Here is a new megatrend. There will be a wave of new hospital mergers in the coming years. Hospitals need to access capital in order to purchase expensive equipment and build new facilities. But margins are getting very thin and access is very

Primary Care Physicians - A Shortage

Jun 6th, 2008

We do not have enough primary care physicians [PCPs] and the shortage is especially acute in rural and urban poor areas. In the USA there are about 30% PCPs and 70% specialists. In other countries of the developed world, the ratio is the opposi

The Growing Demand for Medical Services

May 23rd, 2008

The population is growing; we are aging; and more and more individuals have not curable acute illnesses but complex, chronic conditions that will persist for life. As a result there is a need for more and more medical services including physici

The Costs of Aging and Behaviors

Apr 28th, 2008

Increased age and our lifestyle behaviors have a major impact on healthcare costs. Like an older car, an older body has parts that are more likely to need repair or replacement. We will continue to age but we can slow the process of aging with

The High Cost of Drugs

Apr 17th, 2008

New pharmaceuticals have had a major impact on health and life, but many of the newer drugs are prohibitively expensive. Some are marginally valuable. Others are superb drugs but are all too often used in lieu of making life style changes that

The High Cost of Medical Technology

Apr 9th, 2008

Medical technologies are often very expensive. The question at hand is are they worth it or do they just drive up the already high cost of medical care? In this podcast we explore how some technologies are very useful but need to be used only w

Healthcare Reform Part I - Insurance

Mar 23rd, 2008

The United States is the only country in the industrialized world that does not assure insurance to cover the catastrophic medical care costs of all its citizens. But Republicans and Democrats differ widely on how to address this problem. Here

Recap of Medical Megatrends Part II

Mar 13th, 2008

As a result of engineering and computer science advances we can expect to see major improvements in imaging - both anatomic and now also molecular or functional imaging; smaller and more powerful medical devices; big changes in the operating ro

Recap of Medical Megatrends Part I

Mar 11th, 2008

We review here the five basic medical megatrends that will occur in the coming five to fifteen years including the concept of customed-tailored medicine, the change from "diagnose and treat" to "predict and prevent;" repairing, restoring or rep

Your Medical Information

Nov 5th, 2007

Your medical record is indeed your medical record even though it may be currently stored in your doctor’s office or the hospital’s record room. You need to have ready access to that information and need to be able to pass it on to any healthcar

The Electronic Medical Record - Part Two

Oct 30th, 2007

"The electronic medical record will arrive over the next decade, but inparts and pieces. It will become your medical record, not the doctor's or hospital's. Your record may be on a a chip in your pocket or instantly available from the internet.

Electronic Medical Records

Oct 22nd, 2007

Full digitization of medical information – which will still take 5 to ten years or more to achieve - will allow access to medical information at any time, at any place, and in so doing will greatly improve the quality and safety of medical care

Robotics

Oct 15th, 2007

Robotics will become as important in surgery as industrial robots have become to manufacturing. They can overcome certain obstacles or barriers, such as accessibility to certain tissues (small incisions), distance (telesurgery), dexterity (the

Imaging and Simulation in the OR

Oct 8th, 2007

Tomorrow's operating rooms will be highly dependent upon breathtakingly superb images that will allow the surgeon to know - in advance - what to expect during a specific individual's surgery. And simulators will be universally used by trainees

Less Invasive Surgery

Sep 24th, 2007

As medicine advances, there will be less need for surgery and the surgery done will be much less invasive. Some procedures traditionally done in the operating room will now be done in the radiology department using catheters rather than scalpel

The Operating Room of the Future

Sep 17th, 2007

The OR of the Future has four major megatrends. Fewer procedure will need to be done. Many procedures will be done outside the OR. The OR will have much more functionality. The OR will depend on new technologies such as simulators, image guidan

Nanomedicine

Sep 5th, 2007

Nanomedicine - Ever more small devices are being created now with sizes so small that they cannot be seen with a microscope -- but they can help in diagnosis and treatment in ways never before available. For example, a nanodevice an find a tumo

Devices

Aug 27th, 2007

Smaller and more powerful devices with very long battery life have been created to help control the heart beat, improve heart pumping, decrease the number of epileptic seizures and even decrease depression for those not well treated by drugs. S

Imaging

Aug 21st, 2007

What we used to call "X-rays" are dramatically changing with superb anatomic images that show some of the smallest details of our organs and the ability to "see" actual function within tissues and cells. And they are not just used for diagnosis

Vaccines

Aug 10th, 2007

Expect new vaccines to prevent not only infections but also to prevent and treat many chronic diseases like multiple sclerosis, coronary artery disease, and Alzheimer’s. And their will be vaccines designed specifically for an individual – custo

The Promise of Stem Cells

Aug 3rd, 2007

Let’s get away from all the hype and look at what stem cells might actually do - such as help regenerate the damage to the heart after a heart attack or create new pancreas islet cells to replace those lost to type 1 diabetes.

Genomics and Targeted Drug Therapy

Jul 26th, 2007

The genomics revolution will mean a whole new approach to drug development and therapy. Drugs will be designed for a specific target, will have fewer side effects, will be much safer. They will be prescribed specifically for your problem with a

The Era of Genomics

Jul 26th, 2007

Medicine is rapidly changing – for the better. A major megatrend is that you can expect to have much more personalized medical care – tailored just for you - in the years to come. Genomics for example will allow your doctor to predict what dise

Megatrends in Medicine

Jul 26th, 2007

The medical megatrends coming over the next five to fifteen years include drugs with specific targets to attack with fewer side effects, X-rays that take previously undreamed of pictures of our anatomy and even image your cells metabolic functi

Prediction and Prevention

Jun 29th, 2007

Genomics will improve your doctor’s ability to diagnose disease and plan a specific approach just for you – personalized or custom tailored medicine. Your physician will also be able to predict if your cancer is likely to recur after treatment

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