Self proclaimed the, “oldest guy with a computer science degree,” John Rushby with SRI International started the second day with a presentation on Accidental Systems. Using aviation as a model, Rushby discussed interactive complexity and system failures. Exploring the causes of accidents, Rushby noted, “that sufficiently complex systems can produce accidents without a simple cause.” […]
Baxter just can't seem to get a break. Just 4 months after their Colleague pump comes off ship hold (more here), Baxter and the FDA announce new recalls.
The FDA upgraded Baxter's recall of the 3 channel Colleague pump to a Class I recall (the most serious) for a software bug. Here's Baxter's press release and […]
Jay Srini, VP, Emerging Technologies, UPMC and Vince Kuraitis, Principal, Better Health Technologies, opened the conference.
Srini provided an update on the demographic tsunami represented by the aging population. Statistics show health care prevention has not worked. Over the last 10 years there has been a steady increase in obesity and diabetes. This is […]
FierceHealthIT notes a new CDC study on ED overcrowding - it's getting worse.
Emergency department visits hit a new high in 2005, with more than
115 million visits, says new research from the CDC. That's a jump of
five million visits over the previous year, and a substantial 20
percent increase over 10 years.
Over the same time period, […]
According to a survey by CHIME, more hospitals are reducing restrictions on cell phones.
Twenty-three percent of the 185 survey respondents reported their organization has lifted all restrictions on mobile phone use, up 5.5% from a similar survey conducted by the Ann Arbor, Mich.-based organization in 2004. Only 11 respondents, or 6%, […]
The following is a continuation from the the Improving Patient Safety through Medical Device Interoperability and High Confidence Software joint workshop last week in Boston. I’ve got a bunch more notes that I’ll be tweaking and posting this week. This next bit is from a panel discussion that described the need for high confidence systems […]
After the break, Julian Goldman provided a brief update on the MD PnP program.
First, Goldman presented ways integrated systems can support safety, using examples from non-healthcare applications. The classic example from Goldman’s stump speech is the automotive brake/automatic transmission interlock, an almost universal interoperable safety feature.
Safety Inter-locks
From aviation, the airplane landing gear smart alarm […]
Respironics was showing Respi-Link, remote monitoring capabilities through an RS232 serial port. The biomed must take the device down to their shop and connect it to a computer that runs a special Respironics client. Through this connection, users can download firmware updates and do run some diagnostics. Respironics is using Axeda for this feature, and […]
The day kicked off with a two part session on “Applying Real-Time Integration in the OR.” The presenters started with “blood and guts” anesthesiologist, Warren Sandberg. He noted that the surgery department has limited - and frequently constrained - resources. He described the value of extending data beyond the location
What Sandberg’s describing is more than […]
Siemens Communications and Ekahau announce a strategic relationship, “By adding Ekahau's RTLS and site survey solutions to its HiPath
Wireless portfolio, Siemens enables companies to benefit not only from
user mobility but also from the cost-effective integration of asset and
people tracking in their business processes.” Siemens HiPath Wireless is their rebranded Chantry Networks acquisition.
The Ekahau Positioning […]
