Shaw's Eco-Logic

Health care information technology: Is "IT" the answer?

One of the most highly publicized aspects of Obamacare involves the forced implementation of Electronic Health Records (EHRs). Billions of dollars have been set aside to encourage health care providers to develop "meaningful use" of EHRs.

My latest HND piece takes a hard look at EHRs, and the general impact of technology on health care. I note, for example, that health care is the only field of endeavor whereby technology has increased, rather than decreased costs. I delve into the dark side of why the government is really pushing EHR implementation, and how they are missing the boat on monitoring outcomes.

Also included is a plug for an up-and-coming computer tech support company, based in New England.

Read the complete article.

Why Facebook doesn't have any friends

There are numerous articles on the Web about the Facebook IPO fiasco, which ended up making money for only a very few insiders. I had wondered—from the outset—how the geniuses behind this social networking giant figured on monetizing their website.

The secret way, of course, would be to sell private user information to businesses. The public way would just be to sell advertising. How original!

Compare search engine advertising, which targets people actually looking for a particular product or service to Facebook's plan, which at best can only target vague demographics, who may or may not have any intention of buying anything. And, as it is, with more users accessing Facebook via smart phones, the ad possibilities are even more limited.

More than that, people are making way too much of all this personal data coming from Facebook's users. What, pray tell, is a marketer really going to do with it? Perhaps the technology does exist to intercept messages indicating an imminent purchase, which will then broadcast a relevant ad at that moment. How do you think the average consumer would react to such an incredibly intrusive move?

Advertising is only tolerated when it can be ignored, and that proverb seems to have been lost on the brain trust. Maybe Zuckerberg should propose a paid version of Facebook with no ads. Then, we would see just how essential Facebook really is. At least the spammers "like" it.

Networking your health care

A recent HND piece examines the interaction between health records, computer networks, and security. As with most overarching federal mandates, HIPAA, HITECH, and the like are quite flawed. Big surprise.

As to security...good luck. You'll especially like the findings from a survey done as few years ago by Palo Alto Networks. As I say in the piece: "Sadly, no matter how robust the security, the most likely source of breaches tends to be from the inside, and not all of them are necessarily malicious."

And, no matter how high your estimate of employees wasting bandwidth on non-business activities, I'll bet you're wrong, based on the Palo Alto Networks report.

Read the complete article.

Cyber crime and health

That's the title of my latest HND offering.

We take a look at how "deals" from online pharmacies might not be as great as they first seem, and discover the source of product for one of them. (A nurse who was ripping off her hospital's pharmacy)

Then, there are always charity frauds, bogus work-at-home-schemes, and wrongful "cures."

Also some good news from fraud expert Joshua McAfee (nephew of famed computer virus fighter John McAfee), and VP of SecureFraud.

Read the complete article.

Telecommunications can improve health care

That's the title of my latest HND piece. If knowledge really is power, then we should be taking full advantage of the Information Superhighway to improve public health.

The good news is that a number of positive things are happening in this regard, and I examine three key facets...

• Obtaining accurate and high-quality health information on the Internet
• Using telemedicine to improve patient care—especially in rural areas
• Employing cloud telephony in clinical settings

Read the complete article.

Mobilizing good health

My latest HND piece shines the spotlight on the world of mobile health apps. Thousands of these apps are currently available, and they range from counting calories to remote patient monitoring, whereby a physician can keep tabs on your health condition.

I check in with Mark Stetler of AppMuse—a company that matches would-be app purveyors with suitable developers—to get a bead on where this field is headed. Also included are a few remarks from the usual naysayers.

Read the complete article.

Yes, there really is such a thing as green broadband

Contrary to what Kermit the Frog once said, it IS easy being green, mainly because there is no accepted definition of the term. To cite but one example, how was it ever decreed that reusable shopping bags are green?

Even though some of them are made from recycled materials (although the percentage is not easily determined), all of them are derived from petroleum, and are manufactured in what overall cannot be a benign or low-energy process. Then, millions of them are shipped over here from China, at a cost of still more energy and carbon emissions.

They don't last forever, of course, and are then discarded—mostly to landfills, while conventional grocery bags are easily recycled.

Yet, because they are visible and are used by self-affirmed trendsetters, they have become a symbol for environmental stewardship.

Traditional broadband requires laying fiber or cable and the attendant energy and pollution costs. Broadband over power line (BPL), however, allows already in-place power lines to be the conduit, and this is green by anyone's reasoning.

One innovative company in this space is Gridline Communications, coming off successful projects in Africa, Latin America, Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico. CEO Terry Dillon speaks of his company's new intellectual property that will have "disruptive impact" (in a good way) on BPL.

A recent HND article covers green broadband, the smart grid, and smart meters. Check it out.