Becker's Hospital Review

53 CIO / HEALTH IT Hackensack Meridian Health's telestroke program eliminated 'neurologist shortage' By Naomi Diaz T he high demand for neurologists at Hackensack Meridian Health prompted officials at the New Jer- sey-based system to establish a telestroke program powered by Teladoc to get eyes on stroke patients as quickly as possible. Neurologists now use the telemedicine platform to remote- ly connect to a patient's bedside, allowing specialists to see a patient remotely, including viewing images and labs, which significantly speeds up stroke response times and treatment rates. According to Alan Colicchio, MD, medical director of neu- roscience for Hackensack Meridian Health, on average, the telestroke program can make a diagnosis decision for stroke patients in 18 minutes. Before the program, that time was around 45 minutes to an hour, Dr. Colicchio told Becker's. The implementation of the telestroke program has also helped eliminate provider burnout, he said. Before the program, Hackensack Meridian Health had to staff the stroke centers, meaning neurologists had to come in from home aer hours, on weekends or private practice neurologists had to travel to the health system to evaluate stroke patients. "It was frustrating for them (neurologists) and it was not in the best interest of patient care, certainly not for stroke patients and not for their office patients that sometimes had to be canceled or rescheduled," said Dr. Colicchio. "Neu- rologists are typically every year rated in the top three spe- cialists for burnout. With the telestroke program pulling neurologists from throughout the U.S., we can get more coverage for patients." Neurologists are in short order and in high demand, with Hackensack Meridian Health's telestroke platform, the health system can now extend their reach and treat more patients, especially those who can't easily access emergency in-person care. n Former FDA digital chief joins Google Health By Naomi Diaz G oogle appointed Bakul Patel, the former head of digital health at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, to de- velop and lead its unified digital health and regulatory strategy. Mr. Patel, who spent 13 years at the FDA leading its regulatory and scientific efforts covering digital health devices, said he was making the move via LinkedIn. "The power of technology, when coupled with a unified digital health and regulatory approach, promises to transform people's lives," wrote Mr. Patel in his LinkedIn post. "I want to continue to build a world in which we use technology to engage individuals, caregivers and communities globally in care delivery, enabling us to reach populations that have long been overlooked, mar- ginalized and underserved." During his time at the FDA, the agency launched a Center of Ex- cellence to oversee digital health products such as smartphone apps, wearable devices and software-based treatments. He also helped develop the FDA's framework for reviewing artificial in- telligence products and an action plan detailing a multipronged approach to advance oversight on AI and machine-learn- ing-based medical software. The move comes as Google intensifies its focus on health tech and expands its reach into the healthcare market. Most recently, the tech company has announced it is working on three AI projects — a smartphone stethoscope, AI tech that can read prenatal ultrasounds and AI that can spot illness using the camera on a smartphone. The company's AI natural language processing tool is also being used at Rochester, Minn.-based Mayo Clinic to better track and analyze language-based infor- mation in patients' EHRs. n Omnicell reports ransomware incident By Naomi Diaz O mnicell reported that some of its information technology systems were affected by ransomware. On May 4, Omnicell, a provider of medication manage- ment and adherence tools for health systems and pharmacies, determined that a ransomware attack had affected some of its services, products and internal systems, according to a SEC fil- ing. Omnicell took steps to implement its business continuity plans to restore and support continued operations. An investigation into the incident was also launched. Omnicell has yet to determine the extent of the effect of the at- tack on operations or whether the incident would have a materi- al effect on financial results. n

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