History Behind Cloud Computing in Healthcare

Cloud computing has come a long way across various phases. Clients can utilize web-based tools or applications through a web browser just as if they were programs installed locally on their own computer. Healthinformatics the wiki of Florida State University says "The term 'cloud' was coined as a metaphor for the Internet which originated from cloud figures representing telephone networks, then later followed by depicting Internet infrastructures in computer network maps/diagrams."

Going back in time, we had the grid and utility computing, the application service provision (ASP), and then Software as a Service (SaaS). However, if you look back, the true concept of delivering computing resources through a global network is really rooted in the 60s. In the year 1969, J.C.R. Licklider through his article Intergalactic computer Network enabled the development of ARPANET (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network). He seemed to project a vision that everyone on the globe be interconnected and access programs and data at any site. Others give credit to computer scientist John McCarthy who proposed the idea of computation being delivered as a public utility.

Since the 60s, cloud computing has evolved over a timeline. Web 2.0 being the most recent evolution. Point to note here is, the Internet only started to offer a significant bandwidth in the nineties. Hence cloud computing for everyone has been something of a recent development. If you have to trace a timeline it looks somewhat like this:

1999 - Salesforce.com (delivering enterprise applications via a simple website)

2002 - Amazon Web Services (providing a suite of cloud-based services including storage, computation and even human intelligence)

2006 - Amazon Elastic Compute cloud EC2 (allowing small companies and individuals to run their own computer applications on a commercial web service)

2007 - Google Docs (Web-based office suite, and data storage service)

There are several other factors that have enabled cloud computing to evolve. These include the virtualization technology, universal high-speed bandwidth, and established standards of universal software interoperability.

Increased storage, flexibility / scalability, and cost reduction are some of the valuable benefits that can be derived, as the prospect that almost anything can be delivered from the cloud, becomes more and more a reality. However security, data privacy, network performance and economics are still concerns that are being addressed through various models of cloud platform delivery such as the Private Cloud, Public Cloud, as well as the Hybrid Cloud solutions.

This brings us to Cloud's footprints into Healthcare. While, as we have seen above, cloud computing has been around for decades. Hospitals and healthcare systems only recently began to adopt the flexibility, interoperability and affordability of cloud technologies, especially as they implement plans to utilize the federal government's $20 billion-plus Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) financial incentive programs.

The cloud computing model is very well suited to healthcare applications due to the volume and varied sources of information, that is necessary to be accessed quickly and from any location. After all you have lives at stake. Whether it is for maintaining health records, monitoring of patients, collaboration with peers, prescribing medication, even analysis of data, we will see more and more of healthcare tapping into the cloud. With more attention on the security aspects of Cloud, compliance to Data Privacy standards, advanced interoperability and data sharing, and with a proper DR in place, the cloud can have a real positive impact on Healthcare.

Dipak Chatterjee through his platform e-Health Information Management Systems ( eHIMS ) is on a journey to highlight, and constantly bring the variables that constrain Healthcare Information Management, into forefront. It charts the progress and impact of Technology on Healthcare Efficiency, Accessibility, Affordability & Safety.. Please feel free to contact him at dipak@ehims.com

Home Health Care Keeps Seniors Home

There are many things that seniors enjoy. They often enjoy the benefits of their life long work. They also enjoy their independence. As they age, many of their loved ones worry about their ability to stay in their home alone. Rather than give up their independence, they will investigate the options of home health care to satisfy their concerns.

As seniors advance in age, they can sometimes experience age related issues. Sometimes they aren't able to do things they used to because they don't have the energy to do them. Families don't like seeing their loved ones lose the ability to do things and it makes them wonder if they are able to care for themselves in a sufficient manner. Instead of seniors bowing to pressure and moving into a nursing home, they find an agency that specializes in home health care and continue to live in their home.

When seniors look to find a home health care agency, they find there are many agencies that can help them. These agencies have many different services available to for them to choose from. When seniors are ready to decide, they normally will make an appointment to speak with a representative that can guide them through the process.

As the agency representative meets with their prospective client, they listen to the things that are being said. It is important for them to get a clear understanding of what the client needs. When seniors are looking for a home health care professional, not only are they answering questions, they are asking many questions so they can get an understanding of the programs and benefits.

Seniors are normally very honest in the things they need help with. They want to continue to live independently and to have a home health care professional work with them will ensure they are able to do so for as long as possible. These seniors have to consider many different things before they start the service.

Some seniors are in very good health. They are able to live independently and care for themselves very well. They sometimes have trouble doing certain things around their home because of their age but they can still manage their household. For seniors in this situation, having a home health care professional visit once a week may be ideal. They can help with errands that need to be run, correspondence or just to check their health. Seniors enjoy the help and they don't feel they are being intruded upon.

There are other seniors that need more help from their home health care professional. Some seniors unfortunately have different medical or age related problems that interfere in their ability to care for themselves. Families worry and try to help them as much as possible but sometimes it's not enough. For seniors in this position, they need a home health care professional to visit daily, helping with basic household chores and ensuring they are in good health. Many home care professionals also assist their clients with basic life skill activities such as bathing, brushing their teeth or even cooking.

Once seniors have decided the amount of help they need, the make arrangements with the home health care agency of their choice. These agencies are familiar with the struggles many seniors face and strive to ensure they are able to continue enjoying life and good health. Their families are relieved that their loved ones are able to continue their independence but allowing a medical professional to help.

Medical Tourism in India for Affordable Health Care

Gone are the days when people from less developed nations traveled to developed countries looking for advanced healthcare services. Asia is fast becoming one of the most sought after destinations for medical travel and India stands right up the ladder. The boom in the medical India tourism has been contributed by a host of factors that include affordable medical treatments, high quality medical care, wellness tourism, appealing accommodation options, highly skilled pool of medical professionals and above all, hospitals in India with advanced infrastructure.

Affordable yet excellent healthcare service in India is one of the reasons why people from around the globe choose the country for their medical travel. IVF, cosmetic surgery, infertility, organ transplant and oncology are the various medical arenas that is covered in medical tourism in India. Moreover, the Indian medical services also offers high class treatments in other branches of medical science like Cardiology, dentistry, bariatric, urology, ENT, ophthalmology, orthopedic surgery, neuro & spine surgeries, gastroenterology, minimally invasive surgery, telemedicine and cancer treatments.

India's popularity as a trusted medical travel destination could also be attributed to the presence of world class hospitals in India. Apollo Group of Hospitals is one such name that has created a niche in medical treatments in India with its clinical excellence. With more than 54 hospitals across the nation, Apollo is the Asia's largest healthcare group. With multiple branches across the nation, hospitals such as Max Hospitals in India, Fortis Group, Baby Memorial, BNWCCC, Columbia Asia, Medanta and Skin Alive are also serving the global populace with their impeccable health care services.

One of the important factors which have made medical India tourism a booming industry is the cost effective treatments available in the country as opposed to the developed nations where similar treatments are way too expensive. Medical tourism in India is rapidly becoming popular owing to the fact that the country has a large pool of highly skilled medical professionals.

Another reason for India being the favored medical travel destinations is the availability of advanced medical treatments and surgical procedures at very affordable costs. Even medicines required for the treatments are considerably cheaper in India than the cost of the same in USA or Britain. The demographic structure of India also insures that cultural and language barriers are almost nonexistent which leads to a hassle free, humane and personalized experience.

Availability of the advanced medical equipments and cutting edge technology in the country at considerably low cost makes India a very affordable medical travel destination. Availability of diverse accommodation options across the country is yet another reason why people prefer India for traveling when it comes to availing healthcare services.

Tourist from around the globe travel to India for cosmetic surgery, dental procedures, bariatric surgery, assisted reproductive technology, ophthalmology, orthopedic surgery, cardiac surgery, organ and cellular transplantation among others. For those looking for cheap medical treatments without compromising on the quality of service, India may well be the ideal destination for such purpose. Concentrated private sector enterprise, corporate hospitals, chemists, medical consultants and agents are all working in tandem to create an ecosystem that creates, educates and facilitates medical travel to India from around the globe.

Shalini works as a medical travel consultant for Medi Connect India for past 5 years and has extensive domain knowledge in medical tourism industry. Medi Connect India is a National Tourism Award winning company facilitating medical treatments in India for sophisticated health care with careful attention to patient preference, service and satisfaction. For more information about medical india tourism please visit our website http://www.medicalindiatourism.com/