track claims online. You can also schedule telemedicine visits online and update them anytime through the self-scheduling feature. Visit the site here.

Doctor On Demand

Doctor On Demand takes the house call virtual, making it possible for doctors and patients to connect via live video conferences. Patients can be treated for a range of minor medical conditions, including sore throat, sports injuries, rashes and flu symptoms. In June 2015 the company announced a $50 million funding, designed to allow Doctor On Demand to expand its range of services and grow its customer base in the process. Visit the site here.

MyTelemedicine

Recently named as one of the best entrepreneurial companies in America by Entrepreneur magazine’s Entrepreneur 360™, MyTelemedicine has emerged as a front runner in the industry. The platform allows patients to call or go online to schedule a consultation with a physician licensed in their state. A triage nurse takes note of their symptoms and updates the patient’s electronic health record.

The patient consults with the physician, who recommends a treatment plan. There’s no waiting in line at an urgent care facility or emergency room, and you don’t have to miss work to get medical care. In terms of options, patients can speak to a physician, pediatrician or even a behavioral therapist if needed. Visit the site here.

Teladoc

When time is of the essence, Teladoc connects you to the medical advice you need. Patients can speak to a physician via web, phone or mobile app in less than 10 minutes. The company reportedly has more than 17 million members who are served by over 3,600 licensed healthcare professionals, with 20 years of experience on average. Visit the site here.

iCliniq

If you’re looking for a virtual hospital while you’re away from home, look no further than iCliniq. The company offers online access to over 1,500 doctors in more than 80 specialties, and the platform caters specifically to expatriates and travelers. Patients can consult physicians anytime, day or night, and pay a flat fee to get their health questions answered. Visit the site here.

5 examples of where virtual doctors/telehealth is working

Through a program at Boston-based Partners Healthcare, more than 3,000 congestive heart failure patients used at-home monitoring devices to send updates of their weight, blood pressure and other metrics to Partners. Clinical decision support software then helped identify the patients that needed interventions. The program allowed a panel of three or four nurses to provide care for 250 patients, and ultimately reduced readmissions among the participating patient population by 44 percent while generating cost savings of more than $10 million.
A four-year program run by the Veterans Health Administration combined remote patient monitoring, health informatics and disease management technology to improve care for patients with six chronic conditions ranging from depression to diabetes. In addition to high patient satisfaction scores, the program also achieved a 25 percent drop in bed-days of care and a 19 percent reduction in hospital admissions as compared to traditional care.
Kaiser Permanente dermatologists in San Diego are able to treat more patients by reviewing images and patient information uploaded and sent to them over a secure server by referring physicians, rather than seeing every patient in person. The practice’s physicians now handle 800 cases per month, 50 percent more than if they relied on face-to-face visits.
About 13 percent of all intensive care unit beds in the country are supported by tele-ICU technology. At the University of Massachusetts Memorial Medical Center in Worcester, having trained intensivists provide ICU care remotely resulted in a 20 percent decrease in mortality, a 30 percent drop in lengths of stay and reductions in care costs.
Telemedicine can also help patients adhere to their medication regimes. A randomized trial at the Center for Connected Health, part of Partners Healthcare, showed the use of a wireless pill bottle that reminded patients to take their blood pressure medication increased adherence by 68 percent.

The Bottom Line

These are just a few telemedicine companies out there. The technology is in place and needs more educated consumer/patients to take advantage. Your doctors are already using technology to diagnose. Once the patient population adopts this process a little more, I really think this will be used for 50% of our visits. Frankly, I think it makes sense when used with proper follow-ups. And it’s quite possible the that quality might be better, with a doctor that’s able to give a patient more time. Ask your insurance provider if they offer this service ( I do not get paid for this).

Doctors Figure out Medical Mysteries with a Mobile App

By Paul B. Kaiser on April 22, 2017

The Figure 1 app has been labeled the “Instagram for doctors” and has hit 1 million subscribers. Figure 1 is used by doctors and healthcare students from a variety of specialties including medicine, nursing, and dentistry. Figure 1 said its free online mobile tool – used by medical practitioners around the world to share images of patient ailments and seek the opinions of others – has shared its medical images more than 1.5 billion times on its platform. The company estimates two-thirds of North American medical students now use the app, which is also used by institutions.

download Figure 1 on google play — *Click to download*

download figure 1 on itunes — *Click to download*

Doctors can now use direct messaging to their peers

Users typically share images of challenging or classic cases, and often seek help from the Figure1 community about how to treat patients, or even diagnose them. But now doctors can use peer to peer direct messaging for instant commentary and advice. This is a time saving measure and can be a valuable point of care situation.

What about Patient Privacy?

Figure 1 has to make sure patient privacy is a priority for healthcare professionals, and they have designed Figure 1 to maintain privacy.

In a Figure 1 profile, you can identify a name, workplace, and other information about yourself. However, you must remove identifying details related to patients from any case you post. (For example: faces and tattoos.) Click here for more information. There is also an automatic face-blocking feature detects faces and blocks them, and the manual block feature allows you to quickly and easily block anything else that might identify a patient.

Doctors can upload cases with comments and photos.

Once a case is uploaded, a medical officer and team of moderators at Figure 1 perform a review of each case to verify that all identifying information has been properly removed from it before it is shown on Figure 1. However, if you think that a case, comment, or description on Figure 1 may identify a patient (or supplies information that risks identifying the patient), you can report the case, and it will be immediately removed until our medical officer reviews it. Should a case be deemed to potentially identify a patient, Figure 1 will immediately and securely destroy it, and we will alert the healthcare professional who uploaded the case accordingly.

Whats the future for Figure 1?

Now its ambition is to become the dominant online platform for doctors, or “the operating system of health care,” said Boris Wertz, a Vancouver venture capitalist who has backed the company.

The app can be used for teaching, learning and for patient point of care.

Dr Joshua Landy, co-founder of Figure 1, said “you work in teams, you learn in teams, you study in groups and everything is about bouncing the ideas off, learning to see other people’s perspective and learning from your peers.” You will be able to share the knowledge of healthcare professionals through the network but also around the world.

He said that since they started the app in 2013, they have millions of healthcare professionals in 190 countries using it. “The ability to be able to reach out to someone in the moment that you need information and receive it means that you could access this worldwide network of healthcare professionals who are there to help you with your case.” All this provides better patient care, shorter wait times and hopefully lower costs in the healthcare system – in theory. It would be great if patients could share photos with a team of doctors to get insights and diagnosis. Check out the article on apps to connect with your doctor.

The tech race to glucose monitoring will be a Win-Win

By Paul B. Kaiser on April 13, 2017

It was reported today that Apple has a secret team working on sensors that will monitor and assist in the treatment for diabetes. Actually it has not been a secret as they have been working on this for a couple years, but it sounds like they may be closer. The rumor is that Apple has hired a small team of biomedical engineers to work at a nondescript office in Palo Alto, California, miles from corporate headquarters. They are part of a secret plan, initially envisioned by Steve Jobs, to develop sensors that can non-invasively and continuously monitor blood sugar levels to better treat diabetes. Jobs envisioned wearable devices, like smartwatches, being used to monitor important vitals, such as oxygen levels, heart rate and blood glucose.

“In the US there are 30 million people with diabetes”

Make no mistake, a breakthrough like this would be a huge money maker. Just in the US there are 30 million people with diabetes – maybe not all Apple watch owners, but you get the picture. It could turn the Apple Watch into a “must have” rather than a “nice to have” for people who would benefit from an easier way to track their blood sugar – no more pricks to the finger.

google glucose
Apple isn’t the only technology company eyeing opportunities in the space. Verily, Google’s life sciences team, is currently working on a “smart” contact lens to measure blood sugar via the eye, and it partnered up with DexCom in 2015 to develop a glucose-sensing device no bigger than a bandage. Verily is also working with Sanofi to do the same thing. Sanofi announced the end of last year that “the company will leverage Verily’s experience in miniaturized electronics, analytics, and consumer software development, with Sanofi’s clinical expertise and experience in bringing innovative treatments to people living with diabetes.”

Whether or not its not all about the money, a tech breakthrough like this will positively affect so many people. Having known so many people with the disease myself, I can say that even simplifying the task of measuring your blood everyday, will be a big relief for diabetes patients. May the best tech company win – as well as patients. Win-Win.

The glucose monitoring software is already there.