MultiBriefs - Your source for industry specific News Briefs

Alexa went to school, and now she’s HIPAA-compliant

Tammy Hinojos Oral & Dental Healthcare

"Alexa, ask my dentist if my prescription is ready." No, really. You can do that now. Amazon announced on April 4 that its Alexa Skills Kit now enables select covered entities subject to Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) regulations to build Alexa skills that allow it to transmit and receive protected health information as part of an invite-only program. Cool. But what does that actually mean? It means soon you could be using your Alexa for more than weather and traffic updates and turning on music.

The skin cancer you don’t know about — but should

Lisa Mulcahy Medical & Allied Healthcare

You're no doubt well-aware of the potentially deadly consequences of melanoma. That's why it's so crucial that you do a monthly skin check of your moles and see a dermatologist for any changing lesions, as well as an annual full-body examination. Chances are, however, that you've never heard of the fastest-growing and most deadly form of skin cancer, Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) — and you need to get up to speed. The good news: with early detection and immediate evaluation by your doctor, MCC can be treatable.

Study reveals statins have surprising benefits

Dorothy L. Tengler Pharmaceutical

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States. Approximately one-third of all deaths in the U.S. are due to heart disease or stroke. Elevated blood cholesterol is a major risk factor for CVD, and statin therapy has been strongly associated with a reduced risk of atherosclerotic CVD. While investigating why statins cause negative side effects, cellular chemists at The University of Toledo discovered previously unknown benefits. Statins may play a protective role in the event of a heart attack because they can suppress a biological process that disrupts cardiac function.

A 4-step process for making changes in your nursing department

Amanda Ghosh Medical & Allied Healthcare

Although difficult, it is possible to get your staff on board with a change. A recent study published in Nursing Open shares how a group of nurse managers successfully changed aspects of their wards. A four-step process emerged from their stories. Echoing the principles of emotional intelligence, the four steps included (1) identifying, (2) prioritizing, (3) implementing, and (4) evaluating. These steps can be used to spearhead changes in your department.

More teens, children seeking psych care in emergency departments

Chelsea Adams Mental Healthcare

Here's the good news. More young people are seeking care for mental health-related disorders than ever before. The bad news? These teens and adolescents are using emergency departments to access the help they need. But, according to an analysis published in the March 18 issue of JAMA Pediatrics, only 16 percent of young patients who sought care in an ED ever saw a mental health professional. The analysis identified a 28 percent increase in overall psych ED visits among patients ages 6 to 24 in the years between 2011 and 2015.

Telehealth use up dramatically nationwide

Scott E. Rupp Medical & Allied Healthcare

Telehealth use rose by more than 50% from 2016 to 2017, according to a new white paper by Fair Health. For the annually released paper, data was collected from the company's records of 28 billion commercial insurance claims, which showed that telehealth utilization grew nearly twice as fast in urban areas vs. rural over that span. Nationally, urgent-care centers increased their use of telehealth by at least 14%, followed by retail clinics at 7% and ambulatory surgery centers at 6%. Emergency department utilization of telehealth declined, though, by 2%. However, utilization in this setting was still the most used.

Study: Higher risk of depression in women who work long hours

Dorothy L. Tengler Mental Healthcare

Working women face challenging stressors involving both their family and professional lives, juggling roles as a wife, mother, and earner. For women who work more than 55 hours a week, however, these stressors increase the risk of depression. According to a recent observational study, those who worked for all or most weekends had 4.5% more depressive symptoms compared to women working only weekdays. For men who worked all or most weekends, 3.4% had more depressive symptoms compared to men working only weekdays.

Podcast: Keys to successfully going out-of-network and maintaining patient…

Jarod Carter Sports & Fitness

Sturdy McKee took a booming, three-clinic in-network practice and successfully transitioned completely out-of-network without missing a beat. In this podcast, he shares the patient communication strategy he used each time he dropped a provider, asks a thought provoking question about why patients would choose to go out-of-network, and gives examples of where cash-based practices have to excel to win patients.

New opt-out law considers all adults in England organ donors

Lynn Hetzler Medical & Allied Healthcare

In the spring of 2020, all adults in England will become organ donors, according to a new law. On March 15, Organ Donation (Deemed Consent) Bill 2017-19 was granted Royal Assent and became law. Also known as the "opt-out bill" and Max and Keira’s Law, the legislation means that all adults living in England are organ donors unless they record a decision to opt-out. The bill, introduced in the House of Commons by Labour MP Geoffrey Robinson, deems that consent has been given by a potential organ donor before death unless the individual expressly states that they do not wish to be an organ donor.

What’s next for association health plans after federal judge’s…

Seth Sandronsky Medical & Allied Healthcare

U.S. District Court Judge John D. Bates recently ruled that the Department of Labor's issuance of a final rule last June 19 that lets groups of small businesses offer association health plans (AHPs) is "clearly an end-run" around the 2010 Affordable Care Act’s consumer protections. Kev Coleman, president and founder of AssociationHealthPlans.com, disputes Judge Bates' ruling. "The new study on chamber of commerce association health plans painfully illustrates the insurance gains that will be lost to small businesses if the recent court ruling is not overturned," Coleman said in a prepared statement.

Industries