November 26, 2018:  From major players, like Google, to earlier-stage ABBY Award competitors – using Big (Health) Data, telemedicine, software, and collaboration apps to lower the cost of quality care – the health IT gold rush is on.

Google recently hired David Feinberg, MD, to head their Health Strategy division. Feinberg previously ran UCLA Health and, more recently, Geisinger Health in Pennsylvania (which operates 13 hospitals, over 40 clinics, an HMO, the Commonwealth School of Medicine, and two research centers). So why would Google recruit one of healthcare’s superstars to head their initiatives to tap some of the $3.5 trillion spent annually in healthcare?

As Robbie Pearl, MD, the former CEO of the (Kaiser) Permanente Medical Group, speculated in a recent Forbes article: there are five opportunity areas that Google might “seize upon” under Dr. Feinberg’s Google Health leadership. First: home automation gadgets that will enable seniors to live more safely at home – think digital doorbells, thermostats, and home security. Second: using self-driving cars to help solve a senior’s transportation issues, like getting to the doctor’s office. Third, using Big Data to improve patient health. For example, Geisinger impressively used technology to keep medical tabs on every single patient within its three-million-person catchment area. Fourth, investing in the next gen of wearables and trackers – more than “jewelry,” they’d actually alert their wearers as to whether they’re OK – or not. And, fifth, to become a world leader in AI – using artificial intelligence to make better diagnoses, and potentially eliminate an estimated 30% of care delivery that’s been proven to provide no value.

Fortunately, you don’t need to be a $110.9 billion revenue company to be a health IT innovator. In fact, eight of this year’s 10 Innovations in Healthcare ABBY Award Finalists are. For example… READ REST OF BLOG >>>