EH 4_2015

(I)Immunoassay Module 280 tests/hour 1600 tests/hour Loading 280 samples at one time 1000 tests/hour (B)Biochemistry Module (E)Electrolyte Module (S)Sample Processing Module www.snibe.com sales@snibe.com THE EUROPEAN FORUM FOR THOSE IN THE BUSINESS OF MAKING HEALTHCARE WORK CONTENTS NEWS & MANAGEMENT 1-5 IT & TELEMEDICINE 6-8 CARDIOLOGY 9-20 INFECTION CONTROL 21-23 DIGITAL PATHOLOGY 24-25 INFECTION 26-28 www.healthcare-in-europe.com V O L 2 4 I S S U E 4 / 1 5 • A U G U S T / S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 5 ‘In IT we often casually say that Big Data is exactly what we can’t do yet,’ computer science expert Professor Christoph Meinel said ruefully. ‘Big Data are huge volumes of data of very different heterogeneity, origin, quality and size – and it’s exactly these characteristics that pose a big challenge for evaluation, analysis and calculation because we are bet- ter versed at handling more uni- formly structured data.’ Asked to about the term Big Data he pointed out that there are many examples, including human genome data, data in hospital information systems, cancer registers, clinical studies, medical sensor data, image data, acoustic data and ultrasound data, as well as medical publications. ‘We are now trying to intelligently link these data sources to facilitate conclusions that can advance our medical research and therefore the treatment of diseases.’ ‘For example, the success rate of radio- and chemotherapy in cancer treatment is below 25%, meaning 75% of patients undergo agonising the RAM, meaning that data can be analysed immediately without time intensive transport of data from external data storage. This means the factor can be calculated ten thousand times faster and data from very different sources can be linked in real time.’ treatment for nothing. If the likeli- hood of determining the effective- ness of treatment based on findings of a patient’s respective genetic or molecular structure was higher, we could exclude certain types of treat- ment right from the start because they are not appropriate, and we could spare the patient this tor- turous treatment. Previously this required analyses that could some- times take several months. Now, with the In-Memory-Technology, which we developed together with SAP, we can reduce the time these evaluations take to mere seconds. ‘The first product based on this technology is the SAP HANA Database. This type of database is ten thousand times faster than traditional ones. Why? The RAM of computers is becoming ever cheap- er, and new computer architecture is now possible with huge RAMs. Entire databases can be stored in A maths and computer sciences gradu- ate from Humboldt University, Berlin, Christoph Meinel is president and CEO of the Hasso-Plattner-Institute, and profes- sor for Internet Technologies and Systems at the University of Potsdam (Germany). He is a member of acatech, the national German academy of science and engineer- ing, Chairman of the German IPv6 council, and of HPI-Stanford Design Thinking Research Programme. He heads the steer- ing committee of HPI Future SOC Lab, and serves on various advisory boards, e.g. SAP. His research focuses on IT and sys- tems, and Design Thinking research. Continued on page 2 CARDIOLOGY 9-20 • ESC – London 2015 • Cardiac news & views • An EH 12-page update DIGITAL PATHOLOGY 24-25 • Unlocking imaging potential • Future diagnoses via CAD • Denmark’s national digital system With registration about to begin for the Oxford-based Big Data Science in Medicine Symposium, we asked Professor Christoph Meinel, President of Germany’s Hasso-Plattner-Institute, about the potential of big data in medicine and medical research The future for big data in medicine Following a tender by the European Commission (EAHC/2013/ Health/08), the European Health Management Association (EHMA) organised an expert consortium to carry out a study to identify and analyse effective strategies for recruiting and retaining health pro- fessionals in Europe. The study has highlighted that many EU countries have difficulties in retaining and recruiting health staff. These problems are frequently allied with the challenge of balanc- ing the right number of healthcare staff with the right skills in the right geographical areas to meet the changing needs of populations and health systems. These difficulties in retaining and recruiting health staff need to be addressed by policy- makers, healthcare managers and healthcare workers because they are becoming increasingly urgent. As healthcare demands increase, the health workforce shrinks – with many workers reaching retirement age – risking the future sustainabili- ty of Europe’s health systems. Whilst no ‘one size fits all’ solution can be found to these problems, there a number of success factors like education opportunities, financial incentives and professional and per- sonal support could help to attract and retain healthcare staff. Recruitment and retention of Europe’s medics Source:Shutterstock/wk1003mike The 2nd Big Data Science in Medicine Symposium, organised by the Biogeronto­ logy Research Foundation (BGRF) and Oxford Biotech, with Deep Knowledge Ventures and InSilico Medicine, is bringing to Oxford international experts in artificial intelligence, biomedical science and regen- erative medicine for discussions that aim to accelerate research in preventive medicine.  ‘When cutting edge biomedical research meets state-of-the-art big data technolo- gies, the extraordinary seems possible,’ the organisers state. ‘At the forefront of scientific innovation is the recognition that the diseases of ageing are not inevitable facts of life; instead they are biological challenges with real solutions. It is widely recognised that prevention is better than a cure – this event is an endorsement of that idea.’  Details: http://www.bigdatamed.org V O L 24 I S S U E 4 / 15 • A U G U S T / S E P T E M B E R 2015

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