News
One day after a 5.8 magnitude earthquake struck Virginia, two new surveys by the American Red Cross suggest that the uptick seen on sites such as Twitter and Facebook is part of a growing trend of Americans turning to social media in response to emergencies. "Social media is becoming an integral part of disaster response," said Wendy Harman, director of social strategy for the American Red Cross.
Morgenthaler Ventures, a venture capital firm, has named 11 finalists in the firm's nationwide contest to find the most promising health IT startups looking for seed and Series-A funding. The 11 company founders will present in front of leading venture capitalists, angel investors and entrepreneurs at a gathering dedicated to health IT innovation on Sept. 22 in Mountain View, Calif. The event is invitation only.
A new Facebook app has been developed with the aim of boosting medication compliance in young transplant patients.The software, developed by UI Children's Hospital physician and members of the hospital's information systems team, is called Iowa MedMinder. The app is customized to each patient's circumstances and creates a pop-up box listing all of the medications to be taken that day. The box will appear on their Facebook page, and the patient clicks on the medications that have been taken. That information is then relayed back to the primary physician.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs plans to offer its physicians commercial cloud-based software-as-a-service collaborative tools to improve communications while also reducing data breaches.Some physicians already use Web-based tools without approval, a situation that heightens the risk for sensitive data disclosure, VA officials have said.
Sony's innovative MD2GO is going to new places.The mobile telemedicine station, a collaboration between Sony and Microsoft that features a remote HD IP camera system and a Windows 7 touch-based user interface on Sony's Silverlight platform, made an appearance this month at the annual meeting of the Association for Medical Imaging Management (AHRA) in Dallas.Company executives are touting the MD2GO as a necessary tool in radiology departments and stand-alone teleradiology practices of the future.