Tunstall Americas’ change at the top

March 14, 2014 | by

BREAKING NEWS EXCLUSIVE

Casey Pittock has been appointed the new President and CEO of Tunstall Americas, replacing Bradley Waugh. No official announcement yet by Tunstall, but there is a video on YouTube (below) from the Medical Alert Monitoring Association conference this past Wednesday (12 March) with Tunstall Healthcare Group CEO Paul Stobart (himself only about 100 days on the job–TTA’s exclusive in November) introducing his “three days in the job” Tunstall Americas CEO (at 03:41 to end). Mr. Pittock’s LinkedIn profile also reflects his new company and title.

Mr. Pittock’s prior positions were generally with smaller, entrepreneurial companies. He was previously VP Sales and Marketing with BAM Labs, developer of a ‘smart bed’ monitor partnering with Stanley Healthcare, acting President of BlueLibris digital health trackers (sold to Numera Health) and President-CEO of once-promising fall detector/alert Wellcore which formally closed down last year. He was a founder of alert company TelCARE, sold to Lifeline (now Philips Lifeline). Mr. Waugh had been President and CEO of NaviNet at the time of its purchase and joined Tunstall shortly thereafter in September 2012–a 19 month tenure. The Tunstall Americas leadership team webpage has not been changed as of Monday 17 March, 23:20 US-EDT. Tunstall is still officially headquartered in NYC (Long Island City), but while Mr. Waugh was from the Rhode Island area (and moved many Tunstall operations there), Mr. Pittock’s LinkedIn profile locates him in a posh section of Silicon Valley in California. It will be interesting to see if there’s also a HQ move in store for Tunstall.

[This video is no longer available on this site but may be findable via an internet search]

Tunstall, CATCH, HMA Digital developing mobile platform

March 14, 2014 | by

Tunstall is making the news again, this time in developing a mobile platform for healthcare management, information and to support independent living for people with long-term conditions. The mHealth Assist concept is being designed in collaboration with two parties:  the Centre for Assistive Technology and Connected Healthcare (CATCH) at the University of Sheffield, and HMA Digital Marketing. CATCH’s contribution focuses on needs of vulnerable people–dementia, visual and communication impairments–and will be defining what is most useful. HMA is the lead digital developer for the working mobile prototype to be tested with various user groups. The marketer and project is also supported by investment from the Creative England NHS Digital Fund. Beyond this the release is unfortunately vague on specifics for the mobile platform, with no mention of Tunstall’s tablet-based ‘my world’ [TTA 21 Feb].

3D printed iPhone stethoscope–by 15 year old

March 14, 2014 | by
[grow_thumb image=”https://telecareaware.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/product-img1.jpg” thumb_width=”150″ /]Give a 15 year old with a cardiologist father a 3D printer and voilá, you get a stethoscope that snaps on to the back of an iPhone. The diaphragm on the back of the Steth IO channels the low frequency sound of a heartbeat through a network of tubes leading to the microphone, and an app visualizes and records heartbeat. Data can then be sent to EMRs and telemedicine consults. Suman Mulumudi, the designer from Seattle, designed the first version of the case in two weeks and has now formed his own company, Stratoscientific. According to Digital Trends, the Steth IO is now going through FDA approval.

Looking at the future of ‘aging services’

March 14, 2014 | by

In the US aging services is defined as the combination of public and private support older adults need as they age, encompassing healthcare, housing, transportation, nutrition etc. What will they be like in the future? Joseph Coughlin, director of MIT AgeLab, spoke on a panel at the American Society on Aging’s recent General Session on the Future of Aging on how aging services will change to meet the four points of ‘new’ summarized in his BigThink article: the new consumer (quite different than the present old), new technology (robot companions, proactive sensing of health changes, connective communications), new strategic partnerships (public-private, retailers, senior housing providers, financial services) and the new aging services professional (a blend of technologist, gerontologist, social worker, clinician, business person and holistic care provider.)  For those with institutional or library access, the Oxford Journals Public Policy & Aging Report has two additional articles by Mr. Coughlin expanding on these points.

Yecco Update (UK)

March 13, 2014 | by

Having previously covered Yecco on this site, we thought readers might be interested to know that the service has been completely updated, with additional features to come. What follows are extracts from their press release, appropriately adapted; we have not checked out any of these features ourselves.

Yecco is a free private network that stores all users’ vital information in one safe place. Aimed at older and disabled people and those who care for them, it’s a social media platform, connecting friends, families and professionals

It is free to download from the app store to any mobile or tablet device.  (more…)

Medtronic and Aetna: the good and bad implications

March 12, 2014 | by

A break in the ‘Perpetual Battle of Stalingrad’ that is also a Pointer to the Big2Big Future

Last week US insurance giant Aetna announced a partnership with medical device Gargantua Medtronic to pilot a program for uncontrolled Type 2 diabetes. Aetna will use claims data to identify 300 members who meet candidate standards for insulin pump therapy, Medtronic will reach out to them through their physicians to enroll them in the Getting2Goal program–as long as the insulin pump is Medtronic’s. The two-year program’s metrics will evaluate overall health outcomes and medical costs such as reduced ER and hospital stays. This is a fairly solid, albeit small N program for both. Other Aetna/Medtronic partnerships are a program for congestive heart failure (CHF) detection announced at HIMSS14, where Aetna plans to monitor device data to track the extra water retention that is usually an indicator of progressing heart failure; and an implanted glucometer program to monitor insulin levels for diabetics to avoid hypoglycemia.

Is this a Pointer to a Limited Future for Small, Innovative Independent Companies? Is this now signalling the US’s Big Payers only want to deal with Big Medical Device? “Value-based arrangements with companies like Medtronic” (release) make it ‘one-stop shopping’ for payers when it comes to physician relationships, IT implementation, data sharing and analysis. Will the end result be that payers stifle the revenue opportunity for small to midsize innovators by saying ‘don’t bother to knock”? Are these financially and technologically the best solution for the patient and for outcomes? (It’s like specifying only one hip or knee implant for all, and may sound familiar to our UK readers who have been following our recent articles on a certain telecare provider.) Aetna release, MassDevice, MedCityNews

Proteus to build UK plant, work with NHS; PM’s 5G may save the day

March 11, 2014 | by

The Proteus smart pill, once found to be so ‘creepy’, is making its first significant international move by planning to build a UK plant ultimately capable of turning out 10 billion units annually, and also partnering with several NHS-affiliated groups: Eastern Academic Health Science Network (EAHSN), The Northern Health Science Alliance (NHSA) and Oxford University, Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust and Oxford Academic Health Science Network (OAHSN). According to their CEO Andrew Thompson (quoted in Mobihealthnews), this starts the long NHS tendering and commissioning process. Beyond the sensors in the Proteus pill, the signal is picked up by a disposable patch receiver which transmits via Bluetooth to a smartphone and a tracking app. The business model in their current and future projected digital health devices is based on delivering an outcome, providing vital information about medication-taking behaviors and how your body is responding, not selling the device. How this will blend with the NHS model is a good guess, but the article points out that this may take up some of the loss of pharmaceutical manufacturing business in the UK–a big plus.

And all the bandwidth that Proteus will take up will be no problem, since UK and Germany will be jointly developing 5G wireless networks in the next two years which verily will gulp down all that data, along with having all your devices share the IOT (Internet of Things) chat line while you fast forward that 800 MB movie. The team consists of the University of Dresden, King’s College University in London and the University of Surrey. Note PM David Cameron’s writing pad versus Chancellor Angela Merkel’s tablet/folder combo at the photo taken at the CeBIT 2014 announcement. Daily Mail. Hat tip on both items to reader Mike Short and our own Editor Charles Lowe.

Polymers to prevent infections, binding molecules for detection

March 10, 2014 | by

A multiple-university team along with the US Army’s Natick Soldier Research, Development & Engineering Center (NSRDEC) was granted a patent for antimicrobial polymers which could be used in wearables and in other products such as medical implants, filtration systems and paints. Surface-grafted antimicrobial polymers trap and kill bacteria either by itself or activated by light. Incorporating Antimicrobial Polymers to Protect Warfighters (Armed With Science)

Get your favorite PhD or biotech researcher to interpret this article, which describes an approach developed at the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) and Joint Science and Technology Office (JSTO).  Biosensors for detection of chemical and biological threats and enable better post-exposure treatments use binding molecules on demand (BMOD–remember, this is the Army). Binding Molecules on Demand  and Could a Computer-designed Protein Protect Soldiers? Developers: think about combining the two to support better health in hospitals, transplant patients, older adults and those with compromised immune systems–or children in those petri dishes called ‘school’. 

Hanover Housing Association enters Tunstall’s ‘world’ (UK)

March 10, 2014 | by

Tunstall‘s win of the Hanover Housing Association for their alarm call and door entry framework is highly significant beyond the initial installation of the Communicall Vi warden call system and Lifeline Vi dispersed alarm system (PERS). Hanover’s size makes this a major win for Tunstall. Their rationale is understandable: to rapidly replace current telecare equipment in eventually up to 17,000 properties, to build out for the future across a large portfolio and to work with Tunstall to offer a range of present and future integrated technologies including those represented by Tunstall’s ‘Lifetime of Care’ program. No mention here of Tunstall’s ‘my world’ premiered at last month’s Housing LIN Conference [TTA 21 Feb], but undoubtedly this will eventually be included. But here again is the Tunstall system; there’s no mention of partnership with other technology providers to provide innovation and ‘best in class’ service for Hanover residents. As this Editor asked at the end of the February article, ‘But is a closed system the best quality, most economic and effective arrangement for individual, a community’s or a council’s needs?’ Tunstall release

Editor’s Note: For non-UK readers to grasp the size of Hanover Housing, it has 600 estates with 19,000 properties and 22,000 residents, making it comparable in number of locations to Brookdale Senior Living in the US but far more dispersed. Brookdale concentrates its 52,000 residents in larger, mainly assisted living buildings (AL). Hanover focuses on retirement housing across England and Wales, a focus on what in the US we call IL (independent living), including the interesting notion of ‘downsizer homes’. They also have 2,500 ‘Extra Care’ properties with 24-hour care. It is also a not-for-profit, which perhaps makes it more comparable to Ecumen.

A very Appy week!

March 8, 2014 | by

Although my fellow editor Chrys has done a great job of covering the Ofcom-sponsored report on attitudes and behaviours of apps users, and The Boss (aka Donna) has highlighted the HIMSS Analytics Mobile Study as well as covering the opposition to the PROTECT legislation, identifying a tax issue that might just be behind it all, there is still more to report on the apps front this week.

Beginning with that PROTECT legislation, the same Brad Thompson that Donna quotes also writes in Mobihealthnews of the recommendations of the FDASIA committee on how the FDA can improve the regulation of mobile health. The overall recommendation is that the “FDA needs to do a better job at (more…)

Intel and its ‘Basis’ instinct

March 7, 2014 | by
[grow_thumb image=”https://telecareaware.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/intel-basis-smartwatch_large.png” thumb_width=”150″ /]Intel now in the smartwatch business…or are they?

TechCrunch reported yesterday that fitness tracker Basis sold to Intel, ending weeks of speculation of a sale to Apple, Google, Samsung and Microsoft. The price is between $100 and $150 million according to TechCrunch’s sources. A higher-end ($200) watch which recently entered the sleep tracking area, Basis’ Health Tracker B1 currently tracks steps (accelerometer), calories burned, heart rate, skin temperature and perspiration through wrist contact. Their proprietary software loads up the information to a dashboard for analysis and tracking. Basis has not developed into a major fitness smartwatch, having 7 percent of the market according to TechCrunch but far less according to NPD Group’s 2013-4 retail sales year , with Fitbit at 68 percent, Jawbone at 19 percent and Nike FuelBand at 10 (Mobihealthnews). With Intel premiering at CES a smart chip called Edison for wearables and a Siri-like Bluetooth headset dubbed Jarvis, the speculation is that the purchase is to give Intel both entreé into and a ready-made working team for the Internet of Things and wearables, since it largely missed the boat in mobile.  Also Motley Fool, Apple Insider and one tech observer on why Intel shouldn’t be in the smartwatch business.

Scotland to invest additional £10m on telehealth

March 7, 2014 | by

The Scottish Health Secretary, Alex Neil, has announced the investment of an additional £10 million [grow_thumb image=”https://telecareaware.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Healthier-Scotland.jpg” thumb_width=”150″ /](about US $ 15 million) to support home health monitoring solutions across Scotland, the BBC has reported. This additional funding for the NHS Boards will enable people to use technology such as tablet computers and smartphones to monitor conditions such as diabetes, heart problems and lung problems at home, the report added.

In 2011, Nicola Sturgeon MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Health, Wellbeing and Cities Strategy in Scotland set out her strategic vision for achieving sustainable quality in the delivery of healthcare services across Scotland, in the face of the significant challenges of Scotland’s public health record, changing demography and the economic environment. The Scottish Government’s 2020 Vision is that by 2020 everyone is able to live longer healthier lives at home, or in a homely setting and, that Scotland will have a healthcare system where, amongst other goals, there will be a focus on ensuring that people get back into their home or community environment as soon as appropriate, with minimal risk of re-admission.

Mr Neil’s announcement was made during a debate in the Scottish Parliament entitled ‘Update on Delivering the 2020 Vision in NHS Scotland’. Mr Neil claims past efforts in telecare and telemedicine have meant that £2.8 million has been “ploughed back” into Scottish frontline services and reduced emergency admissions to hospital by 70 per cent.

Reflections on the NHS Innovation Expo (UK)

March 7, 2014 | by | 5 Comments

Editor Charles visited the Expo in Manchester on Tuesday 4th March – here are his personal reflections.

I decided to devote the one day I had to visit the NHS Innovation Expo to visiting stands to try to spread the word about DHACA that was launched last week.

The first thing I noticed about the event was that it seemed less crowded than previous ones. When passing them, I never saw the main auditoria full either, very much in contrast to earlier Expos.

The other principal observation was that (more…)

New industry group promoting telehealth in Australia

March 6, 2014 | by

A new group of industry stakeholders is asking the Australian Federal Government to adopt telehealth as a means to cut the growing national health budget. A whitepaper from the group was presented in Canberra on Wednesday to MP Steve Irons, chair of the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Health by George Margelis (who has previously contributed here at TTA) representing MPT Innnovation Group.

Members of the One in Four Lives group include the Australian Information Industry Association (AIIC), BT Australasia, Anywhere Healthcare, Philips, MPT Innovation Group and the University of Western Sydney (according to Pulse IT) and is chaired by Lisa Altman, Health Practice Director at BT Australasia (part of BT Global Services). The name One in Four Lives reflects that 25% of Australians have chronic health conditions.

Australia has widespread use of telehealth as the many news items we have reported bear out. However majority of these are video link type schemes and the new group is advocating greater use of more sophisticated telehealth schemes using home-based connected sensors and dedicated monitoring clinicians.

If, like me, you thought One in Four Lives sounded familiar, that is probably because the words “Three Million Lives” may have flashed through your mind. Three Million Lives, or 3ML, is a programme that was launched by the UK Goverment in 2011 to get that many people using telehealth. Just to complete the comparison, BT also happens to be the lead company in 3ML.

See also Australian Aging Agenda

The PROTECT Act for HIT doesn’t: mHealth Coalition

March 6, 2014 | by

The mHealth Regulatory Coalition, which is a four-year-old alliance of legal and software companies in the health IT/software area, and whose most vocal spokespersons are well-known industry legal counsels Brad Thompson and Kim Tyrrell-Knott of Epstein Becker Green, has come out against the PROTECT Act (S 2007). PROTECT, which was proposed by Senators Fischer and King, would limit FDA regulation of certain ‘low-risk’ clinical software in the interest of fostering innovation and reducing regulatory burden. Original reports indicated that this responsibility would be transferred to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) [TTA 28 Feb]. According to Mr. Thompson, “The rush to avoid expert reviews of complex technologies with far-reaching health ramifications ignores the fact that we cannot separate the high risk from the low risk apps using broad terms in legislation.” His example: a theoretical smartphone app designed to diagnose melanomas from photos. PROTECT is being supported by IBM, athenahealth, Software & Information Industry Association, Newborn Coalition and McKesson. The bill also would exempt certain health IT software from being charged a 2.3% medical device tax, which is perhaps the ‘long game’ being played here by the aforementioned companies, as most Washington watchers give the bill as it stands little chance of clearing both houses of Congress and a congressional committee, much less being signed into law. The question remains: how best to speed less clinically significant wellness software to market without logjamming FDA.  iHealthBeat summary, Clinical Innovation + Technology, MRC press release

FCC sharply elbows up to the mHealth regulatory table

March 6, 2014 | by

That other three-letter agency, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which has shown a distinctly competitive face versus the FDA on Federal healthcare tech policy over the past three years and more, has formed–drum roll–a task force to examine adoption of wireless technologies by health care organizations. Connect2HealthFCC will “identify regulatory barriers and incentives to expand the use of wireless health technologies; and strengthen partnerships with stakeholders in the telehealth and mobile health industries.” If this an accurate statement of the task force’s purpose, the parade not only has gone by, but it’s also three counties away. Yet going back in our files, this Editor notes that the FCC has vigorously fenced not only with the FDA, but also with HHS, NIH, NIST and Congress for its place in the Federal HIT regulatory firmament. With issues such as ‘net neutrality’, wireless bandwidth and rural broadband, the FCC has a heaping healthcare helping on its plate just in assuring national access and removing conflicts in frequency demands by devices. However, the task force is headed by Michele Ellison, lately the FCC’s top regulatory enforcer with, as The Hill notes, 6,000 actions under her belt. In Foggy Bottom, things are never what they seem. iHealthBeat