Category Archives: Government

The people side of “analytics”

For HHS agencies, the focus is on improving lives To slightly misquote Benjamin Disraeli, there are lies, damn lies, and analytics. Okay, let me say it another way.  It’s not that “analytics” are actually lies, but – like “statistics” in Disraeli’s time – they can be misleading and, if not used and interpreted properly, can […]
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After nearly 50 years, it’s time to retire traditional MMIS procurements

There are only 51 of them in the entire country, but their reach affects millions and their impact is profound. Cumulatively through the years, these systems have cost states billions of dollars and consumed thousands of hours of productivity. They’ve caused headaches, heartburn and sleepless nights for agency IT experts, financial executives and policy analysts […]
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Not science fiction: AI is creating value in surprising places

You might think of artificial intelligence (AI) in health care as science fiction — something that’s a future possibility. But the truth is, the future is here now. AI is a collection of methods and technologies for performing tasks we often associate with the human mind, such as learning and reasoning. AI approaches already have […]
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A real-life application for artificial intelligence in health care

Artificial intelligence (AI) is everywhere. It’s in our shopping experiences, our search engines, our dining and entertainment recommendations. We’ve seen AI-based medicine on TV for decades, and we can make that a reality — if we go deeper. I’m more excited than ever about the possibilities of AI in health care, but we need to […]
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Unlocking insights and value within health care data through NLP

I recently called natural language processing (NLP) artificial intelligence (AI) with an ROI — and yes, it’s a catchy phrase, but it’s also true. NLP is an essential asset in today’s health care landscape. Let me tell you a story. Bill and Ted work at the same company – Excellent Adventures, Ltd. – but they […]
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Addressing social determinants of health can improve overall health outcomes

John Selig, senior vice president at the Lewin Group and former director of the Arkansas Department of Human Services, was interviewed recently at the Health IT Summit hosted in Baltimore (April 5–6). He discussed the impact of social determinants of health (SDOH) on overall health outcomes. SDOH is still a relatively new area of focus […]
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Artificial intelligence unlocks buried data

Did you know that more than half of the information contained in electronic medical records is unusable to health care organizations? Mark Morsch, Optum360 Vice President of Technology, says studies show 60 to 80 percent of EMR content is unstructured. That means some data that could potentially be used to create a more complete picture […]
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Learn to speak the same health care language

Take a trip around the world and you’ll hear a lot of different languages, including some you probably won’t understand without a translator. Data is the language of today’s health care system. But a patient’s journey through that system collects data from a variety of sources in many different formats. It’s hard for anyone to […]
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The cure for analysis paralysis

A whole week devoted to health IT and how it’s transforming the world? Now that’s what I’m talking about! Las Vegas is home to this year’s HIMSS conference. (Shout out to our crew in Booth 6425 — stop by for a coffee if you’re in town! Our folks would love to talk shop with you.) […]
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How raw data becomes real health care insight

Technological progress is astounding. Smartphones have made it easy to get the answer to almost any question: What’s the weather today? What was the score of the Super Bowl? Yet in health care, technology sometimes makes things complicated. Ever-evolving collection methods have created mountains’ worth of available data. While such advances have allowed payers, providers […]
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