Big data can benefit rheumatology research. But according to experts at the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting, the data must first be accessible, interoperable and shareable…
Rheumatologists may benefit from the decentralized technology that makes cryptocurrency possible: blockchain. According to Anh L. Ngo, MD, MBA, using blockchain in healthcare may increase payment and purchasing efficiency and revolutionize EHR management…
It’s time to prepare for 2018 MIPS reporting via the Rheumatology Informatics System for Effectiveness (RISE) registry, and the ACR is here to help. To ensure you’re ready to submit your data to the CMS, RISE users should take the following steps: Complete the survey to notify the ACR of your intent to report via…
How will big data mined from huge sample sizes in research cohorts, electronic health records, personal health data (e.g., heart rates from Fitbits) and insurance claim data sets change the way physicians interpret something as simple as complete blood count (CBC) test results for individual patients? According to the authors of a paper in the…
(Reuters Health)—Online socializing may weaken the tie between pain and depression for older people, a U.S. study suggests. People in chronic pain are at risk of depression to start with. When pain makes them stay home more, interacting with friends and family less, it only adds to this risk, the researchers write in the Journals…
The Rheumatology Informatics System for Effectiveness (RISE) registry is a constantly evolving resource, and many valuable offerings are being made available at the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting in Chicago. Here’s a list of things you won’t want to miss: RISE Booth in the Discovery Center Join RISE at the ACR Discovery Center inside the exhibit…
(Reuters Health)—Hospitals that switch from paper to electronic health records may eventually see lower death rates than they had before, but a U.S. study also suggests that fatalities may first increase as the transition gets underway. Researchers examined the degree of digitization and 30-day death rates for patients age 65 and older at 3,249 hospitals…
Technology in medicine is no longer new or trendy. It’s pervasive. Rheumatologists may now assume a patient has searched online for information about his or her diagnosis or potential therapies. Both physicians and rheumatology health professionals should acknowledge their patients’ Internet surfing and find out what they’ve read, says Betsy Roth-Wojcicki, RN, MS, CPNP, an…
CHICAGO—As good an option as hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) is for many patients with rheumatic diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis and especially lupus, safety must be an important consideration, an expert said at this April’s ACR State-of-the-Art Clinical Symposium. The use of the antimalarial has become a controversial subject, with clinicians trying to balance the drug’s disease-modifying…
With the increasing use of electronic health records and quality measure reporting requirements, data collection has become crucial for rheumatologists. But how do clinicians prevent human error and ensure data accuracy?