IEEE, AMA to host conference: Overcoming challenges in individualized healthcare, technological innovations

IEEEMar 9 2010

IEEE, the world's largest technical professional association, and the American Medical Association (AMA), are joining together to host the First Conference on Medical Technology and Individualized Healthcare. The conference, taking place March 21-23 at the Renaissance Mayflower Hotel in Washington, DC, will address how to overcome the challenges facing the adoption of individualized healthcare and the technological innovations necessary for it to truly improve the quality of patient care.

Progress in the field of individualized medicine is underway, with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) estimating that the cost of sequencing a person's genome will cost less than $1,000 USD within the next five years. Additionally, technology innovations such as electronic patient records, the creation of national registries and electronic data capture of clinical trial data are maturing and providing researchers with the information they need to determine the reality of patient outcomes.  This unprecedented conference brings together representatives from the leading healthcare association and the leading technology association to address these pressing issues.

"Technologies that individualize medicine are improving the way we deliver health care," said AMA Board Chair, Rebecca J. Patchin, M.D. "By changing the manner in which we approach healthcare, we can enhance our ability to personalize diagnosis, treatment, management, and prevention of disease for each individual patient."

Confirmed speakers at the conference include:

• David  Blumenthal, M.D., MPP, the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology under President Barack Obama
• Gregory J. Downing, D.O., Ph.D., Program Director for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) initiative on Personalized Health Care
• Adam Darkins M.D., Head of the National Telehealth Programs for US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
• Edward Abrams, Ph.D., Executive Director of the Personalized Medicine Coalition (PMC)
• Kevin E. Bennet, Chairman of the Division of Engineering of the Mayo Clinic
• Zohara Cohen, Ph.D., Program Director at the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering at the National Institute of Health (NIH)

"Technology has played an enormous role in healthcare over the last decade, and that will increase exponentially moving forward," said Paolo Bonato, IEEE Senior Member and Conference Program Chair.  "Technologies such as electronic patient records and telemedicine are ensuring that doctors know all of the details they need to diagnose patients and deliver the best treatment possible.  This conference allows the healthcare and technology leaders to come together to outline the key imperatives for the next several years and work toward achieving it together. This type of groundbreaking work is a natural fit for IEEE's mission of advancing technology for humanity."