Cyberattacks in healthcare are on the rise, and the industry must not only develop strategies to fight off these incidents but also keep systems up and running at the same time. That involves a process called cyber resilience. Healthcare organizations must plan for network outages, possible electronic health record downtime and outages of vital medical systems if a surprise ransomware attack, such as a vishing or a man-in-the-middle attack, occurs. Errol Weiss, chief security officer at the Health Information Sharing and Analysis Center (Health-ISAC), says that organizations have shifted from ..read more

Artificial intelligence and machine learning have featured heavily at healthcare technology conferences so far this year, building on public interest that has only grown since the end of 2022. Most of the conversations have highlighted the potential benefits of AI/ML solutions for healthcare organizations. But AI-powered tools also come with some serious cybersecurity considerations for organizations. Earlier this year, for instance, scammers used deepfake technology to create a bogus conference call in order to trick a finance employee at a multinational company in Hong Kong into paying out ..read more

In today’s healthcare environment, clinicians spend a significant amount of time in the electronic health record coordinating patient care. Care teams collaborate and take detailed notes to paint a comprehensive picture of a patient’s history, clinical course and care plan. However, many EHRs are accessed largely by desktop or laptop computers, which presents a challenge for clinicians who are often on the go. Fortunately, smartphone use in the acute care environment has become more widespread, providing clinicians with easier access to clinical documentation and data at the point of care ..read more

Gone are the days of point solutions and patched-together processes for connected care. At this point, healthcare organizations should be moving toward a more integrated vision of digitally enabled care delivery. Some organizations will need help overcoming persistent hurdles. But here are key areas where connected care has become a more seamless part of day-to-day service offerings. Click the banner below to create connected care workflows that improve healthcare experiences ..read more

In the past year, the buzz surrounding artificial intelligence has become increasingly focused on the advancements and applications of generative AI and large language models. This shift in attention is well-founded, as these technologies represent some of the most significant leaps forward in AI capabilities, offering unparalleled potential for innovation across various sectors, including nonprofit organizations. Traditionally, in the aging-services sector, nonprofits (especially smaller ones) have been hesitant to adopt new technologies due to budget constraints, limited access to ..read more

As clinicians know, addressing the needs of patients living with chronic conditions, such as heart failure, Type 2 diabetes or hypertension, places a high level of strain on primary care providers and health systems. Although these patients require ongoing monitoring and regular check-ins to manage their conditions and help keep them out of the hospital, we typically see them in clinic only once or twice per year. That is what interested me recently when I decided to recommend a new remote patient monitoring program. Utica Park Clinic in Tulsa, Okla., where I am a practicing family physician ..read more

Providing excellent care for patients, both in person and online, is essential for healthcare organizations. Patients have higher expectations than ever, demanding personalized virtual care, convenient access and clear communication. Unfortunately, providers often struggle to meet these demands, in part because of the administrative burdens placed on physicians. Research shows that physicians spend more time on administrative tasks than working with patients face-to-face, leading to less personalized care for patients, inefficiencies for organizations and staff burnout.  At ..read more

Healthcare organizations generate millions of pieces of data, and clinicians’ need to pull meaningful insights from that data as it continues to increase. That’s where data engineers come in. They can design tools to expedite a broad array of processes and help health system leaders improve efficiency, patient safety and healthcare delivery. Data engineering solutions rapidly process huge volumes of data generated from complex inputs, such as on-premises software and cloud-based computing, while optimizing systems such as XML, JASON, API Call, HL7 and Parquet to facilitate the organization ..read more

Growth in the U.S. population and changes in its demographics over the past 40 years have led to a disparity in care access. In 1980, 740 counties were considered “metro” areas while approximately 2,400 counties were considered “nonmetro.” That balance has now shifted; as of 2020, there are more than 1,250 metro counties and fewer than 2,000 nonmetro counties. This reduction of the rural population, combined with a challenging payer mix, is leading to economic hardship and hospital closures in rural areas. According to a recent report from Chartis, 141 rural hospitals have closed since 2010 ..read more

We all know that multifactor authentication is a must-have to defend against cyberattacks in healthcare. But what happens when those extra layers of security start to wear people down? That’s where the concept of MFA fatigue comes in. It’s the frustration that users feel when they’re hit with repeated MFA prompts, and attackers are ready to exploit this. Click the banner below to learn how to get the most out of your zero-trust initiative ..read more