The top healthcare systems in the United States have lower 30-day mortality rates finds Thomson Reuters’ fourth annual study naming the top 15 health systems in the country. The measures used to score the top systems are underpinned by health information technology.

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The days of tweeting, Yelp-ing, and checking-in are here to stay, but as social media’s use expands, certain guidelines are needed to ensure its “optimal” practice in the healthcare realm.  

Christina Thielst, hospital and healthcare administrator and author of the blog Christina’s Considerations, offers 10 tips for proper use of social media in healthcare. 

5 ways to make your EMR more user-friendly

One of the biggest objections to the adoption of an EMR is its usability (or lack thereof), which is no surprise considering the ease of its predecessor: paper. Thankfully, there are a few ways to make your system not only more bearable, but significantly easier to use.

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Healthcare will be a hot topic during the 2012 U.S. presidential campaign as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act signed into law by President Barack Obama nearly two years ago is attacked or defended by the respective candidates and their surrogates. However, no matter who wins the White House this year, the U.S. healthcare system will be reformed, and more likely transformed, in the near future, and analytics is certain to play a leading role in that transformation.

It’s easy to make predictions about health IT for the year to come, but what if someone asked what your IT wishes were for 2012? What would you like to see happen most in the health IT space? 

We asked Wendy Whittington, MD, a practicing pediatrician and chief medical officer of Anthelio Healthcare Solutions, to list her top 10 IT wishes for 2012. From interoperability to telehealth, Whittington outlined what she, and most of her peers, would hope to see come true...

Sometimes, small tweaks can make a big difference, and according to Bob Hunchberger, a clinical informaticist for a 500-bed hospital, that couldn’t be truer when it comes to your EHR. 

Hunchberger suggests five dos and don’ts of EHR interface design. 

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Ford, Microsoft, Healthrageous and BlueMetal Architects will collaboratively develop new technology to help drivers monitor health and wellness while in their automobiles.
 
The alliance was unveiled  in a keynote “Doctor in Your Car” at the Digital Health Summit at the International Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas.
 

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Nine million Kaiser Permanente patients can now access their own medical information anywhere in the world on mobile devices through a mobile-optimized website, Kaiser executives announced today.

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 The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) has announced the first six provider-based accountable care organizations (ACOs) to seek accreditation from the ACO Accreditation program NCQA launched in November.

The six early adopters are: 

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With the slow demise of paper records and the rise of electronic platforms, the opportunity for patients to take hold of their healthcare has never been stronger. But, there are still a few setbacks and some points to keep in mind when it comes to health IT and patient engagement, said Sterling Lanier, CEO of Tonic Health. 

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