,
31 tweets,
14 min read
Read on Twitter
JT Pim's is nearly ready to go. We'll be hearing about Redesigning Healthcare tonight! #pint19 @pintofscienceIE 
Tim Jacquemand: The Electronic Patient Record, created by a group of experts, is currently used for patient care but also can be used for data analysis & business intelligence and for a patient portal, allowing a two-way communication between patient and clinician. #pint19
Tim Jacquemand: Via the patient portal, patients with e.g. epilepsy can enter details about their seizures, providing clinicians immediate access to these details. Raises questions about ethics & regulations. "Just because we can do a lot of things doesn't mean we should" #pint19
Tim Jacquemand: Technology is not value neutral. This is not necessarily bad, can be used in the right ways. We are trying to find new ways for people to think about healthcare records and ethical applications of their design. E.g. through features and functionalities. #pint19
Tim Jacquemand: but also stakeholders and ethical values such as beneficence, privacy, etc need to be taken into account. We need and aim to ensure that electronical healthcare systems are made efficient, secure and ethical #pint19
Naomi McElroy: Medical physicist are involved in radiotherapy and diagnostic imaging. Radiation (radiotherapy) has bad reputation but is used to treat diseases like cancer. Medical physicists make sure that when treating cancer, damage to surrounding tissues is limited. #pint19
Naomi McElroy: diagnostic imaging uses ultrasounds (in pregnancy but also other situations) and test the method by making phantoms to make sure the results are reliable. #pint19
Naomi McElroy: Medical physics is also involved in MRI for safety regarding helium, electromagnetic waves, magnetism and the MRI hardware #pint19
Naomi McElroy: The list goes on.. medical physicist may be involved with the physics of health-related lasers. E.g., for surgeries and skin issues it's important to make sure that patients are exposed long enough but not too long to the laser. #pint19
Naomi McElroy: Radiation protection in X-ray and Nuclear medicine is one of the responsibilities of the medical physicist. All these methods are crucial for modern healthcare but need to be used safely and appropriately. #pint19
Naomi McElroy: Radioactive substances can be injected, orally taken or inhaled to test different functions in your body. To ensure that this is done safely, it is legally required to involve a medical physicist in this process. #pint19
In sum, medical physicists keep us alive in more ways that we could have ever imagined.... 🙃 #pint19
Jack Banks: Ireland health care is doing very well in terms of mortality but it's got some clear issues. One of the improvement that's needed is making healthcare more patient-centered. #pint19
Jack Banks: eHealth is the umbrella term incorporating area that combines healthcare and technology to improve efficiencies and reduce costs #pint19
Jack Banks: approx 40.000 people in Ireland have epilepsy. When someone has a seizure, they go to an expert for a consultation. Waiting times in Dublin vary... Depending on severity, people get back every 3, 6, 9 or 12 months. Patients keep track of seizures via a diary #pint19
Jack Banks: During "the big snow" (Storm Emma), an appointment had to be done via the phone, inspiring clinicians to start "Virtual Clinics" rather than bringing patients in all the time. Reducing the effort on the side of patient. No patient considered the quality worse. #pint19
Jack Banks: additional plus mentioned by patient: "I could be more honest with clinician. I could say things I normally wouldn't if my child was also present" #pint19
Jack Banks: Current research line: Make patients with epilepsy the key stakeholders in developing independent ways for them to manage their care by observing them, interviewing them and facilitating collaboration between patients, clinicians and software developers #pint19
Time for our panel discussion with the three speakers #pint19
Naomi: Everyone is exposed to background radiation, you just do not realize it. In clinical settings, the diagnostic benefits far outweigh the risks. Because of the laws, we have to make sure it's justified. You cannot just have a scan. Depends on medical background too #pint19
Naomi: Medical physicists are not technicians. They are scientists. They keep into account what engineers and manufacturers say. However, manufacturers do not always optimize for clinical use. Medical physicists can help there. #pint19
Q to Jack: did doctors and nurses like the virtual appointments as much as the patients? Jack: clinicians considered the quality equally good as face-to-face.. only problem sometimes was the technology. But in terms of healthcare delivery clinicians were really happy #pint19
Q to Jack: What is in the pipeline for other specialists and chronic diseases? Jack: For diabetes, virtual appointments are already used widely. They are better funded and thus a bit ahead of other chronic conditions. I reckon we will move to using eHealth, like portals #pint19
Naomi: Skype can also help. Specialists can dial into a consult between clinicians and patients in more remote places. It allows for having a specialist further away than was previously possible and still get their input quickly #pint19
Tim & Naomi: Internet is great for acquiring data, but it's a big risk too. Who own the data? Where do you store the data? How do you keep in secure? Dealing with false positive? If you can do good by connecting people, someone hacking into it can also harm you #pint19
And with that last note as food for thought, we conclude the evening. Thanks to all our speakers, to our sponsors, to @pintofscienceIE and to JT Pim's for having us. #pint19
