Don't forget children in rush to healthcare IT

A study that focuses on healthcare information technology and its effect on children's health has found that children have unique needs that aren't taken into account as the pace of technology accelerates. "Children have many unique needs to be considered in developing technology-enabled innovations for improving their health," the report states. "Children have different health needs, are often served by different caregivers and in different care settings, and in some cases require HIT with different functionality than adults." "Technology-Enabled Innovations for Improving Children's Health" is a joint project of the Health Technology Center and The Children's Partnership, two California-based nonprofit research organizations. While there is broad recognition that information and communications technology (ICT) would help improve care and the pace of adoption is accelerating, there has been little focus on the use of ICT to improve healthcare for and the health of America's 73 million children, the authors of the report note. By ignoring the unique requirements of children, technologies that offer promise to improve children's health are being underused, according to the study, and underserved children who stand to gain the most from these new advances are least likely to receive their benefits.