eHealth Institute Holds Summit on Future of eHealth Applications

Nearly 100 "key" health and technology corporations, academic institutions, health care organizations, foundations, government agencies and not-for-profit groups are meeting this week at the "eHealth Developers' Summit" in Aptos to discuss the future of eHealth applications. The summit was convened by the eHealth Institute and is being sponsored by several organizations, including the California HealthCare Foundation, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, HHS' Department of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, and Kaiser Permanente. Summit participants will address several issues, including how the "downturn" of Internet and technology companies has impacted eHealth development and investments, as well as what barriers exist that prevent the implementation of eHealth tools. Participants will also discuss what types of new applications are needed and what changes will be required to "jumpstart" eHealth development. The summit will feature talks by Mark Leavitt, chair of Medscape; Richard Noffsinger, Microsoft's Worldwide Healthcare Group manager; David Brailer, chair and CEO of CareScience; Mark Roman, general manager of IBM Global HealthCare Solutions; and Luis Barros, the manager of the e-Lilly Venture Fund. Dr. Tom Eng, chair of the summit and president of the eHealth Institute, said, "The recent downturn in capital markets ... has created a substantial vacuum in eHealth leadership. The summit will identify potential solutions for sustainable eHealth development, enhance communication among developers and foster business relationships and collaborations." The summit, the only national meeting focusing solely on eHealth application development, began yesterday and concludes Friday (eHealth Institute release, 11/13).