Open health innovation | opensource.com

<h2 style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.3em; margin-top: 0.667em; margin-bottom: 0.667em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">The future of health is open</h2><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: 1.4em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">The stories we share here are inspired by health innovation from around the globe. We bring to life how technology, transparency, information-sharing, and community-building are playing a vital role in the ways people are thinking about health.</p><h2 style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.3em; margin-top: 0.667em; margin-bottom: 0.667em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Health transparency</h2><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: 1.4em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">We are beginning to see greater transparency in healthcare, as a result of efforts to improve  general health around the world. Examples of this include:</p><ul style="margin: 1em 0px; padding-left: 2em; list-style-type: disc; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 18px; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><li style="margin: 4px 0px; padding: 0px;">Greater clarity in medical costs</li><li style="margin: 4px 0px; padding: 0px;">Better and more prominent nutritional information at restaurants and on food packaging</li><li style="margin: 4px 0px; padding: 0px;">Including the patient as a partner in his/her own care</li><li style="margin: 4px 0px; padding: 0px;">Improving information-sharing among physicians and medical records systems</li></ul><h2 style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.3em; margin-top: 0.667em; margin-bottom: 0.667em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Health is becoming social</h2><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: 1.4em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">The connectivity we all enjoy today allows for quick and easy sharing of health information. We are building communities and social networks that are focused on health and medicine. Many people—for example, those with chronic conditions that might have previously curtailed their social interaction—are able to go online to find others who share their health concerns.  They—and everyone else—can reach out to peers for health information and advice. And despite the occasional episode of internet-based hypochondria (You probably don't really have a brain tumor. Or a guinea worm.), better informed patients can make better decisions.</p><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: 1.4em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">These now-forming networks also allow doctors and individuals to connect and share knowledge much more quickly. And smart mobile health apps can further advance the way we communicate with health providers.</p><h2 style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.3em; margin-top: 0.667em; margin-bottom: 0.667em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Participate</h2><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: 1.4em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">You can join the open health conversation.</p><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: 1.4em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Have you seen transparency, collaboration, and community efforts to improve health where you live? Have you heard about it happening elsewhere? Let us know.</p><p style="margin: 1em 0px; line-height: 1.4em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Not sure where to start? Check out the list of topic ideas below, and see if something strikes your fancy.</p><h2 style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.3em; margin-top: 0.667em; margin-bottom: 0.667em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Topic ideas</h2><ul style="margin: 1em 0px; padding-left: 2em; list-style-type: disc; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 18px; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><li style="margin: 4px 0px; padding: 0px;">Transparency in patient health records data</li><li style="margin: 4px 0px; padding: 0px;">Who owns the patient data in electronic health records—the software provider, the doctor, or the patient?</li><li style="margin: 4px 0px; padding: 0px;">Does meaningful use mean more collaboration in care?</li><li style="margin: 4px 0px; padding: 0px;">Ways to collaborate with and better involve patients as active participants in their own care</li><li style="margin: 4px 0px; padding: 0px;">Health record exchange - Compelling doctors to collaborate and share records with each other</li><li style="margin: 4px 0px; padding: 0px;">The pharmaceutical industry - collaborative clinical trials, drug patents and exclusivity,  the generic-versus-name-brand dilemma</li><li style="margin: 4px 0px; padding: 0px;">OpenNotes project</li><li style="margin: 4px 0px; padding: 0px;">Blue Button project</li><li style="margin: 4px 0px; padding: 0px;">Aneesh Chopra's visit to the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) and opening data</li><li style="margin: 4px 0px; padding: 0px;">New bill advocating transparency in medical insurance rate changes</li><li style="margin: 4px 0px; padding: 0px;">Greater cost transparency, i.e., doctor visits, procedures, even simple tests so we can make more informed medical decisions.</li><li style="margin: 4px 0px; padding: 0px;">One procedure can cost one sum in one place and a vastly different sum somewhere else.</li><li style="margin: 4px 0px; padding: 0px;">mHealth and eHealth provide easier access and help shrink the health disparity gap</li><li style="margin: 4px 0px; padding: 0px;">Social health (building health networks in social media)</li><li style="margin: 4px 0px; padding: 0px;">Open data in healthcare</li></ul><br><a href="http://opensource.com/health">http://opensource.com/health</a>

Open health innovation | opensource.com

The future of health is open The stories we share here are inspired by health innovation from around the globe. We bring to life how technol...

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