Telehealth
In response to COVID-19, the health system very quickly brought in new telemedicine tech that has enabled 100,000 video visits between March 13 and May 1.
By the end of March, 33% of behavioral health claims for Optum members were for a telehealth visit, compared to 2% prior to COVID-19.
Though mental health professionals say they're mostly pleased with the rapid shift to phone or video services, most plan to return to in-person care once the dangers from COVID-19 have subsided.
Recent data breaches in digital health platforms have raised awareness for privacy protection and questions over who is responsible.
COVID-19
The pandemic has underlined the importance of nurses working together and ensuring we are better prepared for any future crisis, as highlighted during the 'European Nurses Facing COVID-19' webinar hosted by HIMSS.
Hospital medical staff can stream live footage from inpatient units to nursing stations and initiate patient communication without having to physically enter rooms.
Since mid-March, Dr. Mamdouh Riad has been able to see an average of 30 patients per day via the mobile FaceTime integration and has converted 85-90% of patients to telehealth.
Those are just two areas that will be crucial for health systems adapting to the coronavirus crisis going forward, according to a new study from Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security.
With consumer-centric healthcare, patients have access to their cost and data and, in a post-COVID world, more virtual care.
In a HIMSS20 Digital presentation, leaders from Google Cloud, Nuance and the Health Data Analytics Institute offer their perspectives on how AI-powered insights and automation are helping health systems push forward.