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Specialist medical homes: Keeping patients out of the hospital
Christina Thielst Healthcare AdministrationSpecialty medical homes provide a tremendous opportunity to control costs with better management of complications and the prevention of hospitalizations. Lawrence Kosinski, M.D., a gastroenterologist, has been successful at doing just this for his Crohn's disease patients, and his accomplishments were highlighted in a recent H&HN article.
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Leadership changes at ONC as Obama administration nears end
Scott E. Rupp Healthcare AdministrationDr. Karen DeSalvo, who until Friday served as the national coordinator for health information technology, has left the position. She is being replaced by Vindell Washington, M.D., who had been serving as the principal deputy national coordinator at ONC.
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Nurse leaders: Bridging the gaps between generations
Keith Carlson Healthcare AdministrationIn 2016, there are three generations at the heart of the American nursing workforce: the baby boomers, Generation X and the millennials. These nurses interface daily in myriad settings, and the quality of that interface is crucial to patient satisfaction, nurse satisfaction and the creation of a positive workplace culture.
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Use of health IT and online services remains low with seniors
Scott E. Rupp Healthcare AdministrationThe news is in, and research suggests what we may have already known. Individuals 65 years and older do not use the internet for their healthcare searches, and the number adopting digital health tools remains low, according to a research letter published in the Journal of the Medical Association.
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Growing concerns for labor standards in nursing
Joan Spitrey Healthcare AdministrationLabor issues among nurses are not a new topic. Considering there is little legislative oversight surrounding staffing and healthcare's current financial instability, the tension between nurses and their employers will continue to be present. However, the tension seems to be on the rise in recent years.
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Government, private entities move to reduce waiting lists
Chelsea Adams Medical & Allied HealthcareThe federal government is attempting to shorten the length of time organ recipients spend on waiting lists. A three-pronged plan that involves government agencies and private entities was announced recently. Announced at a summit held at the White House, the plan spells out ways the Department of Defense, private businesses and nonprofit groups will work to reduce the number of people on organ waiting lists.
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CMS changes meaningful use reporting period for 2016 to 90 days
Scott E. Rupp Healthcare AdministrationHere’s looking at you, CMS. This hat is tipped for you. So must be the sentiment across thousands of healthcare organizations when in early July, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said that the meaningful use reporting period should be reduced from one year to just 90 days in 2016 for returning participants in the incentive program. "This increases flexibility and lowers the reporting burden for hospital providers," the organization said in a statement posted on its website.
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How nurses help underserved communities
Keith Carlson Medical & Allied HealthcareNurses have a rich history of contributing to the welfare of underserved populations. As the backbone, lifeblood, and connective tissue of the healthcare industry, nurses interface regularly with citizens who are most in need of compassionate care grounded in nursing science. When Lillian Wald founded The Henry Street Settlement in 1893, she was doing what nurses do best, which is recognizing a problem that can be mitigated by the nursing process and nursing intervention.
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New study links education levels to heart failure risk
Dorothy L. Tengler Medical & Allied HealthcareA Norwegian study of over 70,000 cardiac patients found that the more education patients had, the less their risk of heart failure was. Previous research has shown that patients are more likely to die after a heart attack if they have a lower educational level, but information on the mechanisms involved was sparse. Since heart failure is the most important incident in the chain of events leading to death after a heart attack, the researchers hypothesized that it might contribute to the observed educational disparities in survival.
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Ready or not, MACRA is coming
Scott E. Rupp Healthcare AdministrationFrom meaningful use to the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA), the headlines in healthcare for the foreseeable future will surround the latest payment carrot-and-stick regulations. Like meaningful use, which is now regular vernacular in healthcare, the potentially disruptive MACRA will soon be just as popular of an expression for those in every aspect of the care protocols. Right now, not so much.
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