M.L. Baker

When brought into the exam room, computers act as a kind of third member in the relationship between doctor and patient, concludes a study published in Annals of Family Medicine. Whether the computer enhances or weakens the relationship depends both on how easy it is to use and how skilled physicians are in making use […]

In the wake of large-scale disasters like hurricane Katrina, recovery efforts can take weeks, and tracking human corpses becomes both technically and logistically challenging. Technically, because it may take months between the initial sighting of a corpse and final internment, during which time the body may move multiple times and begin to disintegrate. And logistically […]

Patients and doctors hunting for information about marketed and experimental therapies should now have an easier time, according to the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers & Associations. On March 22, IFPMA launched an Internet search engine that finds information from a collection of databases and allows searchers to input criteria in five languages. Both medicines […]

A new report released by First Consulting Group predicts that health insurers are using health IT to expand their influence over doctors and patients. Increasingly, health plans will use the Internet to reach out to patients directly with tips for staying healthy and keeping costs down. Additionally, health plans help health care providers acquire technology […]

U.S. hospitals are gearing up to scan unconscious and disoriented patients for implanted microchips. To encourage patients to get tagged, VeriChip, the chips maker, plans to give away scanning equipment to hospitals. Because the chips could be scanned without peoples consent or knowledge, the news has sparked visions of a world where a Big Brother […]

If network provider SureScripts gets its way, fax machines will be getting less busy in pharmacies and doctors offices across the nation. Thanks to SureScripts recent agreements with GE Centricity and NextGen, the major national EMR vendors will now let doctors offices send prescriptions to neighborhood pharmacies electronically. Electronic medical records let physicians store and […]

Open-source software will bring down the costs of health information technology and help networks of doctors exchange information. At least thats the conclusion of a new report, here in PDF form, released by the California Health Care Foundation. Previous attempts to use open-source software for health applications failed partly because the technology was not ready […]

In an era of rising costs and dwindling access to experts, IT is untethering doctors from patients physical presence. Already, health care organizations are turning to distant practitioners to interpret radiographs and even to monitor intensive care units. Such practices are not unique opportunities in niche markets, said Robert Wachter, a medical-safety expert at UCSF […]

If the head of Googles philanthropic division gets his wish, an Internet search engine will sniff out early signs of disease outbreaks and other emerging health crises. This month, Larry Brilliant, a maverick tech guru and former WHO physician, received $100,000 and a bully pulpit to help make his wish come true. He was one […]

At a meeting with reporters Feb. 27, Intels head of health IT touted upcoming products, but said that he didnt see how the U.S. market would pay for them. Whats at issue is not whether the technologies would improve care or bring down health care costs, but how insurers, patients, doctors, and employers would foot […]