IoT Roadblocks in Healthcare: Cost, Security, and Data Integration

The solutions are tailored to address specific challenges, which can become expensive for any one organization.

from HealthcareITNews

The healthcare industry saw an 11 percent boost in Internet of Things network connections between 2016 and 2017, ranking last behind four other key industries – manufacturing (84 percent), energy/utilities (41 percent), transportation/distribution (40 percent), and smart cities/communities (19 percent), according to “The Verizon State of the Market: Internet of Things 2017” report.

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Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

5 Reasons Why The Modern EHR Must Be Mobile

A customizable, easy-to-use mobile interface can both improve common EHR efficiency issues and open the door to the meaningful use of EHR systems.

from The Doctor Weighs In

Mobile is making headway in bolstering the advanced technology that aids the care continuum for both doctors and patients in the healthcare industry—and the electronic health records (EHR) space is no exception. Smartphones and tablets are on their way to becoming staples in the healthcare ecosystem, allowing patients and their providers easy access to the tools and information systems that streamline their roles, enable information exchange, and improve care delivery. To keep up with this shift in tech, many EHR providers are investing in their mobile capabilities, improving interfaces, and offering Internet-free access to the data and tools that patients and physicians rely on.

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Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

How Tech Can Undo Physician Burnout from EHRs

Solutions should reduce the burden of repetitive data input that now takes place and enable seamless ways for clinicians to talk to each other, experts say.

from HealthcareITNews

The widespread frustration felt by doctors wrangling with kludgy interfaces, interminable sign-ins and so many clicks is well-trodden at this point. Perhaps less understood, however, is how technologies including EHRs can be tuned to make physicians more efficient — and more happy.

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Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

New Project Has Long-term Goal: Unleash New Era of Patient Care

With the AMA’s Integrated Health Model Initiative, health care and technology stakeholders can work together to address data needs around costly and burdensome areas such as hypertension, diabetes, and asthma.

from AMA Wire

The health data available to physicians and health systems are too often not enough to provide a complete picture of each patient. For example, information about an asthma patient’s family support, goals, risk factors and lifestyle can make all the difference when it comes to designing the optimal treatment plan that allows the patient to take an active role in their care and achieve better outcomes. This patient-contributed data could also relieve some of the data-entry burden borne by the health care team.

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Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

Unhealthy in Healthcare? Risks of Working in Clinical Settings

However admirable a career in healthcare may be, taking care of others certainly comes with some risks.

by Eileen O’Shanassy

Mostly, the perception of the healthcare industry is a positive one. People often envision happy clinical assistants, eager nurses, and enthusiastic clinicians addressing the needs of patients, one by one. While this may be true when healthcare professionals begin their careers, the glamour tends to wear off relatively quickly. Unfortunately, healthcare as with any job, comes with various stressors, risks, and some generally unpleasant factors. However admirable and necessary, taking care of others may not be as bright and shiny as it is portrayed to be. Here are some common risks of working in healthcare.

Daily Stresses

The toll that working in healthcare can take on employee health can be staggering. There is often little time for human necessities like eating or bathroom breaks between appointments, consultations, and administrative tasks, not to mention meetings or special community events. Routinely rushing from one place to another fosters appreciation for minimizing personal needs, which drastically downplays the importance of self-care. Employees are so often praised for putting the needs of patients first, even when that puts them in physical danger. The idea that safety is a luxury rather than a right in a healthcare setting is unlike values in almost any other industry.

Personal Health

The fast-paced environment in many clinical settings means more ordering out and eating fast food, and less time for meal prep and nutritionally healthy choices. Taking care of other people doesn’t stop at the parking lot for many healthcare providers. Often, these employees are their families’ primary caretakers, which might mean shuttling off to start second shift after their workday ends. Spouses, partners, kids, pets, and other family members rely on healthcare providers to be chefs, maids, tutors, and general givers well after their work shifts end.

Low Pay

Salaries in the healthcare industry are often lower than most would anticipate, meaning that many healthcare workers pick up second or third jobs on top of busy schedules. Juggling jobs in addition to family life can take its toll relatively quickly, resulting in burnout. Additionally, stressful conditions mean potentially strained relationships with coworkers and supervisors. Often, healthcare organizations are hierarchical, which may not leave much leeway for disputing perceived wrongdoings. This lack of control is far from empowering for many lower on the totem pole. Working up to better positions often requires extra schooling or advanced degrees. Many medical personnel use financial aid opportunities provided by employers to go back to school and work toward a job with better pay but this can mean less free time outside of work as well.

Sedentary Tendencies

There is typically less opportunity for physical activity than most would anticipate in a healthcare setting. Lots of time spent working means less time for exercise routines or trips to the gym. Long hours, even twenty-four or thirty-six hour shifts may not leave much time or energy for hobbies in general. Little intricacies like taking fast elevators over cumbersome stairs when carrying equipment also factor into the equation when considering daily health and exercise.

Exposure to Disease

Working in a place where sick patients are treated means frequent exposure to germs, illnesses, and other threats. Sometimes, due to haste or oversight, precautions are not always followed when it comes to infection control. For instance, during flu season, there may be an indication for patients with certain symptoms to wear masks. If front desk staff is not diligent about enforcing said rule, employees can be exposed to the flu.

Exposure to all sorts of bacteria via bodily fluids is also possible in some healthcare settings. Wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) is enforced in most organizations, but mistakes happen. Being stuck with a needle or scratched through a glove is not unheard of, and requires follow up care from the employer’s compensation facility.

Some risks within healthcare facilities can be prevented. Others may happen before you know it. However admirable, healthcare work necessitates considering several negative factors before diving in.


Eileen O’Shanassy is a freelance writer and blogger based out of Flagstaff, AZ. She writes on a variety of topics and loves to research and write. She enjoys baking, biking, and kayaking. Check out her Twitter, @eileenoshanassy.

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

Patient & Professional Perceptions of Electronic Health Records

A new survey reveals that 32% of patients perceive having access to their EHRs is ‘very important’ to them.

from SelectHub

Electronic health records, also known as electronic medical records (EHRs/EMRs), are becoming the standard method of record keeping by medical professionals. According to the CDC, nearly 87 percent of office-based physicians use an EMR/EHR system.Given EHRs are becoming the rule rather than the exception, we surveyed more than 1,000 patients with access to EHRs and over 100 medical professionals who use the system about their opinions on this growing trend in the health care industry. Continue reading to see what we learned.

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Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

5 Takeaways From Congress’ Failure To Extend Funding For Children’s Coverage

Congress finally seems ready to take action on the Children’s Health Insurance Program after funding lapsed Sept. 30.

By Phil Galewitz

Congress finally seems ready to take action on the Children’s Health Insurance Program after funding lapsed Sept. 30.

Before the deadline, lawmakers were busy grappling with the failed repeal of the Affordable Care Act.

CHIP covers 9 million children nationwide. But until Congress renews CHIP, states are cut off from additional federal funding that helps lower- and middle-income families.

CHIP, which has enjoyed broad bipartisan support, helps lower- and middle-income families that otherwise earn too much to be eligible for Medicaid. Besides children, it covers 370,000 pregnant women a year. Like Medicaid, CHIP is traditionally paid for with state and federal funds, but the federal government covers most of the cost.

Though current authorization for spending has expired, states can use some of their unspent federal CHIP money. Still, several states are expected to run out of money before the end of 2017, and most of the rest will run out by next summer. CHIP has been in this fix only one other time since it was established in 1997. In 2007, CHIP went weeks without funding authorization from Congress.

Here’s a quick look at what may lie ahead for the program.

1. Will children lose coverage because Congress missed the deadline?

They could eventually, but not immediately. A few states facing the most immediate threat — including California and Arizona — have enough funding to last only until the end of the year.

No states have yet announced plans to freeze enrollment or alert families about any potential end in coverage. But if Congress fails to renew funding quickly, some states may begin taking steps to unwind the program in the next few weeks.

2. What are states doing in reaction to Congress missing the deadline?

Most states are doing little except reaching into their unspent federal funds.

However, Minnesota was among those most imperiled because it had spent all its funds. State officials said Tuesday that the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) was giving Minnesota $3.6 million from unspent national funds to cover CHIP this month.

Emily Piper, commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Human Services, reported in a newspaper commentary last month that her state’s funds would be exhausted last Sunday.

Even without the last-minute infusion of funding from CMS, most of the children covered by CHIP would have continued to receive care under the state’s Medicaid program, but Minnesota would get fewer federal dollars for each child, according to Piper’s commentary. However, she added, those most at risk are the 1,700 pregnant women covered by CHIP, because they wouldn’t be eligible for Medicaid.

Utah has notified CMS that it plans to discontinue its CHIP program by the end of the year unless it receives more federal money. About 19,000 children are in the state’s CHIP program, state officials say. So far, though, the state said it is not moving to suspend service or enrollment or alert enrollees about any possible changes.

Nevada officials said if funding is not extended it might have to freeze enrollment on Nov. 1 and end coverage by Nov. 30.

California, which has 1.3 million children covered by CHIP, has the highest enrollment of any state running out of funding this year. But, so far, it’s continuing business as usual.

“We estimate that we have available CHIP funding at least through December 2017,” said Tony Cava, spokesman for California Department of Health Services. “Our CHIP program is open for enrollment and continues to operate normally.”

Oregon said it has enough CHIP funding to last through October for its program that covers 98,000 children.

3. When is Congress likely to act?

The Senate Finance and the House Energy and Commerce committees have scheduled votes Wednesday on legislation to extend CHIP funding. If both approve their individual bills, floor votes could come quickly, and then both houses would need to resolve any differences.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and the committee’s ranking Democrat, Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, announced an agreement in mid-September to renew CHIP funding. Under the proposed deal, federal CHIP funding would drop by 23 percentage points starting in by 2020, returning to its pre-Affordable Care Act levels. The agreement would extend the life of the CHIP program through 2022.

Hatch and Wyden did not provide any details on how they would pay for the CHIP extension.

The House Energy and Commerce Committee posted its bill just before midnight Monday. It mirrors the Senate Finance plan by extending funding for CHIP for five years and gradually phasing down the 23-percentage-point funding increase provided under Affordable Care Act over the next two years.

4. If CHIP is so popular among Republicans and Democrats, why hasn’t Congress renewed the program yet?

The funding renewal was not a priority among Republican leaders, who have spent most of this year trying to replace the Affordable Care Act and dramatically overhaul the Medicaid program. Some in Congress also thought the Sept. 30 deadline was squishy since states could extend their existing funds beyond that.

5. Who benefits from CHIP?

While CHIP income eligibility levels vary by state, about 90 percent of children covered are in families earning 200 percent of poverty or less ($40,840 for a family of three). CHIP covers children up to age 19. States have the option to cover pregnant women, and 18 plus the District of Columbia do so.

The program is known by different names in different states such as Hoosier Healthwise in Indiana and PeachCare for Kids in Georgia.

For families that move out of Medicaid as their incomes rise, CHIP is an affordable option that ensures continued coverage for their children. Many states operate their CHIP programs as part of Medicaid.


This story was produced by Kaiser Health News, a nonprofit health newsroom whose stories appear in news outlets nationwide, is an editorially independent part of the Kaiser Family Foundation.

KHN’s coverage of children’s health care issues is supported in part by a grant from The Heising-Simons Foundation.

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

Happy National Health IT Week!

October 2nd through 6th marks National Health IT Week and shines a spotlight on the value of health IT.

Monday, October 2nd, kicks off National Health IT Week, a nationwide awareness week developed by the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society and the Institute for e-Health Policy to shine a spotlight on how healthcare IT produces value, especially in relation to improved treatment and clinical care. Scores of conferences and other events, such as the Pop Health Forum in Chicago and Health 2.0 in Santa Clara, will be taking place nationwide, as well as online, with webinars scheduled throughout the week and the month of October, which is Cybersecurity Awareness Month.

For a full list of events happening around the country, please click here.

Can’t attend? Stay up to date on the happenings of National Health IT Week via #NHITWeek on Twitter.

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

15 Books Every Healthcare Professional Should Read

Do you want to offer your patients better care, increase your own industry understanding, and improve your own understanding of your field? Read these 15 books.

from Physician’s Weekly

Do you want to offer your patients better care, increase your own industry understanding, and improve your own understanding of your field? Reading books is one of the best, fastest and most enjoyable ways to up your game. It’s also a great way to pass commute times on public transportation, give your eyes a screen break, and keep up with the latest industry news. Check out these books healthcare professionals should read, and don’t forget to leave your own review to help others find the best books.

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Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

10 Stubborn Cybersecurity Myths, Busted

As common half-truths and misperceptions plague information security, we separate truth from fiction and outline steps to take in order to make your healthcare institution safer.

from HealthcareITNews

The state of healthcare cybersecurity is bad enough without a host of inaccurate information floating around the industry. Hackers honed in on healthcare’s technology weaknesses in 2016, pummeling the industry with massive spear phishing campaigns and ransomware attacks. And 2017 has been even worse.

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Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.