Technology « D Healthcare Daily

05/12/2013 by Sheila Dang

Hospitals

Jason Hwang: How ‘Disruptive Innovation’ Can Improve the Healthcare Model

Healthcare needs more “disruptive innovation” like TurboTax. Jason Hwang, co-author of The Innovator’s Prescription: A Disruptive Solution for Health Care and co-founder of the Innosight Institute, used the analogy during a pre-conference keynote speech last week at the sixth annual Southwest Healthcare Transaction Conference, held at the Omni Dallas Hotel. Hwang noted that the growing use of TurboTax eats away at the percentage of people who hire an accountant to complete their taxes each year. This “disruption” targets consumers with simple finances that could be easily handled by TurboTax, as well as non-consumers who could not afford accountants. Similar innovation… Full Story

05/8/2013 by Steve Jacob

Technology

Irving Proton Therapy Facility Dedication Next Week

Texas Center for Proton Therapy plans a dedication ceremony Wednesday for its $105 million proton therapy facility in Irving. The construction of the facility will begin after that ceremony and is expected to be complete by June 2014. Company officials plan to begin treating patients by early 2016. The center, located at 1501 W. Royal Lane, is expected to employ about 50 people. The project is spearheaded by Dallas-based Texas Oncology, and supported by McKesson Specialty Health; and Baylor Health Enterprises, an affiliate of Baylor Health Care System, Gary Barlow was hired as the facility’s director in January. Barlow previously… Full Story

05/8/2013 by Steve Jacob

Technology

EMR Market Grew 15 Percent in 2012

The market for electronic medical records (EMR) reached $20.7 billion in 2012, a 15 percent increase over 2011, driven by hospital IT upgrades and the lure of government incentives, according to Kalorama Information. The healthcare market research publisher says vendors should see robust sales this year and next as vendors try to avoid U.S. government penalties for paper record use, according to the report distributed by Dallas-based ReportsnReports.com. The report estimates there are more than 400 EMR providers, a number that is expected to decline because of mergers and acquisitions.

05/7/2013 by Jessica Melton

Finance

Morning Rounds (05.07.13)

Healthcare executives and materials and practice area managers predict a major shift in admissions from inpatient to outpatient settings.

Venture capital funding for health information technology totaled nearly half a billion dollars in the first three months of 2013.

The economy may play a lesser role in healthcare cuts than preciously thought. Full Story

05/6/2013 by Steve Jacob

Finance

HIT Attracts $500 Million in Q1

Venture capital funding for health information technology totaled nearly half a billion dollars in the first three months of 2013, according to a report by Austin-based Mercom Capital Group. The deals were split evenly between consumer and health-practice technology. Health information management technology, such as electronic health record and practice management systems, attracted the most funding at $219 million, followed by mobile health came at $127 million.

04/26/2013 by Steve Jacob

Technology

More than 50,000 Health IT Jobs Created Since 2009

More than 50,000 health information technology jobs have been created since the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act was enacted in 2009, according to a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology fact sheet. In addition to providing incentive payments for meaningful use of electronic health records, the HITECH Act called for the development of a properly trained health IT workforce. According to the fact sheet, community colleges had trained more than 17,000 health IT professionals as of January. Universities graduated more than 800 post-graduate and masters-level… Full Story

04/26/2013 by Christine Perez

Hospitals

Morning Rounds (04.26.13)

A Cedar Hill physician who ran a now-closed Terrell hospital has been indicted in a more than $1 million healthcare fraud investigation.

Pension obligations, expenses, and contributions are weighing down U.S. not-for-profit hospitals—and those demands are likely to continue for years.

CMS reports that more than 50,000 health IT jobs have been created since the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act was enacted in 2009. Full Story

04/24/2013 by Steve Jacob 3 comments

Technology

Digital Health Accelerator Opens Its Doors to Startups

Health Wildcatters is now open for business. The digital health accelerator began accepting applications for its first class of entrepreneurs yesterday. Executive Director Hubert Zajicek, MD, co-founder of the accelerator, previously was medical technology director at the Frisco technology incubator NTEC. Health Wildcatters provides health startups with up to $35,000 in seed money in exchange for 8 percent of equity. It is modeled after the highly successful Tech Wildcatters program and housed in the Tech Church in Uptown Dallas. Fifteen startups will be selected out of what Zajicek predicts will be at least 100 applicants to participate in a 90-day… Full Story

04/18/2013 by Steve Jacob

Technology

Health Technology Incubator Launched

Three local healthcare entrepreneurs have formed a technology start-up accelerator called Health Wildcatters. Hubert Zajicek will lead the organization. He previously was medical technology director at Frisco-based technology incubator NTEC. Co-founder Gabriella Draney also was a co-founder of Tech Wildcatters, a Dallas accelerator that specialized in business-to-business startups. Two other Health Wildcatter founders—Carl Soderstrom and Clay Heighten, MD—built MedicalEdge Healthcare Group, which was sold to Texas Health Resources in 2010. Health Wildcatters is modeled after Tech Wildcatters, which has nurtured nearly three-dozen start-ups. It will operate out of the Tech Wildcatters headquarters in the “Tech Church” on Fairmount Street in… Full Story

04/15/2013 by Jessica Melton

Government/Law