The Value of Machine Learning in Value-based Care
The following is a guest blog post by Mary Hardy, Vice President of Healthcare for Ayasdi.
Variation is a natural element in most healthcare delivery. After all, every patient is unique. But unwarranted clinical variation—the kind that results from a lack of systems and collaboration or the inappropriate use of care and services—is another issue altogether.
Healthcare industry thought leaders have called for the reduction of such unwarranted variation as the key to improving the quality and decreasing the cost of care. They have declared, quite rightly, that the quality of care an individual receives should not depend ...
Source: EMR and HIPAA - August 4, 2016 Category: Information Technology Authors: Guest Blogger Tags: Healthcare Analytics Healthcare Business Intelligence HealthCare IT Ayasdi Machine Learning Mary Hardy Mercy Source Type: blogs
Do you really need 3 kinds of conditioner? Episode 142
This study involved having 18 young adults evaluate the attractiveness and age of 8 female faces. The images varied in terms of natural aging features like lines and wrinkles.
While evaluating the images the subjects were exposed to different odors, one pleasant (rose oil) and one unpleasant (fish oil). Then the subjects rated the age of the face in the photo, the attractiveness and the pleasantness of the odor. The result was that odor pleasantness directly influenced rating of facial attractiveness suggesting that odor and visual cues independently influence judgements.
One downside to using pleasant odors is that visual...
Source: thebeautybrains.com - July 19, 2016 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Perry Romanowski Tags: Podcast Source Type: blogs
Andrew Wakefield claims “natural Herd Immunity” is better than anything vaccines can do, never mind all that suffering
Andrew Wakefield, his claims to the contrary, is antivaccine to the core. To be honest, I’m not sure if he was always antivaccine. After all, around 20 years ago when he was doing his “research” into whether the MMR vaccine causes autism, he was being generously funded by a barrister seeking to sue vaccine manufacturers… (Source: Respectful Insolence)
Source: Respectful Insolence - May 31, 2016 Category: Surgery Authors: Orac Tags: Antivaccine nonsense Autism Complementary and alternative medicine Science Skepticism/critical thinking Andrew Wakefield chickenpox community immunity Del Bigtree herd immunity measles mumps Polly Tommey shingles varicella Va Source Type: blogs
Do anti-aging patches really work? Episode 135
Do anti-aging patches really work?
Julia asks…Can micro needle patches really work to deliver anti-aging ingredients like hyaluronic acid?
Coincidentally I just read a study about a new technology for lightening age spots that involves, get this, Dissolving Micro Needles. This research was published by a Korean team in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology and here’s what they did…
They developed a patch containing 4-n-butylresorcinol an active ingredient which is able to prevent melanocytes from producing melanin (the pigment in hair and skin.) They had 45 panelists use the patch for 8 weeks and then they measure...
Source: thebeautybrains.com - May 31, 2016 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Randy Schueller Tags: Podcast Source Type: blogs
Why the Chicken Pox Vaccine Makes NO Sense
The chicken pox vaccine, formally known as the varicella vaccination, was added to the recommended childhood vaccination schedule in 1995. Prior to this vaccine’s creation, it was a common practice for families to expose children to others who had the chicken pox. The disease was considered a normal part of childhood and it was widely known that chicken pox in childhood posed little to no risk of serious harm. Risks associated with chicken pox are more common in adults and those with compromised immune systems.
My Experience With The Chicken Pox Illness And Vaccination
I clearly remember exposing my middle child to my ol...
Source: vactruth.com - May 26, 2016 Category: Allergy & Immunology Authors: Michelle Goldstein Tags: Logical Michelle Goldstein Recent Articles chicken pox shingles truth about vaccines Varicella vaccine Source Type: blogs
What is Shingles?
(Source: EverythingHealth)
Source: EverythingHealth - May 25, 2016 Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: blogs
Incentivized competitions boost innovation
The last decade has witnessed a tremendous advance in technological innovations. This is also thanks to the growing diffusion of open innovation platforms, which have leveraged on the explosion of social network and digital media to promote a new culture of “bottom-up” discovery and invention.An example of the potential of open innovation to revolutionize technology and science is provided by online crowdfunding sites for creative projects, such Kickstarter and Indiegogo. In the last few years, these online platforms have supported thousands of projects, including extremely innovative products such as the headset Oculu...
Source: Positive Technology Journal - May 24, 2016 Category: Information Technology Tags: Blue sky Creativity and computers Source Type: blogs
CMS Proposed Patient Relationship Categories for MACRA
Patient engagement and patient satisfaction have been a core principle of healthcare reform under ACA and MACRA. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently released for public comment its proposed physician-patient relationship categories, a first step toward a Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA) requirement that the agency establish classification code sets for such physician-patient relationships. The patient relationship categories and codes are intended to help CMS more effectively measure resource use, a major performance category under the Merit-based Incentive Payment Syst...
Source: Policy and Medicine - May 18, 2016 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan - Policy & Medicine Writing Staff Source Type: blogs
Fight Aging! Newsletter, May 16th 2016
In this study the authors demonstrate that, as in many other cases, the methodology of delivery matters just as much as the details of the cells used:
Retinal and macular degenerative diseases affect millions of people worldwide. Similar to other neurodegenerative diseases, there are no effective treatments that can stop retinal degeneration or restore degenerative retina. Recent advances in stem cell technology led to development of novel cell-based therapies, some are already in phase I/II clinical trials. Studies from our group and others suggest that human bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hBM-MSC) m...
Source: Fight Aging! - May 15, 2016 Category: Research Authors: Reason Tags: Newsletters Source Type: blogs
Help to Crowdfund More Progress Towards DRACO Universal Antiviral Therapies
A new crowdfunding effort is running to gather funds and support to push forward with DRACO antiviral technology. DRACO stands for double-stranded RNA activated caspase oligomerizer, a class of designer molecules that can selectively destroy cells that are hosting viruses. Viruses hijack cellular machinery in order to replicate, and that process has a distinctive signature: all known viruses produce double-stranded RNA during replication, and that double-stranded RNA is not not otherwise found in our cells. Thus any cell containing these molecules is fair game. Since DRACO therapies don't target any of the other highly var...
Source: Fight Aging! - May 10, 2016 Category: Research Authors: Reason Tags: Activism, Advocacy and Education Source Type: blogs
Is the shingles vaccine right for you?
Shingles is a painful disease caused by the same virus as chicken pox.
The National Foundation for Infectious Diseases has created a video and quiz about the shingles vaccine.
Is the Shingles Vaccine Right for You?: http://bit.ly/1YCPw6d
MedlinePlus has additional information about shingles: http://1.usa.gov/1Wb15Cm (Source: BHIC)
Source: BHIC - April 18, 2016 Category: Databases & Libraries Authors: Kate Flewelling Tags: Health Information Literacy Senior Source Type: blogs
Fight Aging! Newsletter, April 18th 2016
This study confirms that having an apple-shaped body - or a high waist circumference - can lead to heart disease, and that reducing your waist size can reduce your risks."
The results of the new research expands on the results of a previously published study called FaCTor-64, which showed that the greater a person's body mass index, the greater their risk of heart disease. FaCTor-64 enrolled patients with diabetes who were considered to be at high risk for heart attacks, strokes, or death but had no evidence of heart disease as of yet. Study participants completed randomized screening for coronary artery disease by ...
Source: Fight Aging! - April 17, 2016 Category: Research Authors: Reason Tags: Newsletters Source Type: blogs
The Rider Institute Seeks Funding for DRACO Research
Double-stranded RNA activated caspase oligomerizer, DRACO is an antiviral technology that works by destroying infected cells rather than directly attacking viral particles themselves, thus disrupting viral replication. It has proven effective against numerous viruses, and should in principal work against near all viral infections in a broad range of species, including the many persistent viral infections that presently lack any effective treatment. The technology finds itself in a similar position to SENS rejuvenation research however, with little support from the funding mainstream, and needing to raise funds from philant...
Source: Fight Aging! - April 11, 2016 Category: Research Authors: Reason Tags: Daily News Source Type: blogs
It’s time for an honest conversation about pain management
Psoriatic arthritis can be a debilitating condition. It can lead to painful complications such as neuropathy. Its treatments can lead to complications such as shingles, which can leave a patient with continuing pain. Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome is for most patients a painful condition that leads to spontaneous dislocations, early arthritis, and frequent migraines. My husband and I have decades of experience between us in living with these conditions.
My husband and I are also physicians with 57 years experience working with patients between us. We have a world of inside information from both sides of the aisle on the chronic pa...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - March 7, 2016 Category: Journals (General) Authors: Holly Clowers, MD Tags: Meds Pain management Source Type: blogs
4 Tips: Mind and Body Practices for Common Aging-Related Conditions
From National Center for Complementary and Integrative Help
http://1.usa.gov/1nhr7pN
“Mind and body practices, in particular, including relaxation techniques and meditative exercise forms such as yoga, tai chi, and qi gong are being used by older Americans, both for fitness and relaxation, and because of perceived health benefits.” The four conditions addressed in this article are:
Osteoarthritis
Menopausal symptoms
Sleep problems
Shingles (Source: BHIC)
Source: BHIC - March 1, 2016 Category: Databases & Libraries Authors: Annette Parde-Maass Tags: Senior Source Type: blogs
