Researchers polled 902 interpreting physicians and found that ultrasound was the most commonly used supplemental breast cancer screening modality for women with dense tissue, and practices in the Northeastern US were more likely to offer the procedure. The findings, published in the Journal of the American College of Radiology, also showed that automated breast density assessment software and patient education material use, state density notification laws, and the number of radiologists in a practice who received breast imaging training were all significantly associated with supplemental screening availability.

A noninvasive device that uses ultrasound sensors to determine when a bladder is about to empty could prevent children from wetting the bed, according to a study published in Medical & Biological Engineering & Computing. The device warns parents through a smartphone app when their child may need to go to the bathroom.

The American Medical Association's newly released Patient Records Electronic Access Playbook covers case scenarios and best practices for electronic access to health records. The playbook includes guidance for sharing patient records in different forms and formats and handling requests for records from patients and third parties.

A KLAS Research survey of more than 300 health care leaders about health care disrupters shows while tech giants are on everyone's radar, smaller and emerging companies such as Cedar, Jvion and Nuance Communications also warrant attention. Nuance said this week it will be marketing its artificial intelligence-based medical speech recognition system to health systems.

The National Association of Accountable Care Organizations is asking the CMS to immediately provide detailed cost and financial methodology information regarding the agency's Direct Contracting payment model, which starts this year, or its members won't participate in the program. To make the model more attractive, the group recommended several changes including raising the shared savings rate to 75% for the professional option, reducing the amount of savings that will be kept by Medicare, and waiving the 2% "retention withhold," the penalty for exiting the payment model within two years.

Dr. Nancy Messonnier, director of the CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, urged Americans, businesses and hospitals to prepare for potential community spread of the emerging coronavirus, noting "disruption to everyday life might be severe." CDC Principal Deputy Director Dr. Anne Schuchat and HHS Secretary Alex Azar said the immediate risk in the US remains low, but rising cases in other countries suggest the US will see an increase beyond the current 57 documented cases.

CTA, in collaboration with more than 50 companies and organizations, has developed the first ANSI-accredited standard for defining terms related to artificial intelligence in health care. "As health systems and providers use AI tools such as machine learning to diagnose, treat and manage disease, there's an urgent need to understand and agree on AI concepts for consistent use," said CTA's Rene Quashie.

The CMS outlined a new strategy for standards of care aimed at reducing physician burnout at its annual Quality Conference. The strategy includes creating clear and reasonable quality expectations, increased oversight and enforcement of standards to ensure accountability, promoting transparency, competition and consumer choice, and using advances in technology and data to modernize quality improvement efforts.

CMS Administrator Seema Verma says she envisions an electronic system for reporting progress on the Merit-based Incentive Payment System using electronic health records to reduce administrative burdens for health care professionals. The plan includes using Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resource standards and application programming interfaces.

You may reinstate your ARDMS Credentials and APCA Certifications online by Feb. 29. Sonographers, log in to MY ARDMS and physicians, log in to MY APCA to pay your renewal fee plus a $150 reinstatement fee. Regain active status today!

There are over 1,000 opportunities on UltrasoundJOBS by ARDMS. If you are looking to make a career move, visit UltrasoundJOBS by ARDMS to find your next job opportunity!