Healthcare IT in Canada – Bimonthly Spotlight Series

As part of its expanded coverage of the Canadian healthcare market, Branham also prepares detailed bi-monthly reports on topics of interest along the continuum of care.  These reports provide a comprehensive review of the healthcare issues that either have an important bearing on the current transition to a more integrated healthcare system or form an important part of Canada’s healthcare system.  The discussions in these reports go well beyond the Digital Health NOW Monthly reports.  

The following provides only a snapshot of some the content you will see in these bi-monthly reports:

• Digital Health NOW Spotlight - Key Issues Facing the Canadian Healthcare Sector (June 2010) - Regarded as one of the best healthcare systems in the world not very long ago, a number of issues have begun to plague the Canadian healthcare system over the past decade or so. Funding, health human resources, the geography of the country, and the need for a shift from a reactive to proactive model of healthcare delivery have been some of the major issues seen in Canadian healthcare over the past few years. This iteration of Branham Group Inc.'s Digital Health NOW Spotlight report takes a look at these issues and how we might best address them.

• Digital Health NOW Spotlight - Cool Technologies & Trends in Healthcare ICT (May 2010) - As the Canadian healthcare system transitions from a reactive model with information silos to an interconnected continuum of care, some of the key technologies that will find increased acceptance in the healthcare community include robotics, wireless communications, biosensors, system on chip (SOC), smartphones, service platform technologies, and advanced diagnostic imaging. Some trends that will drive the emergence of these innovative technologies include self-care and other alternative methods of care delivery, emergency preparedness and the increased need for privacy and security of patient information. This iteration of Branham's Digital Health NOW Bi-Monthly report brings you insights into the latest technologies in healthcare.

• Digital Health NOW Spotlight - State of Digital Health Interoperability in Canada (March 2010) - As Canada moves forward with the vision to create an interoperable electronic health record for all Canadians, providing the right information for the right care at the right time, the question of interoperability will no doubt become more important. As more health care facilities complete their unique clinical health information systems and continue to link into larger jurisdictional, and eventually national, systems, the issue of interoperability amongst vendor application is becoming critical. This bi-monthly report brings you insights into the current state of interoperability in Canadian healthcare, and the challenges in achieving true and wide-ranging interoperability between Digital Health solutions.

• Digital Health NOW Spotlight - Continuum of Care (January 2010) - The first Digital Health NOW Spotlight report in 2010 brings you a comprehensive discussion on the Continuum of Care model of healthcare delivery in Canada. This report provides a broad strategic overview of where Canadian healthcare is today and where it should be headed in order to deal effectively with the several challenges that it is faced with. Further, the report details how technology can be a major driver in the achievement of a fully integrated Continuum of Care.

• Digital Health NOW Spotlight – Home Care (August 2009) - Home care plays a vital role in improving the health and wellness of individuals and optimizing the efficiency of health care delivery. Clearly, home care services provide a cost-effective alternative to higher cost acute care by enabling shorter hospital stays, earlier discharge, and the use of more cost-effective outpatient procedures.  As the Canadian health care sector continues to experience increased demand while at the same time experiencing significant resource constraints, the focus on home care as a way to alleviate the stress on the system will continue. This will result in more home care initiatives and a drive to include home care in any comprehensive EHR program in the future.

• Digital Health NOW Spotlight – Emergency and Critical Care (July 2009) - The pressure to be more efficient and deliver the highest quality of health care while balancing resource constraints demands that hospitals incorporate ICT in their ED and critical care strategies. Clearly, better technology initiatives will need to be measured in terms beyond quantified financial benefits, in terms of patient benefits, reduced errors, and reduced waiting times. Technology initiatives in emergency and critical care will remain high government and hospital priority given their impact on these metrics. This report provides a broad strategic overview of current conditions in ED’s and a discussion of technologies utilized within these domains.

• Digital Health NOW Spotlight – Canadian Digital Health Vendor Landscape Report: Primary and Acute Care Markets (April 2009) - The primary objective of this annual study is to provide in-depth analysis on the current state of Digital Health deployment in Canadian healthcare organizations. The report guides readers through an overview of Canada’s progress toward an interoperable EHR, through to current projects, and into an in-depth review of market leaders. A description and examples of key applications will ensure readers are kept abreast of areas which may not typically be their area of focus. Canada’s health system is shifting to an integrated model of care delivery that includes primary care, acute care, continuing care and home care market segments, among others. This report focuses strictly on the primary and acute care sectors.

• Digital Health NOW Spotlight – Electronic Health Records: Interactions and Transactions Between Systems in an Ecosystem (November 2008) - Clinical reporting in primary care settings is predominantly paper driven. Meanwhile, hospitals and acute care settings are working with a combined paper and electronic system.  Canada Health Infoway has created an Electronic Health Record (EHR) blueprint architecture as the infostructure foundation to guide Canada’s Digital Health agenda. It is no longer a question of whether electronic health records will be implemented for all patients in Canada. Rather, it is a question of when and how, to what level of detail and how to access the information?  This second issue of Digital Health NOW Spotlight gives an in-depth review of the EHR ecosystem. This invaluable report includes a review of the current status of clinical reporting systems, the elements of the electronic health record, an international perspective, an overview of vendors and offerings, as well as a market overview depicting provincial progress. 

For more information, please contact Wayne Gudbranson at 613-745-2282 x113.

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