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3 Things Healthcare IT Teams can do to Improve Cybersecurity

Sourced from Getty Images. The healthcare industry has been forever changed by digital transformation. Innovation in the medical space has led to advances in new treatments as well as cost savings that do not negatively impact the quality of care. The added benefit: faster, better networks have allowed for the growth of telemedicine, bringing quality care to thousands who did not have access before. An unfortunate side effect has been that cybercriminals are targeting the healthcare sector now more than ever. As a result, cybersecurity is critical to the success of health systems, which are increasingly at risk as cybercriminals look to steal patient data or hold internal resources for ransom. The vulnerabilities that enable these attacks exist in any vertical, but in the case of healthcar...

How to Fight COVID-19 in Africa’s Informal Settlements

Sourced from eNCA. The COVID-19 pandemic has cost hundreds of thousands of lives in the world’s richest cities but poses an even greater threat to cities in the developing world. There are now more than 150,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus across Africa, in all 54 countries, with South Africa and Egypt the worst affected. One of the most pressing concerns for Africa is that over half the population (excluding in North Africa) live in overcrowded informal settlements. In these areas where several people have to share one badly ventilated room, diseases such as COVID-19 spread fast and it is impossible to practice physical distancing whether in homes or outside. Other preventative measures are equally challenging. Only a third of households in Africa have access to basic handwashing facili...

E-Health Framework in Development for South Africa

South Africa’s healthcare organisations are currently on a journey to providing comprehensive and accessible healthcare services to all its citizens, in both the private and public healthcare ecosystems. However, the finalisation of legislation and standards that govern this sector has not been without challenges. The aim is to ensure that South Africa’s healthcare organisations – like their counterparts across the globe – comply with legislations and adhere to standards that support the transformation of the healthcare ecosystem. This through information and technology with various benchmarking and standards frameworks has resulted in the creation of the National Health Insurance (NHI) Bill, aimed at achieving specific strategic objectives in the delivery of healthcare. As an adjunct to t...

HIV-Fighting Strategy Could Help Against COVID-19

Sourced from Getty Images. While vaccines for the world-stopping coronavirus could be months, or even years away – there are some researchers who are looking to see if they can stop people who are at high risk of getting sick in the first place. The Verge writes that this is a proven strategy and preventative drugs have been used for decades to help people protect themselves against malaria, and more recently, against HIV. There has never been an effective vaccine against HIV, but now people can take a daily medication that reduces the risks of contracting the disease from sexual activity by 99%. Known as Pre-Exposure Prophylactic, or PrEP, the drug is used to prevent disease in people who haven’t yet been exposed to it. “We have an incredibly powerful tool that can, for myself personally,...

Groundbreaking AI Scans Lungs for COVID-19 Presence

In Wuhan, China, when the rate of coronavirus infection was at its highest, doctors were able to use an AI algorithm to scan the lungs of thousands of patients. The algorithm in question, developed by Axial AI, analyses CT imagery in seconds. It is able to declare whether a patient has a high risk of developing viral pneumonia from the coronavirus or not. The coloured area shows where the algorithm has detected pneumonia. Sourced from the BBC The BBC writes that a consortium of firms developed the AI in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. They say it can show whether a patient’s lungs have improved or worsened over time – when more CT scans are done for comparison. A hospital in Malaysia is now trialling the system and Axial AI has also offered to donate it to the NHS in the UK. However, th...