News 11/2/20

Top News

Austin, TX-based Remedy lays off 82 employees, many of whom were “recent hires that had been added during the peak of the COVID-19 volumes during the summer,” according to Chief Marketing Officer Keith Munro, who insists the company’s core business is still on solid footing.

The company offers app-based house calls, virtual visits, and office visits at its clinic in an Austin Whole Foods. It raised a $10 million Series A financing round last year, bringing its total to just over $12 million since launching in 2015.

Founder and CEO Jeremy Gabrysch, MD spent the preceding years the Chief Medical Officer for a 150-bed teaching hospital in Ethiopia, where he helped to stand up a CT scanner, digital radiology, PACS system, and EHR.

Webinars

November 11 (Wednesday) 1 ET. “Beyond the Firewall: Securing Patients, Staff, and the Healthcare Internet of Things.” Sponsor: Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise. Presenter: Daniel Faurlin, head of network solutions for healthcare, Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise. The biggest cybersecurity risk for healthcare IoT isn’t the objects themselves, but rather the “network door” they can open. This network infrastructure-oriented webinar will address overcoming the challenges of architecting a network to provide security, management, and monitoring for IoT, devices, and users using ALE’s Digital Age Networking blueprint, a single service platform for hospital networks. Digital Age Networking includes an autonomous network, onboarding and managing IoT, and creating business innovation with automated workflows. Specific use cases will describe enabling COVID-19 quarantine management, contact tracing, locating equipment and people, and ensuring the security of patients and more.

November 12 (Thursday) 5 ET: “Getting Surgical Documentation Right: A Fireside Chat.” Sponsor: Intelligent Medical Objects. Presenters: Alex Dawson, product manager, IMO; Janice Kelly, MS, RN, president, AORN Syntegrity; Julie Glasgow, MD, clinical terminologist, IMO; Lou Ann Montgomery, RN, BSN, nurse informaticist, IMO; Whitney Mannion, RN, clinical terminologist, IMO. The presenters will discuss using checklists, templates, the EHR, and third-party solutions to improve documentation without overburdening clinicians. They will explore the importance of surgical documentation in perioperative patient management, the guidelines and requirements for surgical documentation and operative notes, how refining practices and tools can improve accuracy and efficiency, and the risks and implications of incomplete, inconsistent, and non-compliant documentation.

November 16 (Monday) 1 ET. “COVID-19 and Beyond: A CISO’s Perspective for Staying Ahead of Threats.” Sponsor: Everbridge. Presenter: Sonia Arista, VP and global chief information security officer, Everbridge. While hospitals worldwide work to resume elective care amid COVID-19, they’re quickly adapting and responding to a variety of emerging risks that have tested their resilience, including a surge in cybersecurity and ransomware attacks. This webinar will highlight emerging IT vulnerabilities and best practices designed to help hospitals anticipate and quickly mitigate cybersecurity risks. A former hospital CISO will share her expertise in responding to high-impact IT incidents and mitigating risks during critical events given the “new normal” that COVID-19 has created.

November 18 (Wednesday) 1 ET. “Do You Really Have a Telehealth Program, Or Just Videoconferencing?” Sponsor: Mend Family. Presenters: J. D. McFarland, solutions architect, Mend Family; Nick Neral, national account executive, Mend Family.  Healthcare’s new competitive advantage is telehealth, of which a videoconferencing platform is just a small part. This presentation will describe a comprehensive patient journey in which an organization can acquire new patients, reduce check-in time, reduce no-shows, and increase patient satisfaction, all using virtual care. Health systems did a good job in quickly standing up virtual visits in response to COVID, but telehealth and the digital front door are here to stay and now is a good time to re-evaluate tools and processes that support patient scheduling, digital forms, telehealth, and patient engagement as part of a competitive strategy.

November 18 (Wednesday) 2 ET. “Leveraging a Clinical Intelligence Engine to Solve the EHR Usability Crisis.” Sponsor: Medicomp Systems. Presenter: Jay Anders, MD, MS, chief medical officer, Medicomp; David Lareau, CEO, Medicomp. Healthcare is long overdue for a data makeover. Clinician burnout is fueled by inaccurate, inconsistent, and incomplete clinical data, but that can be improved without scrapping existing systems. The presenters will describe the use of tools that work seamlessly with EHR workflows to deliver actionable data, improve interoperability; support the clinician’s thought process; and improve usability for better decision-making and accurate coding.

Previous webinars are on our YouTube channel. Contact Lorre to present your own.

Here’s the recording of last week’s Bright.md webinar titled ““How Presbyterian Healthcare Services Is Preparing for a Post-Pandemic Future Using Digital Care Tools,” featuring PHS SVP/Chief Innovation Officer Ries Robinson, MD as interviewed by Bright.md co-founder CEO Ray Costantini, MD.

Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock

Gas station and convenience store QuikTrip launches a chain of urgent care clinics in Oklahoma under the MedWise brand. The Tulsa, OK-based company plans on opening 15 locations across the state within the next two years.

In Canada, Well Health Technologies forms a new business unit, the Well Billing and Backoffice Group, through its acquisition of Toronto-based DoctorCare for $13.6 million.

People

Jack Nathan Health, well known in Canada for its chain of primary care clinics in Walmart stores, names Serge Cinelli (Bluewater Imaging) CTO.

Announcements and Implementations

Frazier Wellness Services implements EHR software from Procentive, which specializes in health IT for mental and behavioral health providers.

Research and Innovation

A very small survey of physicians, practice leaders, and investors finds that 51% of respondents expect patient volume to return to pre-COVID levels by early next year. Physicians were split regarding job satisfaction over the last nine months, with half saying there’s been no change and half reporting it’s gotten worse. While 60% say the pandemic hasn’t pushed them to consider selling their practices, a third believe it has propelled physician retirements.

Other

A man exploring an out-of-the-way World War II landmark in St. Louis discovers the abandoned medical records of almost 60 patients of a nearby DaVita dialysis clinic. A Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services representative says its unclear if the boxes were dumped by the clinic or its records storage company.

This seems strange to me: Healthcare Advisory Network and BasiCare Plus partner to offer a telemedicine membership program to consumers and businesses on Amazon. Virtual visits are provided through MDLive’s network, and it is apparently one of Amazon’s few listed telemedicine providers that offer prescription benefits. Readers, feel free to educate me on why a company would list this kind of service on Amazon.

Sponsor Updates

Blog Posts

• How to find your broken EHR windows (Nordic)

• 10-Point Checklist: Deploying Shared Devices for Nurses (PerfectServe)

Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

More news: HIStalk.

Get HIStalk Practice updates.
Contact us online.
Become a sponsor.

News 10/28/20

Top News

Anonymous sources report that Outcome Health, which offers pharma-backed advertising software for waiting and exam rooms, is in talks to merge with competitor PatientPoint in a deal that could value the combined company at $600 million.

Chicago-based Outcome Health was once valued at $5 billion before allegations of fraud prompted it to pay a $70 million settlement and admit that some of its high-level employees, several of whom were brought to trial, engaged in fraudulent activities between 2012 and 2017.

HIStalk Practice Musings

Still undecided on a Halloween costume? Check out these “15 Last-Minute Halloween Costume Ideas for Book Lovers.” I’ll likely end up raiding the closet of a family member who performed in “Singing in the Rain” several years ago.

I was pleased to discover that one of my local libraries has finally opened its doors again. I haven’t had the chance to visit (curbside check-out has spoiled me), but I do wonder if it – like these facilities – have done anything creative for Halloween.

I’ll be on the look-out for creative, health IT-related Halloween costumes over the weekend. (Remember when folks dressed up as Blue Button?) Send me any get-ups you come across. Hopefully we can all have some much-needed fun this Saturday.

Webinars

October 29 (Thursday) 1 ET. “How Presbyterian Healthcare Services Is Preparing for a Post-Pandemic Future Using Digital Care Tools.” Sponsor: Bright.md. Presenters: Ries Robinson, MD, SVP/chief innovation officer, Presbyterian Healthcare Services; Ray Costantini, MD, MBA, co-founder and CEO, Bright.md. Presbyterian Healthcare Services changed the way New Mexico patients access healthcare with its pres.today digital front door, which has given patients easy access to care during a global crisis. The health system’s digital care strategy goes beyond simply offering virtual visits and instead makes every episode of care — regardless of where it is delivered — better by streamlining clinical workflows and by directing patients to the most appropriate venue of care. The presenters will describe how Presbyterian has continued to meet patient needs during the pandemic, how it is deploying digital tools to tackle the combined COVID-19 and flu seasons, and how the health system is innovating care delivery to prepare for a post-pandemic future.

November 11 (Wednesday) 1 ET. “Beyond the Firewall: Securing Patients, Staff, and the Healthcare Internet of Things.” Sponsor: Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise. Presenter: Daniel Faurlin, head of network solutions for healthcare, Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise. The biggest cybersecurity risk for healthcare IoT isn’t the objects themselves, but rather the network door they can open. This webinar will address meeting the challenges of security, management, and monitoring using ALE’s Digital Age Networking, a single service platform for the network infrastructure that includes an autonomous network, onboarding and managing IoT, and creating business innovation with automated workflows. Specific use cases will be described, including COVID-19 quarantine management, locating equipment and people, and ensuring the security of patients.

November 12 (Thursday) 5 ET: “Getting Surgical Documentation Right: A Fireside Chat.” Sponsor: Intelligent Medical Objects. Presenters: Alex Dawson, product manager, IMO; Janice Kelly, MS, RN, president, AORN Syntegrity; Julie Glasgow, MD, clinical terminologist, IMO; Lou Ann Montgomery, RN, BSN, nurse informaticist, IMO; Whitney Mannion, RN, clinical terminologist, IMO. The presenters will discuss using checklists, templates, the EHR, and third-party solutions to improve documentation without overburdening clinicians. They will explore the importance of surgical documentation in perioperative patient management, the guidelines and requirements for surgical documentation and operative notes, how refining practices and tools can improve accuracy and efficiency, and the risks and implications of incomplete, inconsistent, and non-compliant documentation.

November 16 (Monday) 1 ET. “COVID-19 and Beyond: A CISO’s Perspective for Staying Ahead of Threats.” Sponsor: Everbridge. Presenter: Sonia Arista, VP and global chief information security officer, Everbridge. While hospitals worldwide work to resume elective care amid COVID-19, they’re quickly adapting and responding to a variety of emerging risks that have tested their resilience, including a surge in cybersecurity and ransomware attacks. This webinar will highlight emerging IT vulnerabilities and best practices designed to help hospitals anticipate and quickly mitigate cybersecurity risks. A former hospital CISO will share her expertise in responding to high-impact IT incidents and mitigating risks during critical events given the “new normal” that COVID-19 has created.

November 18 (Wednesday) 1 ET. “Do You Really Have a Telehealth Program, Or Just Videoconferencing?” Sponsor: Mend Family. Presenters: J. D. McFarland, solutions architect, Mend Family; Nick Neral, national account executive, Mend Family.  Healthcare’s new competitive advantage is telehealth, of which a videoconferencing platform is just a small part. This presentation will describe a comprehensive patient journey in which an organization can acquire new patients, reduce check-in time, reduce no-shows, and increase patient satisfaction, all using virtual care. Health systems did a good job in quickly standing up virtual visits in response to COVID, but telehealth and the digital front door are here to stay and now is a good time to re-evaluate tools and processes that support patient scheduling, digital forms, telehealth, and patient engagement as part of a competitive strategy.

November 18 (Wednesday) 2 ET. “Leveraging a Clinical Intelligence Engine to Solve the EHR Usability Crisis.” Sponsor: Medicomp Systems. Presenter: Jay Anders, MD, MS, chief medical officer, Medicomp; David Lareau, CEO, Medicomp. Healthcare is long overdue for a data makeover. Clinician burnout is fueled by inaccurate, inconsistent, and incomplete clinical data, but that can be improved without scrapping existing systems. The presenters will describe the use of tools that work seamlessly with EHR workflows to deliver actionable data, improve interoperability; support the clinician’s thought process; and improve usability for better decision-making and accurate coding.

Previous webinars are on our YouTube channel. Contact Lorre to present your own.

Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock

Primary and urgent care company Zoom+ Care expands beyond its Pacific Northwest roots with clinics in Colorado and Idaho. The company will also offer its VideoCare service to patients of the three new clinics, which are expected to open in late December and early 2021.

People

VillageMD names Andy Thompson (Bon Secours Mercy Health) COO.

Announcements and Implementations

Georgia Clinic adopts DocNow’s appointment-scheduling across its 16 clinics in Atlanta.

Barry University’s School of Podiatric Medicine implements MTBC’s CareCloud EHR, RCM, and practice management software at its outpatient clinics.

PromptEMR integrates BetterPT’s BetterTelehealth virtual visit software for physical therapists with its PT-focused software.

Child Development Institute (CA) selects EnSoftek’s DrCloudEHR.

Central Oregon Radiology Associates goes live on RoyalMD’s Provider Prime referral management software and accompanying mobile app.

Arizona-based HIE Health Current deploys NextGen’s Health Data Hub to improve delivery of patient care alerts, including COVID-19 test results, to participating providers.

Research and Innovation

No surprise here: A survey of 1,000 consumers finds that 73% of men and 39% of women admitted to multitasking during virtual visits. Top distractions included texting and online activity, and watching some sort of media. (Just under 10% admitted to imbibing “quarantinis” during their appointments.) Funnily enough, 29% say they “dress up” more for a telemedicine appointment than an in-person appointment. Top respondent suggestions for improving video visit interactions include improving video clarity, giving users the ability to ask a physician a question in advance via text, and giving patients the ability to self-schedule their virtual visits.

Other

Pain management specialist Jeff Cara, DO turns his office in Jupiter, FL into an art gallery to uplift the spirits of his patients and give local artists a chance to exhibit their work while galleries are closed during the pandemic. “We thought that patients needed color and optimism,” he said. “We wanted it to feel more like a home or a gallery than a doctor’s office. The patients love it. They ask if they can walk around the office to look. It beats just sitting in a waiting room.”

Sponsor Updates

Blog Posts

• The Benefits of E-Prescribing for High-Risk Patients During COVID-19 (AdvancedMD)
• Know the Issues on Your NC20 ‘Ballot’! (EClinicalWorks)
• Battle Resident Burnout with Better Scheduling (PerfectServe)

Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

More news: HIStalk.

Get HIStalk Practice updates.
Contact us online.
Become a sponsor.

News 10/26/20

Top News

Athenahealth plans to hire 100 employees at its office in Belfast, Maine. The Watertown, MA-based company is looking to fill positions related to analytics, customer support, medical coding, and operations. The Belfast location has served as the center of Athenahealth’s operations and customer support.

Perhaps the company has finally started to find its footing after the departure of co-founder and CEO Jonathan Bush, the finalization of its acquisition by Veritas, and a slew of layoffs and new C-level hirings over the last two years.

HIStalk Practice Musings

There’s still time to send me your Halloween reading suggestions. I may have to pick up “Pride, Prejudice and Zombies” by Seth Grahame-Smith this week to get me into the spirit of the season. (The movie adaptation is absolutely ridiculous in the best way. I may have to conclude October 31 with a viewing of that, or my all-time zombie flick favorite, Shaun of the Dead.)

Webinars

October 27 (Tuesday) noon ET. “Don’t Waste This Pandemic (From a Former Healthcare CEO).” Sponsor: Relatient. Presenter: Monica Reed, MD, MSc, former CEO, Celebration Health. Some healthcare organizations are trying to get back to the normalcy of 2019, but tomorrow’s leaders are accelerating even faster in 2020. Two- or three-year roadmaps were accomplished in six months, so what’s next? The presenter will describe how technology was changing before COVID-19, how the pandemic accelerated plans, what we can expect to see as a result, how leaders and providers can adapt, and what healthcare’s digital front door looks like going forward and how it can be leveraged.

October 28 (Wednesday) noon ET: “How to Build a Data-Driven Organization.” Sponsor: Newfire Global Partners. Presenters: Chris Donovan, CEO and founder, Adaptive Product Consulting; Harvard Pan, CTO, Diameter Health; Jason Sroka, chief analytics officer, SmartSense by Digi; Jaya Plmanabhan, data scientist and senior advisor, Newfire Global Partners; Nicole Hale, head of marketing services, Newfire Global Partners. The panel of data experts will discuss the opportunities that data can unlock and the challenges involved with becoming a data-driven organization. Attendees will learn why having a data strategy is important; how to collect, manage, and share data with internal and external audiences; and how to combat internal resistance to create a data-driven culture.

October 29 (Thursday) 1 ET. “How Presbyterian Healthcare Services Is Preparing for a Post-Pandemic Future Using Digital Care Tools.” Sponsor: Bright.md. Presenters: Ries Robinson, MD, SVP/chief innovation officer, Presbyterian Healthcare Services; Ray Costantini, MD, MBA, co-founder and CEO, Bright.md. Presbyterian Healthcare Services changed the way New Mexico patients access healthcare with its pres.today digital front door, which has given patients easy access to care during a global crisis. The health system’s digital care strategy goes beyond simply offering virtual visits and instead makes every episode of care — regardless of where it is delivered — better by streamlining clinical workflows and by directing patients to the most appropriate venue of care. The presenters will describe how Presbyterian has continued to meet patient needs during the pandemic, how it is deploying digital tools to tackle the combined COVID-19 and flu seasons, and how the health system is innovating care delivery to prepare for a post-pandemic future.

November 11 (Wednesday) 1 ET. “Beyond the Firewall: Securing Patients, Staff, and the Healthcare Internet of Things.” Sponsor: Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise. Presenter: Daniel Faurlin, head of network solutions for healthcare, Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise. The biggest cybersecurity risk for healthcare IoT isn’t the objects themselves, but rather the network door they can open. This webinar will address meeting the challenges of security, management, and monitoring using ALE’s Digital Age Networking, a single service platform for the network infrastructure that includes an autonomous network, onboarding and managing IoT, and creating business innovation with automated workflows. Specific use cases will be described, including COVID-19 quarantine management, locating equipment and people, and ensuring the security of patients.

November 12 (Thursday) 5 ET: “Getting Surgical Documentation Right: A Fireside Chat.” Sponsor: Intelligent Medical Objects. Presenters: Alex Dawson, product manager, IMO; Janice Kelly, MS, RN, president, AORN Syntegrity; Julie Glasgow, MD, clinical terminologist, IMO; Lou Ann Montgomery, RN, BSN, nurse informaticist, IMO; Whitney Mannion, RN, clinical terminologist, IMO. The presenters will discuss using checklists, templates, the EHR, and third-party solutions to improve documentation without overburdening clinicians. They will explore the importance of surgical documentation in perioperative patient management, the guidelines and requirements for surgical documentation and operative notes, how refining practices and tools can improve accuracy and efficiency, and the risks and implications of incomplete, inconsistent, and non-compliant documentation.

Previous webinars are on our YouTube channel. Contact Lorre to present your own.

Announcements and Implementations

Health Choice Network in Florida selects Orb Health’s virtual care software and services to better enable its network of health centers implement and manage chronic care and patient support services, and outbound clinical campaigns.

The Iowa Clinic selects human capital management software from Ultimate Kronos Group. UKG is the new brand of the combined Ultimate Software and Kronos, workforce management companies that merged earlier this year.

Community Health Network will implement customer experience management software from Qualtrics across its care sites in Central Indiana.

HIE Nebraska Health Information Initiative expands its use of social services referral software from Unite Us to include organizations and providers in Iowa, Missouri, South Dakota, North Dakota, Kansas, and Minnesota.

Beach Family & Urgent Care (SC) has transitioned its seven clinics to virtual visits using CompuGroup Medical’s ELVI Telemedicine software.

The Tennessee Department of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities offers virtual visits from StationMD to residents with disabilities.

Government and Politics

Primary care practices participating in the CMS Greater Buffalo Region’s Comprehensive Primary Care Plus program will use HealtheLink’s HealtheOutcomes software to aggregate and analyze clinical and claims data for program reporting.

Other

Stu Jones and Justin Boggs launch Medical House Calls in Tennessee to offer in-home urgent care with transparent pricing. A physician’s assistant, Jones is the founder and former owner of 7 Springs Orthopedics, while Boggs worked as an ER nurse at Vanderbilt University Medical Center before transitioning into marketing and consulting.

Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

More news: HIStalk.

Get HIStalk Practice updates.
Contact us online.
Become a sponsor.

News 10/21/20

Top News

Maternity care company Oula raises $3.2 million in seed funding, which it will use to open a prenatal clinic and birthing center, and develop and offer collaborative care models as well as virtual coaching and monitoring.

The New York-based company touts an app-based remote care platform.

Co-founder Adrianne Nickerson also co-founded the Robin Care, a technology and services startup focused on engaging and educating cancer patients through app-based content.

HIStalk Practice Musings

Seeing things from another person’s point of view seems to be a lost art these days, which is why I found WebPT’s latest blog post – “8 Books to Immerse PTs in Diverse Patient Experiences” – so refreshing. I imagine anyone working in a healthcare setting – no matter their title – would find these books edifying.

Halloween is almost upon us, and so I’d love to hear of any spooky titles that are must reads for HIStalk Practice readers as we look ahead to the pseudo-holiday. “Frankenstein” by Mary Shelley and “Dracula” by Bram Stoker are classics, of course; but I wonder if there are other, more modern tales that I should look into. I’ll certainly recommend “The Night Circus” by Erin Morgenstern. Please email me with your favorites.

Webinars

October 27 (Tuesday) noon ET. “Don’t Waste This Pandemic (From a Former Healthcare CEO).” Sponsor: Relatient. Presenter: Monica Reed, MD, MSc, former CEO, Celebration Health. Some healthcare organizations are trying to get back to the normalcy of 2019, but tomorrow’s leaders are accelerating even faster in 2020. Two- or three-year roadmaps were accomplished in six months, so what’s next? The presenter will describe how technology was changing before COVID-19, how the pandemic accelerated plans, what we can expect to see as a result, how leaders and providers can adapt, and what healthcare’s digital front door looks like going forward and how it can be leveraged.

October 28 (Wednesday) noon ET: “How to Build a Data-Driven Organization.” Sponsor: Newfire Global Partners. Presenters: Chris Donovan, CEO and founder, Adaptive Product Consulting; Harvard Pan, CTO, Diameter Health; Jason Sroka, chief analytics officer, SmartSense by Digi; Jaya Plmanabhan, data scientist and senior advisor, Newfire Global Partners; Nicole Hale, head of marketing services, Newfire Global Partners. The panel of data experts will discuss the opportunities that data can unlock and the challenges involved with becoming a data-driven organization. Attendees will learn why having a data strategy is important; how to collect, manage, and share data with internal and external audiences; and how to combat internal resistance to create a data-driven culture.

October 29 (Thursday) 1 ET. “How Presbyterian Healthcare Services Is Preparing for a Post-Pandemic Future Using Digital Care Tools.” Sponsor: Bright.md. Presenters: Ries Robinson, MD, SVP/chief innovation officer, Presbyterian Healthcare Services; Ray Costantini, MD, MBA, co-founder and CEO, Bright.md. Presbyterian Healthcare Services changed the way New Mexico patients access healthcare with its pres.today digital front door, which has given patients easy access to care during a global crisis. The health system’s digital care strategy goes beyond simply offering virtual visits and instead makes every episode of care — regardless of where it is delivered — better by streamlining clinical workflows and by directing patients to the most appropriate venue of care. The presenters will describe how Presbyterian has continued to meet patient needs during the pandemic, how it is deploying digital tools to tackle the combined COVID-19 and flu seasons, and how the health system is innovating care delivery to prepare for a post-pandemic future.

November 11 (Wednesday) 1 ET. “Beyond the Firewall: Securing Patients, Staff, and the Medical Internet of Things.” Sponsor: Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise. Presenter: Daniel Faurlin, head of network solutions for healthcare, Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise. The biggest cybersecurity risk for healthcare IoT isn’t the objects themselves, but rather the network door they can open. This webinar will address meeting the challenges of security, management, and monitoring using ALE’s Digital Age Networking, a single service platform for the network infrastructure that includes an autonomous network, onboarding and managing IoT, and creating business innovation with automated workflows. Specific use cases will be described, including COVID-19 quarantine management, locating equipment and people, and ensuring the security of patients.

Previous webinars are on our YouTube channel. Contact Lorre to present your own.

Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock

Medical billing and IT services business Sharp Practice Solutions expands in Virginia. The boutique firm was founded 20 years ago in New Mexico as Enterprise Computing Systems.

Rite Aid COO Jim Peters stresses that the retail pharmacy chain has no interest in launching primary or urgent care services, and has chosen to instead focus on putting its pharmacists front and center as part of a brand re-launch. New store layouts will feature ultra-modern pharmacy counters akin to a Genius Bar and virtual care rooms where customers can access telemedicine.

People

Medical billing and coding company Abeo promotes Joe Ferro to chief technology and innovation officer. He will retain his role as president of Trustedi10, which Abeo acquired last year.

Announcements and Implementations

Dickson Medical Associates implements I2I’s population health management software across its nine clinics across Middle Tennessee.

West Texas Centers selects EHR software from Streamline Healthcare Solutions for its mental health and intellectual and developmental disability programs. The community center will also leverage Streamline’s billing services for its early childhood intervention program.

In Canada, Aware MD integrates Infoway’s e-prescribing functionality with its Cerebrum EHR.

In Texas, Milam County officials partner with Texas A&M Health to install an OnMed telemedicine kiosk in the local police station. County Judge Steve Young has nothing but praise for the kiosk: “This is huge for Milam County,” Milam County. We have no hospital, we have no urgent care, we have no emergency room. This fills the void we’ve had in this county for a long time. The technology of this thing is so far advanced and it’s easy to use. You can walk in, push one button, up comes the doctor and you get a diagnosis, a prognosis and even your medication.”

VeeMed announces GA of VeeClinic, virtual visit technology that includes video, documentation, and scheduling capabilities.

Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

More news: HIStalk.

Get HIStalk Practice updates.
Contact us online.
Become a sponsor.

News 10/19/20

Top News

Text-based telemedicine company 98point6 raises $118 million in a funding round led by L Catterton and Activant Capital.

The company saw a 200% increase in utilization between January and April, with 40% of those interactions related to COVID-19. It offers its services to health systems, payers, employers, and through retailers like Sam’s Club, which introduced $1 telemedicine visits through 98point6 last month.

The company has raised over $240 million since launching in 2015.

Webinars

October 27 (Tuesday) noon ET. “Don’t Waste This Pandemic (From a Former Healthcare CEO).” Sponsor: Relatient. Presenter: Monica Reed, MD, MSc, former CEO, Celebration Health. Some healthcare organizations are trying to get back to the normalcy of 2019, but tomorrow’s leaders are accelerating even faster in 2020. Two- or three-year roadmaps were accomplished in six months, so what’s next? The presenter will describe how technology was changing before COVID-19, how the pandemic accelerated plans, what we can expect to see as a result, how leaders and providers can adapt, and what healthcare’s digital front door looks like going forward and how it can be leveraged.

October 28 (Wednesday) noon ET: “How to Build a Data-Driven Organization.” Sponsor: Newfire Global Partners. Presenters: Chris Donovan, CEO and founder, Adaptive Product Consulting; Harvard Pan, CTO, Diameter Health; Jason Sroka, chief analytics officer, SmartSense by Digi; Jaya Plmanabhan, data scientist and senior advisor, Newfire Global Partners; Nicole Hale, head of marketing services, Newfire Global Partners. The panel of data experts will discuss the opportunities that data can unlock and the challenges involved with becoming a data-driven organization. Attendees will learn why having a data strategy is important; how to collect, manage, and share data with internal and external audiences; and how to combat internal resistance to create a data-driven culture.

October 29 (Thursday) 1 ET. “How Presbyterian Healthcare Services Is Preparing for a Post-Pandemic Future Using Digital Care Tools.” Sponsor: Bright.md. Presenters: Ries Robinson, MD, SVP/chief innovation officer, Presbyterian Healthcare Services; Ray Costantini, MD, MBA, co-founder and CEO, Bright.md. Presbyterian Healthcare Services changed the way New Mexico patients access healthcare with its pres.today digital front door, which has given patients easy access to care during a global crisis. The health system’s digital care strategy goes beyond simply offering virtual visits and instead makes every episode of care — regardless of where it is delivered — better by streamlining clinical workflows and by directing patients to the most appropriate venue of care. The presenters will describe how Presbyterian has continued to meet patient needs during the pandemic, how it is deploying digital tools to tackle the combined COVID-19 and flu seasons, and how the health system is innovating care delivery to prepare for a post-pandemic future.

Previous webinars are on our YouTube channel. Contact Lorre to present your own.

Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock

Birth control prescription delivery startup Twentyeight Health raises a $5.1 million seed funding round led by Third Prime. The company’s services, which cater to low-income women, are available in six states.

Boca Raton, FL-based WhiteSpace Health will use an undisclosed amount of new funding to further scale its analytics offerings and expand its sales and marketing team. Former MModal SVP Sasanka Yellamanchali founded the company in 2014. Omega Healthcare Management in India acquired it three years later.

People

EHR Data hires Meghann Chilcott (XIL Consulting) as VP of integrations.

Announcements and Implementations

Behavioral health providers Freedom Healthcare (NV) and Curry Community Health (OR) will implement EnSoftek’s DrCloudEHR.

Ivy Rehab Network selects outcomes reporting and management software from Net Health company Focus on Therapeutic Outcomes.

Other

The State of Connecticut prepares to finally launch a statewide HIE. A local news outlet points out that three previous attempts costing millions of dollars have left stakeholders frustrated, especially at a time when a lack of data-sharing between providers and facilities have hampered public health efforts to track COVID-19 outbreaks, identify hotspots, and dig deeper into patient data for analytical purposes. The exchange, named “Connie,” will launch in November with the Connecticut State Medical Society’s CTHealthLink network of physician practices. CTO Allan Hackney says it will likely take two to three years to sign up all of the state’s providers.

Harvard Pilgrim Health Care distributes nearly $3 million to 30 independent practices in New England to help them purchase PPE, reconfigure their facilities for social distancing, and shore up infrastructure for telemedicine.

Sponsor Updates

• Why fundamentals matter: Three key plays for a winning EHR (Nordic)

Blog Posts

• Online Doctor’s Appointment Booking Made Easy (EClinicalWorks)

Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

More news: HIStalk.

Get HIStalk Practice updates.
Contact us online.
Become a sponsor.