Healthcare Policies and Standards

Intel® technology is used in a wide range of healthcare applications, and we collaborate with healthcare providers, other companies, and policymakers on innovative new products and solutions aimed at improving global access to quality, affordable healthcare.

Social scientists from Intel travel the world, conducting ethnographic research in hospitals and homes. Our research focuses on improving care in clinical environments, advancing personal health technologies for the home, identifying new care models and work practices, and promoting standards and policies that enable innovation and interoperability across the healthcare ecosystem. The insights we gain through our people-centered research help inform the design of a growing roster of innovative products and technology solutions.

In a people-centric healthcare world, patients and care teams must be able to easily collaborate across the continuum of care. The key to this information exchange is the industry-wide adoption of standards. Intel invests significant resources in standards initiatives while collaborating with other technology industry leaders to accelerate the innovation of solutions that will ensure the stability and interoperability of the greater technology infrastructure.

Intel’s healthcare collaborations include helping to launch and lead the Continua Health Alliance, which has established guidelines for highly connected personal tele-health products for fitness, disease management, elder care, and more. Intel is also a founding member of Dossia, a consortium of large employers focused on developing a secure framework that enables more than 2.5 million employees, dependents, and retirees to collect and maintain lifelong electronic health records. In addition, Intel and the Alzheimer's Association formed Everyday Technologies in Alzheimer Care, a consortium to address the needs of the estimated four million people in the United States living with Alzheimer’s disease.

In September 2011, Intel announced the 1Mx15 Health Program, which aims to bring technology skills to one million healthcare workers in developing countries by the end of 2015. The program is designed to accelerate progress toward better health, primarily for women and children. In collaboration with governments, private industry, development communities, and academia, the program is establishing initiatives aimed at increasing the availability, affordability, and usage of computers and broadband. As part of 1Mx15, Intel created The Intel® skoool™ Healthcare Education platform, an anytime, anywhere multimedia content delivery and assessment platform.

In support of the 1Mx15 goals, in early 2012, Intel and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) announced a new partnership aimed at using technology to strengthen the skills of midwives and other front-line healthcare workers. Intel will provide software and technical assistance, and UNFPA will provide training content for the program. The project’s initial focus will be on countries that have high maternal death rates, including areas of India, Bangladesh, and Ghana.