Activ Surgical Granted Third U.S. Patent for ActivSight™ Imaging Module - Activ Surgical
Author: Tom Calef, CTO, Activ Surgical
Today marks yet another milestone in Activ Surgical’s history as we announce that the company was issued its third patent from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for our ActivSightTM interoperable imaging module. The ActivSight module is designed to interface with existing vision systems to enable surgeons to view in real-time critical physiological structures and functions, like blood flow, that cannot be seen with the naked eye while in the operating room.
Our first U.S. patent for the ActivSight imaging module was issued in March of 2021, with a second patent granted in November 2021. This third patent – U.S. Patent No. 11,206,991 – was issued in December 2021 and protects our proprietary system and methods for processing laser speckle signals, which are currently delivered via the ActivSight module. This patent protects our intellectual property that provides intraoperative visual data and images on blood flow and perfusion not currently available to surgeons through existing technologies. The three patents are mission-critical for Activ Surgical and bring us one step closer to our goal of enhancing patient outcomes and democratizing surgical care around the world. I am incredibly proud of our staff, particularly the inventors of this technology, John Oberlin and Manny DeMaio. As a company, we have many patents pending for our inventions worldwide, which cements our position as a disruptor in the digital surgery space. Stay tuned for more news from Activ Surgical as we march towards commercial availability of the ActivSight module later this year.
VirtualHealth & WebMD Team Up to Deliver Krames Health Education
VirtualHealth, the industry-leading SaaS solution for comprehensive medical management, today announced a partnership with WebMD Provider Services, which helps health systems and plans build enduring relationships and educate individuals at every stage in their health care journey, from discovery to recovery. Together, VirtualHealth and WebMD Provider Services will enable health plans to coach their high- and rising-risk members in care management with direct access to Krames’ trusted, industry-leading multimedia health information through VirtualHealth’s HELIOS® platform.
Through VirtualHealth’s partnership with WebMD Provider Services, care managers will be able to provide health plan members with Krames evidence-based, medically reviewed, and motivating health education materials from within VirtualHealth’s leading care management system, HELIOS®.
“Delivering personalized healthcare at scale is the future and we’re committed to making it a reality by reaching consumers at every point of their care journey with content contextualized for that moment,” said Ann Bilyew, Senior Vice President Health and Group General Manager, WebMD Provider Services. “By partnering with VirtualHealth, WebMD Provider Services advances health plans’ goals of member-centered health care, improving the member experience, empowering better population outcomes, and assisting in lowering the total cost of care.”
WebMD Provider Services activates the member health journey through Krames print, digital, and video content integrated into care management workflows. Krames’ evidence-based, clinically reviewed, culturally appropriate, and personalized health education builds deeper, enduring relationships that retain and attract members, supporting improved quality measures, member satisfaction scores, plan accreditation, and higher ratings.
Read the release in its entirety here.
About VirtualHealth
HELIOS® by VirtualHealth is the first comprehensive care management platform purpose-built to power the entire ecosystem of value-based care. Utilized by some of the most innovative health plans in the country to manage millions of members, HELIOS streamlines person-centered care with intelligent case, disease, and utilization management workflows, unmatched data integration, broad-spectrum collaboration, patient engagement, and configurable analytics and reporting. Named one of the fastest-growing companies in North America by Deloitte in 2018 and 2019 and a top-rated solution by KLAS Research, VirtualHealth empowers healthcare organizations to achieve enhanced outcomes while maximizing efficiency, improving transparency, and lowering costs. For more information, visit www.virtualhealth.com.
About WebMD Provider Services
WebMD Provider Services, a division of WebMD Health Corp., is a strategic partner to health systems and payers, offering a unified engagement experience for patients across their entire health journey from discovery to recovery. Through extensive health information audience reach, health care provider networks, medically-reviewed patient education content and deep integration into patient touchpoints, WebMD Provider Services supports health systems and payers in building deeper, enduring relationships with patients. The results are streamlined clinical and care management processes that enable better member and patient outcomes.
About WebMD Health Corp.
WebMD, an Internet Brands company, is at the heart of the digital health revolution that is transforming the healthcare experience for consumers, patients, healthcare professionals, employers, health plans and health systems. Through public and private online portals, mobile platforms, and health-focused publications, WebMD delivers leading-edge content and digital services that enable and improve decision-making, support and motivate health actions, streamline and simplify the healthcare journey, and improve patient care.
The WebMD Health Network includes WebMD Health, Medscape, Jobson Healthcare Information, MediQuality, Frontline, Vitals Consumer Services, Aptus Health, Krames, PulsePoint, The Wellness Network, SanovaWorks, MedicineNet, eMedicineHealth, RxList, OnHealth, Medscape Education, and other owned WebMD sites. WebMD®, Medscape®, CME Circle®, Medpulse®, eMedicine®, MedicineNet®, theheart.org® and RxList® are among the trademarks of WebMD Health Corp. or its subsidiaries.
VillageMD Welcomes Velda Rose Medical Center and Expands its Footprint in the Phoenix Area
CHICAGO and MESA, Az. – June 14, 2022 – VillageMD announced today it acquired Velda Rose Medical Center, a primary care practice founded by Mark Goldberg, M.D. Patients in the Mesa and Phoenix area can visit Dr. Goldberg and his care team, including Michael Demko, DO, David Izenberg, DO, Uma Gopakumar, DNP, Leslie Stumpff, LMSW, and Kyle Hunsaker, PA, at Village Medical later this summer.
“At VillageMD, we’re continuing to grow in our communities with trusted physicians along with their experienced care teams to offer increased access to high-quality primary care,” said Paul Martino, co-founder and chief growth officer of VillageMD. “We’re thrilled to welcome Dr. Goldberg and his team to Village Medical.”
Village Medical offers a comprehensive suite of primary care services including preventative care, treatment for illness and injury, and management of chronic conditions such as diabetes, congestive heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and kidney disease. Phoenix and Mesa patients can learn more about the services here.
“I’m excited to join Village Medical and continue the comprehensive, compassionate care for our patients. I also look forward to welcoming new patients who are looking for comprehensive primary care right in their community,” said Dr. Goldberg, who has more than 30 years of experience as a practicing physician in the East Valley community. “I believe your healthcare experience should be accessible and personal and that’s exactly what Village Medical offers their patients.”
The well-established primary care practice will continue to offer comprehensive primary care services in Mesa while also offering enhanced technology and support for their clinicians.
Village Medical patients have access to same-day appointments and virtual health visits with a Village Medical provider. Additionally, Village Medical patients will be able to take advantage of Village Medical at Home, which provides in-home primary care visits with experienced primary care providers. Village Medical patients also benefit from VillageMD’s patent-pending docOS® operating platform, which helps care teams identify and close gaps in care and helps patients be better informed about their health and care.
To learn more, make an appointment or view all Village Medical locations, please visit www.villagemedical.com.
About VillageMD
VillageMD, through its subsidiary Village Medical, is a leading, national provider of value-based primary care services. VillageMD partners with physicians to provide the tools, technology, operations, staffing support and industry relationships to deliver high-quality clinical care and better patient outcomes, while reducing the total cost of care. The Village Medical brand provides primary care for patients at traditional free-standing practices, Village Medical at Walgreens practices, at home and via virtual visits. VillageMD and Village Medical have grown to 22 markets and are responsible for more than 1.6 million patients. VillageMD is a leading participant in CMS innovation programs and will apply to participate in the upcoming ACO REACH model, which helps providers deliver better outcomes for patients and create healthier communities through value-based care. To learn more, please visit www.villageMD.com.
Bridge Patient Portal Launches its Next-Generation Telehealth Solution
DALLAS, TX, January 07, 2021 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Bridge Patient Portal today announced the launch of its new telehealth solution that leverages Zoom for Healthcare. The addition of telehealth functionality further expands the company's suite of patient engagement features and was developed to meet the increasingly complex needs of patients and health systems for interconnected virtual care during and after the pandemic.
The healthcare industry has witnessed a surge in the acquisition of telehealth tools in an effort to quickly react to urgent and unexpected demand in 2020. However, current platforms don't connect different touch points along the patient journey or offer long-term solutions that integrate with companies' existing digital tools. Bridge was approached by its clients to develop a HIPAA-compliant telehealth solution with high-quality video as part of the larger patient engagement ecosystem, whereby a patient can book a video visit which integrates with other features such as appointment scheduling, intake, bill pay, and secure messaging, all through the same platform.
How It Works
Bridge connects with a provider's electronic health record (EHR) and revenue cycle management (RCM) system(s) to allow patients to request a telehealth encounter by selecting the provider, date, and type of appointment. Once confirmed, Zoom creates a unique video visit room code for that appointment, and an email confirmation plus notification reminders are triggered at preset intervals before the appointment.
Before the appointment begins, the patient will receive a secure notification with a link to the portal that allows them to securely join the Zoom meeting, with all of Zoom's same familiar functionality. This Zoom link can also be integrated into Bridge's intake module, providing patients with a seamless virtual visit experience.
The platform's newest feature can be purchased as an add-on module to Bridge's base Patient Portal product.
"We're excited to launch a fully automated telehealth solution different from anything else on the market. What makes Bridge unique is that our telehealth module is part of a comprehensive patient engagement platform with an interconnected suite of features such as self-scheduling, appointment reminders, bill pay, secure messaging and intake. This allows providers to take a holistic approach to telehealth and develop automated, custom workflows for greater efficiency, and provide patients with a single point of access from start-to-finish for everything from booking an appointment to messaging with their provider after a visit," said John Deutsch, CEO of Bridge Patient Portal.
As telehealth becomes even more mainstream, Bridge is committed to further developing its solution to address the healthcare industry's needs for improved health and economic outcomes. This latest feature advances Bridge's position as an all-in-one patient engagement platform that provides in-demand and easy-to-use solutions across the entire patient journey--from pre-visit appointment scheduling and intake to post-encounter bill pay and prescription refills.
About Bridge Patient Portal
Bridge Patient Portal is an enterprise patient portal and engagement solution that empowers patients with self-service tools to better manage their care. The platform is client-branded and ideal for health organizations seeking to replace their existing online portals or connect to disparate EHR environments with a single, EHR-neutral patient portal platform, available on desktop, iOS, and Android. Founded in 2012 and headquartered in Dallas, Texas, Bridge Patient Portal has installations in many of healthcare's leading practices, hospitals, and health systems nationwide. For more information, visit https://www.bridgepatientportal.com/ or call 800-467-2321.
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HBCUs, Industry Partners Launch Initiative to Diversify and Strengthen Cybersecurity Workforce
HBCUs, Industry Partners Launch Initiative to Diversify and Strengthen Cybersecurity Workforce
- Advancing Minorities' Interest in Engineering's HBCU Cybersecurity Industry Collaboration Initiative Pilot launches this year, bringing together four schools and three Fortune 100 corporate partners
- Initiative aims to strengthen HBCU cybersecurity programming while developing diverse pipeline of cybersecurity career-ready students
- Effort begins with nearly 600,000 open cybersecurity positions in the U.S. job market
, /PRNewswire/ -- To address the urgent cybersecurity talent needs in the U.S., Advancing Minorities' Interest in Engineering (AMIE) announced a new collaboration to support cybersecurity education at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).
Together with industry partners Abbott, Microsoft and Raytheon Technologies, the HBCU Cybersecurity Industry Collaboration Initiative Pilot aims to build curriculum capacity within HBCU engineering schools, positioning them as premier national academic institutions for cybersecurity, while creating a strong workforce of students well-prepared for the world's essential cybersecurity careers. The initiative expects to support HBCUs through curriculum development, research collaboration, faculty support and other resources.
Right now, there are nearly 600,000 open cybersecurity jobs in the U.S. and experts anticipate there will be 3.5 million cybersecurity jobs open globally by 2025.
"Our hope is that the initiative will enhance cybersecurity programming at HBCUs, helping connect students, especially African-American students, with opportunities to pursue cybersecurity certifications and degrees," said Veronica L. Nelson, AMIE's executive director. "This effort couldn't come at a more critical time. The U.S. greatly needs skilled cybersecurity workers. HBCU Engineering Schools represent a rich pipeline of untapped, diverse talent."
The 15 Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET)-accredited HBCU Schools of Engineering produce more than 30% of the African-American engineers in the U.S. while representing less than 3% of the engineering universities in the U.S. Data from the U.S.
Department of Labor show Blacks and African-Americans make up only 11.8% of information security analysts in the U.S.
The initiative's pilot incorporates expertise and support from Abbott, Microsoft and Raytheon Technologies with the goal of aligning business needs to the pilot schools' cybersecurity curricula and research capabilities. The four HBCU pilot engineering schools of the 15 member schools of the Council of HBCU Engineering Deans are Hampton University, North Carolina A&T State University, Prairie View A&M University, and Virginia State University.
- Professionals from Abbott, Microsoft and Raytheon Technologies will be guest lecturers, participate in mentoring programs and meet with faculty to better understand existing strengths and collaborate toward educating more cybersecurity professionals to help address the nation's talent gap.
- Microsoft is providing funding and support as part of its Cybersecurity Skills Initiative.
- Abbott is providing funding and hosting two Prairieview A&M University cybersecurity students for customized intern experiences during summer 2022.
- Raytheon Technologies is providing funding and works with local students to showcase their cyber capabilities and provide opportunities for students to explore cyber careers.
"With the complete integration of Industry 4.0 or 'smart' technologies into so many aspects of our lives, VSU now sees almost every company we work with needing cybersecurity-trained professionals to secure their products, services, and their business operations," said Dr. Dawit Haile, Dean of the College of Engineering and Technology at Virginia State University. "This includes industries that we never would have previously considered in this context, like manufacturing, construction, and energy. VSU understands that cybersecurity skills are now part of a critical core knowledge base and we are committed to deliver a strong pipeline of students who are well-prepared in this area."
The pilot will run through the end of 2022 with the goal of extending the initiative to the remaining 11 ABET-accredited HBCU Schools of Engineering in the future: Alabama A&M University, Florida A&M University, Howard University, Jackson State University, Morgan State University, Norfolk State University, Southern University, Tennessee State University, Tuskegee University, University of Maryland Eastern Shore and the University of the District of Columbia.
"In today's digital-first world, skilled cybersecurity workers are critical to ensuring the safety of our enterprise as well as the products and technologies we provide people to live better, healthier lives," said Sabina Ewing, Chief Information Officer, Abbott. "That's why, as a founding member of Advancing Minorities' Interest in Engineering, Abbott supports efforts like the HBCU Cybersecurity Industry Collaboration Initiative Pilot, which develops HBCU talent to build a diverse, innovative workforce that will meet the demands of today and tomorrow."
"We are excited to embark on this collaboration with AMIE to broaden education in cybersecurity at HBCUs," said Valecia Maclin, Microsoft Partner, Strategic Cloud Solutions, and AMIE board member. "The pre-eminent role that HBCUs play in graduating the best and brightest engineering talent in the U.S. coupled with our passion to extend global cybersecurity skilling is a unique collaboration and critical for the time that we are in. As part of our commitment to address America's cybersecurity workforce shortage, we look forward to working together to create a workforce that represents the diversity of our society."
"Closing the enormous cybersecurity skills gap and driving diversity in our talent pipeline are critical business imperatives for our company and industry," said Shanda Hinton, Chief Diversity Officer, Raytheon Technologies. "This alliance offers real world education, experience and mentorship opportunities to HBCU engineering students to help cultivate the next generation of cyber defenders."
About Advancing Minorities' Interest in Engineering:
Advancing Minorities' Interest in Engineering (AMIE) is a nonprofit coalition of corporations, government agencies and the 15 ABET-accredited Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) Schools of Engineering. AMIE's purpose is to expand corporate and government alliances with the HBCU engineering programs to increase diversity in the engineering workforce. AMIE's commitment to fostering partnerships that attract, develop, recruit and graduate minorities in engineering has been its ongoing focus since its founding in 1992. Find out more about our efforts at www.amiepartnerships.org.
About Abbott:
Abbott is a global healthcare leader that helps people live more fully at all stages of life. Our portfolio of life-changing technologies spans the spectrum of healthcare, with leading businesses and products in diagnostics, medical devices, nutritionals and branded generic medicines. Our 113,000 colleagues serve people in more than 160 countries. Connect at www.abbott.com.
About Microsoft:
Microsoft (Nasdaq "MSFT" @microsoft) enables digital transformation for the era of an intelligent cloud and an intelligent edge. Its mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more.
About Raytheon Technologies:
Raytheon Technologies Corporation is an aerospace and defense company that provides advanced systems and services for commercial, military and government customers worldwide. With four industry-leading businesses ― Collins Aerospace Systems, Pratt & Whitney, Raytheon Intelligence & Space and Raytheon Missiles & Defense ― the company delivers solutions that push the boundaries in avionics, cybersecurity, directed energy, electric propulsion, hypersonics and quantum physics. The company, formed in 2020 through the combination of Raytheon Company and the United Technologies Corporation aerospace businesses, is headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts.
SOURCE Advancing Minorities' Interest in Engineering
For further information: Media: Michelle Horn, Microsoft, 917-363-1742, michellehorn@microsoft.com; Microsoft Media Relations, WE Communications, 425-638-7777, rapidresponse@we-worldwide.com
Apixio’s New Apicare AuthAdvisor Leverages Machine Learning, Predictive Decision-Making to Automate Approvals & Reduce Manual Workload by more than 50%
AI-Driven Solution Uses Historical Decision Data to Build Custom Data Model & Automate Approvals
SAN MATEO, Calif., March 1, 2022 – Apixio, Inc., the healthcare analytics company, today announced the launch of its new Apicare AuthAdvisor, which uses machine learning and predictive analytics to automate prior authorization decisions for payers. By leveraging historical decision data, AuthAdvisor automates approval for payers, medical benefit managers, and other vendors to deliver decisions within seconds rather than days, and reduces manual reviews by over 50%.
According to the Council for Affordable Quality Healthcare (CAQH),” the cost to complete a prior authorization remains the single highest cost for the healthcare industry at $13.40 per manual transaction and $7.19 per partially electronic web portal transaction”. Not only is it costly, but it is also an administrative burden with manual reviews sometimes taking days or weeks, which delays patient treatments, creates obstacles to care, and potentially negatively impacts clinical outcomes.
Apixio’s AuthAdvisor solves these problems by automatically approving diagnostics and procedures based on historical data and decisions made by the provider and payer.
“This is a new way to use data science to accelerate one of the most burdensome aspects of healthcare delivery,” said Apixio CEO Sachin Patel. “AuthAdvisor relies on the accuracy of an organization’s past decisions to process approvals, rather than relying on rules-based approaches that are tedious to maintain and often result in a high number of manual reviews. With AuthAdvisor, approvals are delivered at the speed and scale that today’s high-performance healthcare environments demand.”
With Apixio’s Apicare AuthAdvisor solution, organizations can:
- Drive cost savings by reducing the volume of unnecessary reviews with automated decisions driven by our AI models
- Fine-tune thresholds with user-enabled controls on a procedure-by-procedure basis
- Deliver immediate results by deploying into existing workflows through APIs
- Enhance provider and member satisfaction with timely feedback on requests
“The AuthAdvisor system is transparent and customizable, giving payers and benefits managers the visibility and flexibility they need to feel confident in the decisions being made,” Patel said. “The latest addition to our AI platform, this technology has the potential to not only save tremendous time and money but also greatly improve care delivery and member satisfaction for millions of Americans.”
AuthAdvisor is already active in 16 states, automating authorization requests for over 4,000 different procedures. Apixio will be showcasing its value-based care platform, including Apicare AuthAdvisor, at both RISE National on March 7-9 in Nashville and HIMSS 2022 at booth #1579 on March 14-18 in Orlando.
To learn more about the Apicare AuthAdivsor solution, visit www.apixio.com/apicare-authadvisor/.
About Apixio
Apixio is advancing healthcare with data-driven intelligence and analytics. Our Artificial Intelligence platform gives organizations across the healthcare spectrum the power to mine clinical information at scale, creating novel insights that will change the way healthcare is measured, care is delivered, and discoveries are made. Learn more at www.apixio.com.
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MEDIA CONTACT:
Kerri Taranto
Next PR
267-589-9159
ktaranto@nextpr.com