Although many of us have not yet accepted it, healthcare delivery is changing around us; and the ways in which we work to improve the health of the communities we serve is undergoing a fundamental transformation. This was recently confirmed when I attended the Duke/ Durham Health Summit with several of Jennings’ clients from the Practical Playbook. The theme…
Press Ganey, NRC, HealthStream, PRC, Avatar. If you are part of a hospital, health system, or medical practice, there is a very good chance that one of these names rings a very distinct bell. In fact, I’m sure you have heard conversations that begin something like “We just got our (insert previously mentioned company name here) scores and we are…
Some of you may know that Apple launched a new Health app called Medical ID. It was introduced last year as part of iOS 8. (This Health app is the icon with the little red heart.) What does it do? Medical ID allows you to store your medical history, emergency contacts and other vital health information in one place on…
What are Advance Directives and why are they important? Advance directives are legal documents that specify your end of life wishes regarding your health care. Typically they include a living will and a medical power of attorney (or health care proxy). Laws about them vary from state to state. These legal documents are not just for the elderly or very…
A few months ago, there were more reported cases of measles than you’d see during an entire typical year, says Dr. Anne Schuchat, assistant surgeon general and director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases. She went on to say during a CDC tele-briefing: "This is not a problem with the measles…
During one of the morning news shows, I saw a story about an innovative new use for a drone — one that could potentially save lives in the not so distant future. For his master’s degree project, a Dutch graduate student named Alec Momont has designed what’s being called an “ambulance drone.” A little background: Out of the 400,000 heart…
I love beer! Let me guess, you did not expect the conversation to start this way, did you? You were simply thinking about the benefits of online patient communities and why community building is the future of healthcare marketing. Stay with me for just a moment, we will get there. I'm going to begin with a stark admission; I am…
Online search is a critical component in the physician selection process and nurturing a human connection with those physicians, matters more than ever in the digital space. A recent Pew Internet study shows that about 80% of patients who are diagnosed with an illness go on the web to find information about their condition. Another 44% of patients are researching their…
Today’s patients are more aware and engaged than ever with their own health. And it goes beyond just looking up symptoms on WebMD. This new “connected patient” is increasingly turning to listservs, Facebook groups, Twitter chats, and other communities to find support, end isolation and meet an information void not being filled by static hospital websites. In his article, The…
CHAPEL HILL, NC - September 30, 2014 - A new partnership announced today between Hive Strategies (McMinnville, OR), CareHubs, Inc. (San Francisco, CA) and Jennings (Chapel Hill, NC), brings the healthcare industry easy access to affordable, HIPAA-compliant-ready online patient support communities. CareHubs offers the leading private-label, online patient community platform available today. Their customers include Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children, the…