Morning Headlines 2/5/13

Geisinger launches xG Health Solutions

Geisinger Health System (PA) forms for-profit xG Health Solutions, backed by $40 million in financing from venture capital firm Oak Investment Partners. The new company will offer healthcare IT optimization, consulting, population health data analytics, care management, and third-party administration services.

ZirMed Launches Clinical Link

ZirMed launches provider-to-provider communication for the 100,000 EMR users connected to its network.

A National Action Plan To Support Consumer Engagement Via E-Health

A HealthAffairs article by Farzad Mostashari and ONC colleagues explains ONC’s “Three As” strategy (access to electronic patient information, apps, and attitudes) to improve consumer e-health.

HIStalk Connect Interviews Bob Zollars, CEO, Vocera

Vocera CEO says being publicly traded “has made us a better company,” the end of the hospital pager is near, and “trying to fight the BYOD movement is like fighting a religious war.”

New technology helps doctors link a patient’s location to illness and treatment

Epidemiologists develop a GPS-equipped inhaler to correlate asthma flare-ups with location. “Place should be a vital sign,” says a spatial epidemiologist in a field now known as geomedicine.