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Health-ePeople

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Satvinder “Pearly” Dhingra

Health-ePeople

We sat down with Satvinder “Pearly” Dhingra, founder of HealthePeople.com.  HealthePeople is a platform where patients can aggregate their health information from a variety of sources, from wearable fitness devices to medical records, and have them available in a single portal.  The users can opt to make their de-identified information available to clinical trials to support their work if they choose.

More info soon!

Satvinder “Pearly” Dhingra, Founder, HealthePeople.com

health

Zyrobotics

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Zyrobotics

Dr. Johnetta Maccalla

Zyrobotics

We host Dr. Johnetta Maccalla, CEO of Zyrobotics, an assistive technology company that was conceived in the summer of 2012 and officially incorporated in 2013 as a Georgia Tech Venturelab spin-off company. Their mission is to create accessible technologies that engage and empower children with disabilities and enhance their quality of life.

The technology company develops personalized technologies that are adaptive to each individual’s capabilities.  Zyrobotics first product offerings include accessible interfaces and smart toys, socially assistive robots, and a suite of educational apps that are specially designed to enable educational and accessible play. The company’s mission facilitates freedom through technology for children of all abilities.

Johnetta shared how she saw an opportunity to leverage her long background in research and development and robotics for several large, well-known enterprises to help children with disabilities.  Zyrobotics is now engaging with professionals in rehabilitation facilities to make them aware of this technology that has shown to help engage these children in their rehab exercises, as well as increasing compliance with the prescribed plan.

We talked about the fact that the technology company is actively seeking funding to support their marketing and production scalability.  The company is also interested in partnering with rehabilitation centers and physicians who would be prescribing such services so they and their patients can benefit from access to this tool.

Special Guest:

Dr. Johnettta Maccalla, CEO, Zyrobotics

 

Cyber Security

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Cyber Security

Steve Robb

Cyber Security

Jay and I hosted Steve Robb, SVP of Security Marketing & Product Strategy of ControlScan, a firm that specializes in information and network security for enterprises, including healthcare organizations.  With the rise of “smart” devices of all kinds that have sensors that communicate with applications via networks and/or internet, there are now a myriad of entry-points for persons intent on nefarious activity to access a company’s network.

We’ve all heard the news stories about major firms, including the US government, who have had their networks and data compromised by hackers, causing millions of people to be exposed to identity and financial theft.  As technology has continued to evolve rapidly, it is difficult for enterprises to be able to afford to recruit and retain security experts with sufficient breadth of knowledge to truly secure a business’s information as well as it could be.

Atlanta-based ControlScan brings a unified approach to security and compliance solutions, enabling organizations
to better protect sensitive data while making compliance easier to achieve and maintain. ControlScan’s combination of professional services and Managed Security Services delivers a full security lifecycle – from Security Risk Assessments to identify gaps, through HIPAA and PCI compliance analysis, to ongoing management and monitoring of security measures.

Steve shared some great information about some of the various sources of risk to networks that exist today, along with things the enterprise should be considering regarding how secure their information actually is.  The ControlScan team can provide thorough evaluations of security protocols and measures and identify weaknesses that can be shored up.  Additionally, the company provides outsourced security managed services that gives the client access to a high-level security team for less than it costs to employ one outright.

Special Guest:

Steve Robb, SVP Security Marketing & Product Strategy, ControlScan   feed-logo  twitter_logo_small  youtube-logo1  google-plus-logo-red-265px  facebook_logo_small3  linkedin_small1

Cyber security

Georgia Tech Wearable Computing Center

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Georgia Tech Wearable Computing Center

Maribeth Gandy Coleman

Georgia Tech Wearable Computing Center

Jay Shaffer and I sat down with Maribeth Gandy, Principal Research Scientist, and Director of Georgia Tech Wearable Computing Center.  We talked about research the university is conducting in conjunction with ShareCare to look at how wearable and mobile technology can impact stress levels for individuals using these devices.

Check back soon for more information!

Special Guest:

Maribeth Gandy Coleman, Principal Research Scientist/Director, Georgia Tech Wearable Computing Center

 

Metro Atlanta Chamber Driving Bioscience Growth

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metro atlanta chamber of commerce

Kornelius Bankston of MACC talks bioscience.

Metro Atlanta Chamber Driving Bioscience Growth

The Metro Atlanta Chamber exists for one reason – to help Atlanta thrive. From recruiting businesses to tackling policy issues, MAC’s efforts in metro Atlanta are designed to promote prosperity and growth for you and your business.  Georgia’s bioscience and health IT industries are responsible for almost $30 billion in annual reported revenue and 120,000 employees.

The Health IT industry in Georgia already leads the nation with more than 200 companies and more than $4 billion in annual reported revenue and 15,000 employees. The bioscience industry is also firmly rooted in the state, with more than 100,000 jobs and an annual economic impact of $23 billion.

As the national economy rebounds, Atlanta has the potential to create thousands more jobs per year in these two sectors. Whether you’re with a FORTUNE 500 business or putting in sweat equity in a startup, this is the city that can help you create a solid future.

Connect to these vibrant bioscience and health IT communities is through the Bioscience and Health IT Leadership Council. Join peers, including McKesson, Merial, Alcon, CDC, American Cancer Society, CyroLife, CardioMEMs and others who are leading the industry with cutting-edge innovation – tackling common goals. Council subcommittees focus on branding Atlanta as a center for global health and clinical trials as well as marketing the state as the “Nation’s Health IT Capital” to attract even more companies and high-quality jobs.

Special Guest:

Kornelius Bankston, Director of Bioscience, Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce

Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce

Mercer University Health Services

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 Mercer University

Dr. Ashish Advani and Dr. Ted Matthews of Mercer University

Mercer University Health Services

We sat down with Dean and SVP of Health Services, Dr. Ted Matthews, and Dr. Ashish Advani, Clinical Associate Professor of Pharmacy from Mercer University.  Mercer University’s College of Pharmacy is ranked among the top five pharmacy programs at private institutions in the United States, according to U.S. News & World Report. The College offers doctoral degrees in pharmacy (Pharm.D.) and pharmaceutical sciences (Ph.D.). The College is one of four health sciences units within the Mercer Health Sciences Center, which also includes the School of Medicine,  College of Nursing, and College of Health Professions.

With an enrollment of more than 650 students and a distinguished faculty of basic scientists and clinicians, the College of Pharmacy houses seven centers focusing on research, teaching and learning. The College’s motto, “A Tradition of Excellence – A Legacy of Caring,” frames its philosophy of providing excellent academic programs in an environment where every student matters and every person counts.

Mercer University is applying an approach to their health sciences programs called, “interprofessional education or IPE”.  This approach brings students from the various health science programs together with those of the others to talk about their respective considerations when approaching certain care scenarios.  This leads to a greater understanding of the other team members of the multidisciplinary team and ultimately, better patient outcomes.

The College of Pharmacy has also developed a technology platform aimed at putting pharmacologic study data and medicine information in the hands of clinicians to facilitate evidence-based decision making.  Developed with support from Mercer University’s College of Pharmacy, InpharmD is a web-based drug information center. With an estimated 20 million pharmaceutical studies available, InpharmD offers access to the health information that healthcare providers and patients need to make informed and improved decisions.

InpharmD provides customized, evidence-based responses within a user-requested time period. By significantly increasing the credibility of the information and substantially decreasing the turnaround time, InpharmD has created a fundamental change in drug information delivery.

Special Guests:

Dr. Ted Matthews, Dean and SVP of Health Services, Mercer University  facebook_logo_small3  linkedin_small1  twitter_logo_small  youtube-logo1  feed-logo  instagram-logo-transparent-png-i11-16x16

mercer university

Dr. Ashish Advani, Associate Clinical Professor, College of Pharmacy, Mercer University  linkedin_small1

Mercer University

Moving Analytics

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Moving Analytics

This week I spoke with the co-founder, Harsh Vathsangam, of a technology company, Moving Analytics, that is working to significantly increase participation rates in cardiac rehabilitation. Over 900,000 Americans experience heart attacks each year.  Still more will experience heart failure, valvular disease, and other cardiovascular problems that create a diminished tolerance of activity.

We know very well that regular activity and selective behavior choices around such things as diet, alcohol consumption, and smoking, among others, play a large role in stopping or even reversing effects of these conditions.  Currently, roughly a third or less of these patients are engaging in a supervised cardiac rehab program.  Clearly, there is much room for improvement in this regard.

As a computer scientist, Harsh has long-known the power of computing and analytics data for creating efficiencies and making well-educated strategic decisions.  He and some colleagues began to look for opportunities to leverage this power in the healthcare arena, one which we know is actively seeking to reduce cost while at the same time improve patient outcomes.

The Moving Analytics app allows patients to receive frequent feedback regarding their prescribed activities and behavioral choices.  Additionally, it provides data regarding the patient’s compliance with their regimen along with some basic health data to the health professional overseeing their cardiac rehab progress.  In this way, the patient is able to engage in healthful activities that will improve their condition in the convenience of their home.  Additionally it will allow the cardiac rehab professionals to scale their services to a wider patient population, reducing cost of providing care (based on a per-provider cost).

Moving Analytics is looking to partner with hospitals and health systems who are working to improve patient engagement with these important cardiac rehab programs for the post-cardiovascular event patients.

Special Guest:

Harsh Vathsangam, Co-founder, Moving Analytics  linkedin_small1

cardiac rehab

  • PhD, Computer Science, University of Southern California
  • MS, Computer Science, University of Southern California
  • Recipient, PhD Award, University of Southern California
  • Awarded USC Annenberg Fellowship 2008-2012

AirWatch by VM Ware

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AirWatch by VM Ware

AirWatch by VM Ware’s Aamir Siddiqi

AirWatch by VM Ware

On this week’s episode we sat down with Aamir Siddiqi, the Executive Director for Enterprise Sales, Healthcare, for AirWatch by VM Ware.  AirWatch is known as an industry leader and innovator in the mobile enterprise security and services space.

The rise and evolution of mobile devices as business tools has been both a boon and a bane for enterprises.  While on one hand, they serve as efficient tools that facilitate work flow, collaboration, and productivity, they also create significant security risks for the business.

When you add the additional layer of sensitivity and compliance requirements for handling patient health information, this risk is of high importance to address in the healthcare arena.

With their well-known expertise in mobile security coupled with their recent acquisition by VM Ware, AirWatch plays a large role in helping healthcare organizations, both acute and sub-acute, take advantage of mobile tech’s efficiencies while protecting data across all devices on the network.

Special Guest:

Aamir Siddiqi, Executive Director of Enterprise Sales, Healthcare at AirWatch by VM Ware  twitter_logo_small  linkedin_small1  facebook_logo_small3  youtube-logo1  google-plus-logo-red-265px

AirWatch by VM Ware

  • BA, Management and Economics, University of Toronto at Scarborough
  • Previous National Sales Manager, Ultrasound IT Americas, GE Healthcare
  • Former Senior Business Consultant, CDC Software
  • Previous Director, Sales Engineering, Raindance

Telehealth

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MyIdealDoctor

Adrian Davis of MyIdealDoctor talks telehealth

Telehealth

This week we sat down with Adrian Davis, CEO of MyIdealDoctor, a telehealth company.  Adrian shared how he had spent the early years of his career in health technology and equipment sales and distribution.  With the passage of the ACA he and several of his associates saw an opportunity to help meet a need for access to medical care, taking advantage of technology.

They launched the company to begin to help patients to be able to speak directly with a physician from wherever they are using phone, smart phone/mobile device, or via a computer connection.  Their initial focus has been upon episodic patient needs centered around non-emergent complaints such as respiratory infections, minor cuts, sore throats, etc.

In many cases the physician is able to use the camera on the device, along with interview, to make a diagnosis and prescribe medication to treat the problem.  Additionally, if the patient’s complaint is too severe or worrisome to be able to handle the problem remotely, they make recommendations to seek care in a nearby urgent care center or emergency department.

In this way MyIdealDoctor is able to have an impact on the volume of patients being seen in the urgent care and more importantly, in the emergency rooms, allowing them to focus on more acutely-ill patients.

The company has focused their initial service model on corporate health, providing their care model to businesses offering the service as a component of their employee health plans.  MyIdealDoctor will be providing their service to the general population soon.

Special Guest:

Adrian Davis, CEO/ Co-founder of MyIdealDoctor  twitter_logo_small  linkedin_small1  facebook_logo_small3

MyIdealDoctor

  • BS, Microbiology, University of Georgia
  • Co-founder/Partner, United Medical Enterprises
  • Previous GI/Ultrasound Territory Manager, Philips
  • Former IV Therapy Territory Manager, Baxter Healthcare

Pharmacogenomics

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Harmonyx

Pharmacogenomics

This week on Health Connect South Radio we featured Bob Bean, CEO of Harmonyx, a technology company specializing in pharmacogenomics.  Pharmacogenomics is the study of how genes affect a person’s response to drugs. This relatively new field combines pharmacology (the science of drugs) and genomics (the study of genes and their functions) to develop effective, safe medications and doses that will be tailored to a person’s genetic makeup.

As we have learned on previous episodes of the show, taking medications correctly is vital to achieving a positive outcome.  In fact, incorrectly taking a medication or taking certain combinations of medications can actually make you very sick or even kill you.

Add to that this fact–our genetic code can affect how our body responds to a given medication we’re taking.  For example, 30% of people who take Plavix, the popular anti-platelet medication to prevent stroke, get no effect from taking the drug due to a particular genetic mutation.  Consider the money spent by 1/3 of patients taking this medicine and it’s literally doing nothing in their body.

Harmonyx employs a non-invasive cheek swab which collects a DNA sample which is then tested for that individual’s genetically-driven response to a prescribed medication.  Depending on the results, it may be possible for the pharmacist and physician to identify another medication from that particular medicine family that will have the desired effect and/or avoid possible negative responses to the original med.

The test is available at participating pharmacies and can provide useful information for patients taking statin medication, ADHD meds, pain medication, and anti-platelet medication.  The test will reveal if the patient’s body will respond as expected or if they may experience adverse effects due to the way their body processes the prescribed medication.

In this way the patient is able to get medical treatment that is likely to have the desired outcome while avoiding probable negative effects and/or spending money and taking a medicine that literally does nothing for them.

On this episode I also shared the conversation I had with Ebola survivor, Dr. Ian Crozier, who was a keynote speaker at the 2015 Health Connect South event.  Ian was providing care to Ebola patients in Sierra Leone when he contracted the disease.  He had the good fortune of being flown to Emory Hospital in Atlanta for intense specialized care.  In spite of significant damage to numerous organs including kidneys, eyes, and even his brain, Ian survived and shared his poignant story with the attendees of this year’s event.

I was very pleased to get to meet him and speak with him for a few minutes.

Special Guests:

Bob Bean, CEO of Harmonyx

Harmonyx

Dr. Ian Crozier, Ebola Survivor

Ebola