FACTS AND STATS

Why Healthcare Organizations Should Begin Their Zero-Trust Implementations with Identity

Patient data is some of the most valuable information cybercriminals can target, meaning that healthcare organizations are often targeted in cyberattacks. One of the leading areas in cyber exploitation is the use of stolen credentials and account privilege escalation. This type of activity can lead to ransomware, denial of service or other attacks that can compromise healthcare organizations’ networks and potentially impact patient care.
Click here to read the full article

DIGITAL HEALTH

A Digital Twin for the Body: Why Patient Data Consent is Vital

Data gathered from numerous digital touchpoints and interactions may create a complete digital twin for the human body in the not-too-distant future. This would use AI and machine learning to develop personalised healthcare plans, monitor heart rate and diet, and identify areas of concern, effectively creating a predictive maintenance system for the human body. Yet gaining consent from patients for use of their data is critical for the digital twin model to function as intended.
Click here to read the full article

MEDICAL GADGETS

AI-Powered Surgical Robot Excels at Tricky Kidney Stone Procedure

Clinical researchers at Nagoya City University in Japan have tested an AI-powered surgical robot in its ability to assist with percutaneous nephrolithotomy, which is a minimally invasive procedure to remove large kidney stones. The technique involves accessing the kidney through the skin, and typically requires a highly experienced surgeon. The company reports that the robot can assist with needle placement and can calculate needle targeting in a few seconds, using just one X-ray image. In the trial, the robot made the procedure much easier.
Click here to read the full article

Smart Jumpsuit Tracks Motor Development in Children

Researchers at the University of Helsinki in Finland created a smart jumpsuit that can track toddler movements. The idea is to closely monitor motor development and identify any issues early, allowing for earlier interventions. Issues with motor development can be related to wider neurodevelopmental problems, and so tracking a young child’s activity can provide a window into their overall development. 
Click here to read the full article

GLOBAL WATERCOOLER

Healthtech Company Launches Data-driven Insights Platform for Pharmacies in Ghana

mPharma, a healthcare technology company, has launched a new customer-centric product, Facility Insights, on its proprietary data management and pharmacy transformation tool, Bloom. The product will provide Pharmacy owners with tailored data-driven pharmacy insights to solve operational problems and make more informed pharmacy management decisions.
Click here to read the full article

4 Exciting Dutch Healthcare Technology Companies to Watch

The Netherlands has positioned itself as an emerging medtech powerhouse, with more than 1,100 healthcare technology startups. The meteoric rise of the healthtech industry can be attributed to increasing costs for healthcare; the COVID-19 pandemic, which accelerated medical innovations; and the exponential growth of emerging technologies such as data and machine learning, with many exciting applications for the medical field.
Click here to read the full article

Digital Privacy

Google to Wipe User Location History for Visits to Healthcare Clinics, Domestic Violence Shelters

Google says it will automatically delete location logs when it detects visits to abortion clinics and domestic violence shelters. Following the overturning of the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling, which enshrined the right to legal abortion in the United States, there are fears that data collected through search histories, medical tracking apps, and GPS location data, among other technologies, could be used in prosecutions.
Click here to read the full article

Health Tech Companies are Scrambling to Close Data Privacy Gaps after Abortion Ruling

In the wake of the Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, reproductive health data in medical records is vulnerable to legal requests in states that have criminalized abortion, or will soon. But there are even fewer protections in place for the digital footprints left outside the doctor’s office — and health tech companies are grappling with what to do about it.
Click here to read the full article

Americans are Being Urged to Delete Period Tracking Apps. Should Canadians Do the Same?

Digital privacy experts say the concerns over period tracking apps should also be a wake-up call to Canadians about the way they log their own sensitive health data online. There have been calls on social media for American women to delete period tracking apps from their phones since the U.S. Supreme Court's draft decision on Roe v. Wade was leaked in early May. The concern is that data from a period tracker, as well as other sources of information, could help build a case that a woman had an illegal abortion.
Click here to read the full article

Supreme Court’s Decision on Abortion Sparks Health Tech’s Cambridge Analytica Moment

In 2018, the tech industry found itself in a harsh spotlight amid a scandal involving a company called Cambridge Analytica, which had collected and used the data of millions of Facebook users, seemingly without their consent. It prompted a public outcry, congressional hearings, a $5 billion fine, and permanently altered the discourse around how social media firms use data. In the wake of a Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade, health data privacy is getting its own Cambridge Analytica moment.
Click here to read the full article

News From Canada

New Website Provides Regular Performance Updates on Nova Scotia Healthcare System

Nova Scotians now have a regular window into the performance of the province's healthcare system. The information, which was previously available internally, can be broken down by health zone and specific hospitals, and will be updated daily, weekly, quarterly or yearly, depending on the field.
Click here to read the full article

Winnipeg-Made Virtual Doctor Service Creating More Access to Healthcare

QDoc is a new free Winnipeg-made online tool that connects users with a doctor through a webcam in roughly 15 minutes. The goal is to match each patient with a local physician in their area, whether it’s a pediatrician or an OBGYN.
Click here to read the full article

Canadian Tech Entrepreneurs, Investors Call on Support for Workers Affected by Roe V. Wade Ruling

A group of Canadian tech entrepreneurs and investors have signed an open letter calling on employers of United States (US) workers to offer support for those affected by the US Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. Since the Supreme Court made the ruling last week, the NPR reported that abortion is now criminalized in at least 11 states. MaRS Discovery District senior vice president of venture services Krista Jones published an open letter on LinkedIn with at least 50 signatures from Canadian women in tech.
Click here to read the full article

Wearable Technology Access Centre Situated at Centennial College in Toronto

In an effort to accelerate support to players in the rapidly evolving digital health technology market in Toronto, Canada and beyond – a number of key stakeholders from industry and funding partners formed WIMTACH. In long-form, Wearable, Interactive and Mobile Technology Access Centre in Health is an applied research centre at Centennial College Progress campus in Scarborough Ontario.
Click here to read the full article

Niagara Health System Chooses Enterprise-Wide Imaging Solution from Sectra to Improve Patient Care

International medical imaging IT and cybersecurity company Sectra has signed a contract with Niagara Health System. Niagara Health will utilize the radiology and cardiology modules as well as the vendor-neutral archive (VNA) of Sectra's enterprise imaging solution. The solution will support Niagara Health's growing imaging demands and provide efficient workflows to improve diagnostics and patient care within the Niagara region.
Click here to read the full article

TELUS Health Supports Two Million Canadians with Access to their Own Digital Personal Health Record

 TELUS Health today announced that it has reached the significant milestone of providing two million Canadians with access to their own digital personal health record, allowing them greater access to and control of their own health information. TELUS Health’s Personal Health Record (PHR) technology are digital records provided to citizens to ensure they have a single point of access to their own health data, including test results and trends, immunization records, and biometrics such as blood pressure, blood glucose levels, and height and weight which can all be uploaded by the user or from a digital health device.
Click here to read the full article

Know. Learn. Implement. SUBSCRIBE to the Longwoods eLetter.