🩺The future of healthcare is personal

What’s in for today:

• Why do you want a digital twin

• AI streamlines patient messages review process

• New healthcare competition taskforce

LET’S TALK!

Why do you need a digital twin?

Imagine having a virtual replica of yourself - a digital twin - that can be used to predict how your body will respond to certain treatments, help manage chronic conditions, and potentially even prevent diseases before they occur. This virtual representation of yourself will contain detailed medical information, helping to facilitate proactive and personalized care, ultimately leading to better health outcomes.

Enter, Personalized Medicine

The concept of personalized healthcare is not entirely new. In fact, healthcare should already be tailored to each individual. This means doctors reviewing patients’ test results in a one-on-one consultation, tailoring medication based on the patient’s medical history, and treatment plans designed based on the patient’s specific or similar conditions.

Technological advancements such as genetic sequencing, big data analytics, and digitization in healthcare, are enabling the next level of personalized healthcare.

What does this look like?

Several exciting trends are shaping the future and are already making a tangible impact:

• Treatments tailored to patients’ genetic profile have shown significant improvement in outcomes for cancer patients (Read the study here)

• Genetic testing can reveal predisposition to heart disease, allowing for early intervention and personalized treatment plans (Read the study here)

• Scripps Research Scientists have created an AI model that can identify the risk of atrial fibrillation (AFib)by detecting subtle variations in heartbeats. This model has shown better performance than standard screening tests. By analyzing data from almost half a million ECG patches, the model can accurately predict the risk of AFib, potentially leading to improved early detection and prevention of serious outcomes such as stroke and heart failure (Read the study here)

Why should you care?

Physicians usually recommend treatment plans based on what works best for the average patient. However, this one-size-fits-all approach can sometimes result in unnecessary spending. Personalized medicine involves tailoring a treatment plan as unique as the disease by combining genetic data with an individual’s clinical information.

This approach enables early detection of certain diseases at their early stages, allowing healthcare providers to intervene proactively. This targeted approach not only improves patient outcomes but also enhances the overall efficiency of the healthcare system by ensuring that resources are allocated where they will have the most significant impact.

TRACKING: AI IN HEALTHCARE

Kaiser Permanente has introduced a new AI-powered system to handle almost 5 million patient messages. The AI is able to resolve about a third of these messages before they even reach the doctors’ inboxes. According to a study, the AI has been effective in categorizing messages, enabling regional staff to address any queries, thus reducing the electronic workload for physicians. This innovative initiative demonstrates the potential of AI in easing administrative tasks and improving patient care (Read the study here).

POLICY & INDUSTRY NEWS

🩺Staffing Standard: The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued the final rule on nursing standards for nursing facilities. According to this rule, nursing facilities must provide an average of 3.48 hours of direct care per resident per day. Additionally, the rule requires that nursing homes must have a registered nurse present on site 24/7.

🏥Healthcare Competition Task Force: The Justice Department has established the Task Force on Healthcare Monopolies and Collusion (HCMC) to tackle antitrust issues in healthcare markets. The task force, led by Katrina Rouse, aims to address monopolistic practices and collusion that result in increased costs and reduced quality. It will bring together experts from different fields to identify and combat harmful consolidation and other competition problems in the industry.

🥼New Healthcare Cybersecurity Program: The Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) has launched the $50 million Universal Patching and Remediation for Autonomous Defense (UPGRADE) program to enhance healthcare cybersecurity by developing tools that automatically detect and patch software vulnerabilities, improving protection against ransomware and other cyber threats.

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