By Barbara Ficarra, RN, BSN, MPA Microsoft’s Dr. Bill Crounse Talks with Todd Park, CTO of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, on Health Tech Today There is a plethora of health information for consumers today. We are surrounded by smart meaningful material, but somehow it is easy to get lost in the maze of information. We get stuck navigating through it and we find it hard to obtain information that is right…
Read More...Dr. Mehmet Oz and Jeff Arnold launch Sharecare.com, where experts share their knowledge with consumers
By Barbara Ficarra, RN, BSN, MPA Sharecare.com launched yesterday in San Francisco at the Health 2.0 conference and while I was unable to attend this exciting event, I followed the live twitter feed (#health2con) and it almost felt like I was there. Having attended the Health 2.0 conferences in the past, the excitement and energy that circulates is always infectious. As a registered nurse, I am thrilled and honored to be included and surrounded by…
Read More...Empowered Patient: NY City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene – TB Control
By Barbara Ficarra, RN, BSN, MPA I was honored to speak to an amazing group of physicians, nurses and health workers from the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene- Bureau of Tuberculosis Control–2010 Tuberculosis, on Tuesday. The topic, “Patient Empowerment: Engaging Our Patients to Take Charge of Their Health.” Thank you for the opportunity to speak with you. It is evident that from talking with these passionate health care professionals, who work…
Read More...Patient Engagement: Health IT, What Microsoft Health Users Group Exchange Means for you
By Barbara Ficarra, RN, BSN, MPA How important is Health IT to you and should you care? At the Microsoft Health Users Group Exchange this month at the Microsoft Corporate Campus in Redmond, WA, patient engagement was the overall theme. Whether presenters were talking about “Cloud Computing,” “Care Coordination,” or “Population Health Management,” empowering the patient was the paradigm. “At the end of the day, we’re all patients,” Bill Crounse, MD, keynote speaker and Senior…
Read More...Empowered Patient: Bring a Family Member or Friend with you to Your Doctor’s Appointment
By Barbara Ficarra, RN, BSN, MPA Should you bring a family member or friend with you when a patient has a doctor’s appointment? That is a question explored on a recent post on KevinMD by guest blogger, Diana E. Lee, a chronic migraine patient who blogs at Somebody Heal Me. “Most of the resources I’ve read about how to prepare for a doctor’s appointment recommend bringing a loved one with you so that person can…
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