Polar opens up API

Fitness wearable maker Polar has launched an open API for developers for the first time, Wareable reports. The API, called Polar Open AccessLink, will allow other apps to access training and activity data from Polar devices, with permission from users. Vitality, TechnoGym, HeaiHeai, and Validic have all announced that they will interface with AccessLink.

Bridge Patient Portal launches next-generation offering

Bridge Patient Portal — a Dallas, Texas-based company which works to help healthcare organizations replace their existing EHR patient portal or implement a single, agnostic platform to connect several separate EHR patient portals — has launched version 2.0 of its platform, which includes new interface capabilities, patient self-service functionality, and patient engagement tools. Notably, the new version includes a whitelabeled mobile app, from Universe mHealth, for iOS or Android.

PointClickCare comes to the home

EHR vendor PointClickCare has announced a new cloud-based offering called PointClickCare At Home. The cloud-based platform targets the long-term post-acute care (LTPAC) market.

“With over 15,000 communities using PointClickCare today, we offer a unique value proposition for LTPAC providers to simplify the accessibility and sharing of data across care settings,” Terri Weckle, SVP of strategic products and home and community-based care solutions at PointClickCare, said in a statement. “Providers offering home health care, whether as part of a broader care portfolio or as a stand alone agency, benefit from an integrated platform that will enable care teams and their valued partners to draw from, and contribute to, a common patient record.”

Texas passes telepharmacy bill

Texas Senate Bill 1633, which would allow more telepharmacy technology to be used in rural areas with few pharmacies, has passed the state's House and will now head to the Governor’s desk. MobiHealthNews wrote about the bill this past spring when Texas’ other telemedicine legislation passed.

Jamf highlights healthcare users

At Apple device management company Jamf’s annual user conference last week, the company showcased a number of healthcare customers, including Geisinger Health System, University of California San Diego Health, Orthology, and the Bungee Foundation. Jamf helps hospitals set up systems where every patient has an iPad or an Apple TV in their room that can be used for anything from accessing records to playing games or watching movies. The company ensures HIPAA compliance and makes it easy to factory-reset devices when patients are discharged or transferred.

“From the staff we do get feedback initially that it’s just another thing that keeps them away from their clinical care,” James Rafel, a program director at Geisinger Health System, said during a keynote session. “But then over time … they start to see the benefits — from possibly lower call bells, so that they can do more nursing, to just better patient satisfaction.”