Blog: Infoway Connects

Posted on February 23, 2016 by Fraser Ratchford

In health care, there are many policy issues and questions for which there doesn’t seem to be any easy way to find the answers. But what if the answers are hiding right under our noses?

Posted on February 9, 2016 by Shelagh Maloney

Digital health can mean faster care and better outcomes for patients and instant access to important information for authorized clinicians — but the benefits don’t stop there.

Posted on February 4, 2016 by Shelagh Maloney

It’s World Cancer Day today, and to raise awareness, the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer (CPAC), along with its international partners, are asking people and organizations to take a pledge on what they can do to help fight the disease and support those who have it.

Posted on February 1, 2016 by Michael Green

We are all well aware of the core challenges facing Canada’s health care system: lack of an integrated and patient-centred system; the need to achieve sustainability through improved efficiency and value-for-money; and the need to share knowledge to improve services and system management.

Posted on January 6, 2016 by Dr. Rashaad Bhyat

It is no secret that the volume of medical knowledge is increasing exponentially every day.

Posted on December 3, 2015 by Shelagh Maloney

Last month, we asked Canadians to get together and “think digital health” in order to celebrate the difference digital health is making. Digital Health Week was a great success have a look at the impressive numbers below. We’d like to thank everyone, including our supporting organizations for participating in the many great events and conversations that took place during the week.

Posted on November 20, 2015 by Harold Lopatka, B. Pharm., MHSA, Ph.D., CHE

It’s Digital Health Week – what an exciting time in the world of digital health! As an educator and the Executive Director of the Association of Faculties of Pharmacy of Canada (AFPC) – the national voice for academic pharmacy in Canada — I have been able to experience the ongoing growth of digital health innovation in education, and watch how it is helping to improve clinical practice and patient care.

Posted on November 20, 2015 by Robert Ridge

For anyone managing a chronic or life threatening condition, the value of investing time and effort in managing and understanding their health information is clear – poor or incomplete data can have a significant negative effect on their health. But the same is true for all of us – we can all benefit from tracking our health a little more closely.

Posted on November 19, 2015 by Tania Ensor

Canadians are no strangers to the virtual world, with a Canadian user visiting an average of 3,731 pages every month. It’s no surprise, then that Canadians also head online for health information, and, in fact, 72 per cent of family physicians refer patients to websites for information about their health care and lifestyle. But Canadians don’t just want general information — they also want access to their own health data as well, with more than 80 per cent saying they would like to take advantage of digital health solutions to view lab results and medication history electronically.

Posted on November 18, 2015 by Laurie Poole, RN, BScN, MHSA

We often hear from providers, health care teams and organizations about the transformative effects telemedicine has had on our health care system, but nothing is as inspiring as patient stories. These stories touch our hearts and remind us why we do what we do.

Posted on November 17, 2015 by Cynthia Baker

Digital health technologies continue to transform the health system and the delivery of nursing care, making it essential for educators to ensure nursing students are exposed to digital health.

Posted on November 12, 2015 by Shelagh Maloney

If you’re looking for Canadians, apparently you have to look online: According to Statistics Canada, 83 per cent of households had access to the internet in 2012 and Ipsos Reid reports that nearly half of us have actively looked for health information online.

Posted on October 29, 2015 by Simon Hagens

A few months ago, Canada Health Infoway’s ImagineNation Data Impact Challenge put out a call to all authorized users of Canadian health data sets to determine if important health and health care questions, like duplication rates for tests and exams, or the impact of prompt discharge summaries on re-admission could be answered in a timely, privacy-sensitive manner.

Posted on October 28, 2015 by Shelagh Maloney

Earlier this year, we held a #HCSMCA tweet chat on our upcoming Digital Health Week to ask for input on what the focus of the week should be. And while there were lots of great ideas and discussions, one that stood out was that you wanted patients included.

Posted on October 22, 2015 by Shelagh Maloney

Between 9,000 and 24,000 people die each year from preventable adverse events in hospitals. This is a startling stat and one we should keep top of mind as we approach Canadian Patient Safety Week, from October 26 to 30.

Posted on September 22, 2015 by Dr. Rashaad Bhyat

It is 3:45pm, and I am running behind. Patients are gathering in the clinic waiting room, while I pull out my hair in frustration as I wait for a medical record department to fax a copy of a patient’s report that is not yet in my local EMR.

Posted on September 9, 2015 by Shelagh Maloney

With some vaccine-preventable diseases such as measles making a resurgence, quick and easy access to immunization records is more important than ever before. Digital health offers public health officials the ability to pull records quickly and provides parents the peace of mind of knowing their children’s records are easily accessible.

Posted August 11, 2015 by Anne Fazzalari

Technology impacts every aspect of our daily lives and academia is no exception. The tools of the trade for educators have changed today and now include everything from smart boards to social media to online chats between students and professors. Often, the term ‘next gen’ conjures up images of Star Trek or the next new shiny car/computer/phone model. In this instance, it’s a double entendre of the next group of clinicians who will be practicing in a technology-enabled environment like no other before, as well as the next ‘major upgrade’ of Infoway’s Clinicians in Training initiative.

Posted on August 5, 2015 by Finnie Flores

Being able to access health data from multiple sources at the point of care is one of the key drivers of the need for interoperability. Another equally important use of health data is to gain insights into the health system as a whole—often referred to as secondary use or health system use of data (HSU). In this case, point of care data is de-identified and aggregated to support improvements to the health system, including informing clinical program management, health system management, population and public health, and research.