Health Info

HHS Finalizes Rule to Advance Health IT Interoperability and Algorithm Transparency

The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) through the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) today finalized its Health Data, Technology, and Interoperability: Certification Program Updates, Algorithm Transparency, and Information Sharing (HTI-1) rule. This follows the release of the HTI-1 proposed rule in April 2023. The HTI-1 final rule advances patient access, interoperability, and standards, including the following:

  • Transparency Algorithm: Establishes first of its kind transparency requirements for the artificial intelligence (AI) and other predictive algorithms that are part of certified health IT. ONC-certified health IT supports the care delivered by more than
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Biomarkers at midlife may predict cognitive decline

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Experts say cognitive abilities in older age may be influenced by brain health in midlife. Nata Segueza/Stocksy
  • Researchers report that cognitive functioning in midlife might provide insights to brain health later in life.
  • They say that staying physically healthy by adopting lifestyle habits such as not smoking, exercising regularly, eating properly, and participating in social activities can improve brain health.
  • They note that keeping the cardiorespiratory system healthy is essential to brain health.

Cognitive function and health in midlife – ages 40 to 65 – might provide clues to brain health later in life, according to a

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Health Info

The mental health app data privacy problem is getting worse

Mental health apps have become increasingly common over the past few years, particularly due to the rise in telehealth during the coronavirus pandemic.

However, there’s a problem: Data privacy is being compromised in the process.

“Data is incredibly profitable in the digital space,” Darrell West, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, told Yahoo Finance. “That’s how companies are making their money. Many large companies derive a substantial part of their revenue from advertising. People want to target their ads on particular people and particular problems. So there’s the risk that if you have a mental health condition linked to depression,

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Health Info

Microsoft adds Cloud for Healthcare data and AI enhancements

New tools announced this week enable Microsoft Cloud for Healthcare users to access, analyze and visualize data-driven insights across their organization through Fabric architecture, find multilingual support for text analytics, and leverage three new artificial intelligence models in Azure.

The cloud provider also said more users will have the chance to try Azure AI Health Bot, a generative artificial intelligence assistant that can glean information from unstructured text, while select partners using Fabric will have a chance to preview de-identification services.

WHY IT MATTERS

Microsoft announced Tuesday that new data and AI capabilities will help healthcare organizations improve patient experiences,

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South Korea enables access to 113 personal health data via My HealthWay

South Korea’s Ministry of Health and Welfare is officially launching My HealthWay, a national platform serving as a “health information highway” for individuals’ personal health records.

Based on a press statement, the platform aggregates a person’s health information from various sources, providing a single view of those data. It also allows individuals to store and enable the transfer of their health data with their consent.

WHY IT MATTERS

Previously, patients could only access some of their health information, including vaccination history, health checkup, treatment records, and medical history, which are all held by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency,

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COP28 Health Pavilion

WHO in collaboration with the Wellcome Trust and partners hosted the Health Pavilion at the COP28 UN Climate Conference, taking place in Dubai, the UAE, from 30 November to 12 December 2023. The Health Pavilion convened the global health community and key stakeholders across various sectors to ensure health and equity are placed at the center of climate negotiations. It offered a rich 2-week program of events showcasing evidence, initiatives and solutions to maximize the health benefits of tackling climate change across regions, sectors and communities.

COP28 Health Pavilion was located in the Thematic Arena 2 in the Blue Zone

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Patient safety

Overview

“First, do no harm” is the most fundamental principle of any health care service. No one should be harmed in health care; however, there is compelling evidence of a huge burden of avoidable patient harm globally across the developed and developing health care systems. This has major human, moral, ethical and financial implications.

Patient safety is defined as “the absence of preventable harm to a patient and reduction of risk of unnecessary harm associated with health care to an acceptable minimum.” Within the broader health system context, it is “a framework of organized activities that creates cultures, processes, procedures,

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