Tag: virtual reality

Six Ways Technology Has Impacted The Healthcare Industry

Teal Stethoscope On Wooden Table

A few decades ago, we never would have imagined a world that looks the way it does today, and that’s all due to technology. Technology has significantly transformed multiple areas in our lives, and it continues to impact different sectors every day. 

One such sector that experienced massive transformation is the healthcare industry. With the global market valued at $281.1 billion in 2019 and expected to increase at a CAGR of 7 percent every year until 2027, it’s no doubt that the industry has experienced a boost due to various technological developments.

Today, patients can benefit from state-of-the-art diagnostic tools, groundbreaking treatment, and a wide range of minimally-invasive medical procedures that are less painful and result in faster healing. These developments are just the tip of the iceberg as technology has radically revolutionized the healthcare industry and significantly enhanced its operational efficiency. 

Hence, technology has impacted the healthcare industry massively. The following aspects further delineate its impact:

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Healthcare’s Most Innovative Companies of 2020: Jvion

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Jvion helps healthcare systems prevent patient harm and associated costs by enabling clinical staff to focus attention, resources, and individualized interventions on patients whose outcomes can be improved.

Jvion pinpoints the impactable patients who are on a risk trajectory that can be changed and provides the patient-specific recommendations that will drive to a better outcome. The Jvion Machine is a combination of Eigen-based mathematics, dataset of more than 30 million patients, and software that can be quickly applied to any of 50 preventable harm vectors (such as sepsis, readmissions, falls, avoidable ER visits, and pressure injuries) without the need to create new models or to have perfect data.

Jvion has worked in clinical settings for nearly a decade, with hospitals reporting average reductions of 30% in preventable harm incidents and avoidable cost savings of .3 million a year.

Jvion is based in Suwanee, Georgia.

What is the single-most innovative technology you are currently delivering to health systems or medical groups? 

Jvion’s most innovative technology is its clinical AI platform, the Care Optimization and Recommendation Enhancement (CORE), an asset that empowers healthcare providers and payers and other healthcare organizations with the insight to proactively identify and address avoidable patient harm and lower costs.

The CORE can be applied across many use cases like Social Determinants of Health, Behavioral Health, Oncology, Hospital Acquired Conditions and Infections, Avoidable Utilization and many more. Jvion’s CORE pinpoints patients on a trajectory towards an adverse clinical outcome — based on a combination of clinical, socioeconomic, behavioral and environmental factors — and recommends the personalized evidence-based interventions most likely to improve outcomes for each patient’s unique needs.

How is your product or service innovating the work being done in these organizations to provide care or make systems run smoother?

With more than 4,500 factors analyzed per patient, the CORE can identify at-risk patients missed by traditional predictive analytics. And rather than simply assigning patients a risk score, the CORE identifies why patients are at risk, and recommends clinically-validated interventions personalized to reduce each patient’s risk.

The CORE can also reduce alert fatigue and the physician burnout that comes with the utilization of traditional stratification analytics. Most predictive analytics don’t provide any insight on whether high-risk patients outcomes can be improved, or how to improve it, which leads to overwhelming patient lists and risk alerts. The CORE reduces these alerts by focusing on the modifiable patients whose outcomes are most likely to be improved with the right intervention, and providing actionable insights that empower clinicians to intercept and course-correct.

What is the primary need fulfilled by the product or service?

As the industry continues to drive value-based care, there is a need to more accurately and efficiently identify patients that can be impacted through proactive intervention and, more specifically, how to intervene for each patient. To that end, Jvion’s mission is to primarily address the pervasive problem of preventable patient harm (defined as avoidable adverse clinical events or outcomes), which affects 1 in 20 patients and costs over $244 billion in avoidable medical expenses annually.

Jvion’s clinical AI can predict patient risk for a wide range of specific preventable harm incidents including sepsis, pressure injuries, falls, and hospital acquired infections and provide prioritized evidence-based recommendations to drive the best outcome for each individual.

What is the ROI of said product or service?

To date, the Jvion CORE AI solution has been deployed across about 50 health systems and over 300 hospitals, which report average reductions of 30% for admissions, 20% for readmissions, and average annual cost savings of $13.7 million.

Provide real examples of verifiable ROI of the product or service when used in or by a health system or medical group. 

Baptist Health: Avoidable admissions and readmissions plague hospitals nationwide, and Provider-Sponsored Health Plans (PSHP) — health plans that are owned by a health system, physician group, or hospital — such as Baptist Health, are particularly vulnerable.

Over the course of two years, Baptist Health saved more than $13M by targeting and intervening on those covered employees at risk of an avoidable ER or inpatient visit. Using the Jvion CORE, Baptist Health was able to better identify at-risk individuals and take the clinical actions that would keep them healthy and out of the hospital. They also achieved an 18% drop in readmissions over two years.

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Healthcare’s Most Innovative Companies of 2020: Mieron VR

Products – MIERON VRAt Electronic Health Reporter, we take innovations from healthcare companies very seriously. For nearly a decade, we’ve featured their work, products, news and thought leaders in an effort to bring our readers the best, most in-depth insight about the organizations powering healthcare. That mission lies at the heart of all we do, for the benefit of our audience.

For the first time, we are officially naming some of the most progressive companies in healthcare technology, in our inaugural class of the best, most innovative brands serving health systems and medical groups. Our call for nominations for this “award” series received hundreds of submissions. From these, we selected the best companies from that class. The work these organizations are doing is forward-thinking; award-worthy, we think. We think you’ll agree with all of our choices.

In each of the profiles to come in this series, we’re share their stories — from their own perspective, through their own responses to our questions about what makes them remarkable. Some of the names featured here you’ll recognize, some you won’t. But we believe you’ll agree – all those profiled are doing innovative, groundbreaking work! That said, here’s a member of our inaugural class:

Mieron VR

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2020 Healthcare Technology Trends

By Vladimir Kuzmenko, SVP of sales and business development, NIX United.

Vladimir Kuzemko

As healthcare becomes increasingly complex, the role of technology is evolving to offer new and innovative solutions that allow healthcare practices the opportunity to better serve their patients. However, as technology evolves and changes, healthcare as a whole must also grow and adapt to thrive in a complex and ever-changing ecosystem.

As we embark on a new decade (in which we’re now well into the first year), I’d like to examine a few of the more pressing trends that forward-thinking practices embracing currently and for the foreseeable future.

Some of these adoptions may include new systems and technologies being implemented, as well as technologies that are best-placed to keep up in these rapidly-changing areas of any profitable practice.

More importantly, however, is how these technologies might impact healthcare and how forward-thinking organizations take advantage of these opportunities. With this is mind, here are six trends that may influence healthcare in 2020 and beyond.

Blockchain

You may hear the term blockchain and think, “what does cryptocurrency have to do with helping patients?” However, blockchain has evolved and has many more applications than just new forms of currency. For instance, many urgent healthcare issues may be solved by utilizing blockchain, including:

In addition, blockchain technology can be used in innovative ways to allow organizations to access information on a secure channel that maintains privacy.

Electronic health records

For all the integration issues U.S. healthcare organizations experienced in integrating electronic health records into their practices in the last decade, there has been no more profound change in the practice of healthcare in the U.S.

These electronic records create opportunities to track and improve patient care and to find new, more efficient treatment methods by incorporating artificial intelligence technologies. Protecting a practice’s and the patient’s data privacy is also an issue that must be addressed beforehand, not after a breach has occurred.

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ASU Student Uses Accelerator To Launch Healthcare Program To Supports At-Risk Individuals

By Ramona Ramadas, Arizona State University graduate student — utilizing the resources provided by the HEALab, she launched New Trails Navigators.  

Ramona Ramadas, a graduate student in the Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation pitches her venture New Trails Navigators at ASU’s Demo Day on April 19, 2019. To date, she’s won more than $60,000 from multiple funding competitions to invest in her health care startup. Photo by Charlie Leight/ASU Now

Over the past decade, technology and its applications continue to impact and advance our everyday lives, from things like smartwatch wearables that track our daily activity and wake us up in the morning to 3-D printing of medical models and virtual reality innovations that have the capacity to accurately replicate an automated surgery environment.

Similarly, ASU Online has brought new technology and resources to students like myself pursuing health and health care-related degrees to encourage innovative approaches to coursework and career paths. One of the most impactful resources I’ve seen available to the student community is the Health Entrepreneurship Accelerator Lab (HEALab).

The accelerator, which provides networking, idea-generation support, pitch competitions and proposal prep assistance launched in September 2017 as a health innovation entrepreneurship lab for Arizona State University (ASU) students, faculty – both online and on campus, and the community to cultivate disruptive healthcare solutions. It is a collaborative effort with academic units and the Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation with the goal of educating health-focused leaders to navigate the accelerating disruptions in healthcare and create new solutions to real-world problems.

As a recent Master of Healthcare Innovation (MHI) graduate, I have been able to leverage HEALab to kick start my peer health program, New Trails Navigators. The award-winning care transformation program I’ve created focuses on serving individuals who struggle to get the personalized care they need due to homelessness, incarceration, addiction or lack of insurance. The program connects at-risk individuals with peer health navigators who are uniquely qualified to re-direct them toward sustainable health and wellness.

The peer health navigators can relate in a way that other support service representatives can’t because they have been in an at-risk situation, themselves. This relatability allows the navigators to connect, build trust and positively impact the individual’s situation. Today, the program is supported by a learning management system that delivers our whole-person peer training.  This training is unlike any other peer support program in place today, as an app-based platform allows peers and patients to interact in a variety of ways, ensuring that the patient is supported where they live, work, and play. Over time, artificial intelligence will become a part of the program delivery.

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The Most Modern Technologies Used That Are Used In Medicine

Technology has evolved, and it has positively affected all areas of our lives. When it comes to technological advances and innovations in medical technology, it can be said that life has been made easier for us.

With new medical technology, we are assured of longer life span with credits to various medical innovations in medical technology. It would interest you to know that technological advances are basically medical innovations in medical practices which are aimed at giving life a better meaning.

Hence, the basic aim of these evolving technologies in the field of medicine is basically an increase in the lifespan and ensuring our overall state of health is improved.

Below are the most recent technological advances used in medicine:

1.      CRISPR

CRISPR stands for Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats, and it is a new medical technology, which is at the highest level of advancement when it comes to gene-editing technology. CRISPR functions by tapping into the natural mechanisms that are found in the immune systems of bacterial cells, and it lacerates the DNA strands that have been infected.

The cutting ability of the CRISPR has the capacity to modify the conventional way of disease treatment. When some genes are modified, some diseases such as HIV and cancer could possibly be totally defeated in few years. Although, when you read most medical essays with an essay plagiarism checker, an essay check or an essay corrector, you will discover that there are still further inquiries into the full capacities of the CRISPR and the unknown benefits to the human race.

2.      Telehealth

This is another new medical technology which fits into this technologically guided world. It basically means a form of promptly evolving technology which enables patients to access medical care via their medical devices, rather than go to the hospital for appointments with their doctor.

Currently, there are some highly-functional personalized applications that are developed for the purpose of allowing patients to interact virtually with medical professionals and get prompt medical advice and diagnosis.

Telehealth makes full provision for all patients to have various access means to healthcare the moment it is needed. It also comes in handy for those who have chronic health problems because it makes health care available at a regular, convenient and affordable means.

3.      Virtual reality

Virtual reality has been in existence for quite a while, and there are medical advances that are being integrated into exploring the full capacities of this modern technology. With medical virtual reality, medical students have been afforded the opportunity of accessing close to real-life experience using this technology.

There are top modernized tools which aid them in gaining the experience needed by memorizing and practicing procedures as well as and producing a visual knowledge of the entire connection of the human anatomy.

If you check legit medical essays with an essay corrector or an essay checker, you will discover that virtual reality devices are a profound help for patients, providing diagnosis help, treatment schedule and making procedures available for them. They are also essential in patients’ rehabilitation recuperation.

4.      Precision medicine

Medical technology is advancing, and it becomes more personalized to patients individually. One of the benefits which precision medicine comes with is, it enables physicians to choose therapies and medicines for disease treatment, which includes cancer hinged on the genetic make-up of the patient.

This form of personalized medicine is way more effective than other forms of treatment, as it effectively treats tumors using the specific proteins and genes of the patient as the basis. This then causes gene mutations and makes it more effortlessly annihilated by cancer medicine.

In addition, precision medicine can also be used for rheumatoid arthritis treatment. It employs a mechanism of combating the vulnerable genes of the disease, in a bid to weaken it and lessen the symptoms and damage to the joint.

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How Is Virtual Reality Being Used to Help Cancer Patients?

By Adrian Johansen, freelance writer; @AdrianJohanse18.

When you hear the words “cancer treatment,” you probably think of things like chemotherapy, radiation or even hair loss. While many cancer patients go through painful procedures that create uncomfortable and life-changing side effects, there might be new ways to help them deal with the disease and their care.

Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) are technology trends in healthcare that have recently taken the industry by storm. While many researchers have been interested in this technology for some time, it’s only been in the past few years that studies have started to prove its usefulness in helping cancer patients undergoing care. Here are the essentials you should know to understand the use of VR and AR for cancer patients.

What are VR and AR?

Virtual reality is an immersive technology that closes the user off from the real world. Using a headset and video screen, the user can feel the experience of being transported to new locations. If you’re unfamiliar with this technology, do a quick online search to find videos of people who feel they are falling or that things are moving toward them in such a way that they instinctively shift their body to avoid contact. These videos are amusing, but this technology is so much more than just fun.

Augmented reality, often called AR, uses a camera or smartphone to add digital elements to the real world. Typical uses are lenses on the popular app Snapchat or the ever-intriguing game of Pokemon Go. AR has many applications in healthcare as well.

Use of VR and AR in healthcare

Medicine and other treatments are both palliative and curative. However, all medicines and procedures have limitations and at times create negative effects that patients must adapt to or learn to overcome. Researchers continually look for new ways to impact patient care with immersive technologies and other cutting-edge advancements. Both AR and VR have received acclaim for their role in the healthcare industry.

Not only can this tech help patients, but it can improve healthcare as a whole. A few of the ways VR is impacting healthcare can be seen in the treatment of chronic pain, the restoration of low vision in older patients or those with damaged vision, and the expedited recovery of patients after traumatic brain injury.

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VR Re-invents Empathy, Hospitalization and Vision Loss Treatment

By Tatyana Shavel, technology analyst, Iflexion.

The essential purpose of virtual reality or VR is to shut down the real world and immerse a person into a different environment, be it a fantasy or just a place far away. While it is mostly used in entertainment, this technology gets wide adoption across other industries, including construction, education, retail and healthcare.

According to a recent report, the global healthcare VR market is expected to massively grow by 2023 with a 54.5 percent CAGR. The researchers name a range of major VR applications anticipated to drive even more investments in upcoming years, including PTSD treatment, rehabilitation, education and training, and surgery simulation. The actively growing market creates a supportive environment for better collaboration among payers, clinical stakeholders, and varied VR development companies, naming Osso VR, Iflexion, Psious and others.

Even though the VR technology is quite young, and healthcare isn’t always daring to adopt cutting-edge approaches and add them to the traditional practice, it is just too promising to ignore.

On the one hand, there are multiple scientific papers debating over virtual reality’s use in pain and anxiety management, mental health improvement, fall prevention in elder population and eye microsurgery training, among the others. On the other hand, we witness market-ready products encouraging health specialists to revolutionize care delivery. In this article, we will review the most promising VR applications in healthcare, backed by real-world solutions.

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