As in other industries, cyberattacks are of the utmost concern in the healthcare sector. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights, data breaches have steadily increased over the last several years, and in 2020 there were more than there had ever been -- 642. Further, those statistics, which [...]
Blockchain, a decentralized, tamper-proof digital ledger, is most often associated with cryptocurrencies, but in reality it has wide application, extending to such fields as content distribution, real estate and even elections. There are those who believe, however, that healthcare looms as the ultimate use case for blockchain -- that its impact will be felt by [...]
Data, once called “the new oil,” continues to flood the digital pipeline. In 2010 two zettabytes of data were created, copied, captured, or consumed around the world, according to Statista, but that total is expected to mushroom to 74 zettabytes in 2021, then double by 2024. The need to refine, analyze and evaluate all that [...]
Telehealth has been a transformative option during the COVID-19 pandemic, allowing new forms of access to care even when in-person visits were impossible. Of course, given the sensitivity of personal health data, telehealth security was also a much-discussed topic during the pandemic. While telehealth rose to the occasion, their convenience and portability have meant that [...]
To say that DeFi underwent a boom at the start of 2021 is technically accurate -- but it doesn’t quite convey the scope. In 2019, the DeFi market encompassed $40 million. By the beginning of this year, the total value had spiked to over $40 billion. This niche market has proven its mettle and then [...]
The COVID-19 pandemic didn’t just change how we work; it changed how we want to work. Like countless other industries, healthcare responded to pandemic-prompted trends by turning their short-term adaptations into long-term strategies. In the short span of a year, telehealth has become a primary mode of delivering care, increasing patients’ access to specialized medicine, [...]
For all that the Covid-19 pandemic has been an exhausting and extensive trial of the U.S. health system, it has also given the sector a once-in-a-generation chance to advance itself beyond all expectations. When faced with the challenges and burdens of a public health emergency, care providers and research organizations embraced innovative solutions, setting the [...]
Telehealth services are on the rise -- and with them, concerns over patient privacy. There is no doubt that telemedicine has played an invaluable role in keeping Americans safe and healthy over the last year. Virtual health platforms gave anxious patients when they might have added pressure to already-overloaded hospital facilities or avoided care altogether. [...]
It’s no understatement to say that telehealth has exploded in popularity over the last several months. Faced with the once-in-a-lifetime challenge of navigating a global pandemic, patients initially flocked to telehealth solution because it would allow them to access convenient, high-quality care without breaking social distancing or inadvertently stressing already-overburdened health care centers. According to [...]
The medical community has been aware of the role that social factors play in determining health outcomes for years -- but evidence of the fact has never been quite so abundantly clear. Even a cursory glance over COVID-19 data reveals an inarguable link between infection rates, fatalities, and social determinants of health such as poverty, [...]