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Supporting vs. enabling your student
Sharona Sommer, CPC EducationWhat does it really mean to enable versus support your student? Generally speaking, enabling refers to the practice of over-helping, as in rescuing your student from uncomfortable or challenging situations without considering if they are able to handle it themselves. When you support your student, you provide space for them to learn from their mistakes and build the necessary coping skills to handle life’s twists and turns. It is your job as parents and caregivers to provide positive encouragement along the path to independence but not to pave the road for them before they get there.
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Stemming the tide of attrition: A healthcare priority
Keith Carlson Healthcare AdministrationEmployee turnover is costly for any industry, and healthcare is no exception. Hiring new employees is a calculated risk, be they nurses, physicians, or other staff. Seamless, high-quality healthcare is key to successful outcomes, and staffing inconsistencies can be a powerful wrench in the system. Based on the importance of staff retention and the cost of attrition, stemming employee attrition and honoring the value of human capital should be top of mind for any healthcare administrator, executive, or manager.
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Healthcare hiring outpaces almost every other sector in 2018
Scott E. Rupp Medical & Allied HealthcareThe job market ended last year on a high note with more than 312,000 reported jobs added for the final month of the year, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported earlier this month, even while the overall unemployment rate rose to 3.9 percent. The healthcare sector had a very strong year, having experienced the creation of more than 346,000 new jobs. Annually, that’s up from 284,000 jobs in 2017, a 22 percent rise year-over-year. Ambulatory centers added 219,000 jobs while hospitals added 107,000 jobs.
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Improve the way your physicians use EHRs
Lisa Mulcahy Healthcare AdministrationElectronic health records (EHRs) can be an incredibly helpful tool in providing targeted patient care and reducing medical error. Yet many hospitals' EHR systems can be difficult to navigate for many doctors due to poor technology, confusing or time-consuming notation requirements, or a lack of understanding how to utilize EHRs to provide the best patient care. The solution? Take stock of your EHR system for efficiency — then use the following advice to make it easier for your doctors to work with, with life-saving, cost-saving results.
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Bringing healthy behavior to the workplace in the new year
Connie Ulman Medical & Allied HealthcareIt’s the new year and many are thinking about being healthier. You can start your journey at home and continue it in the workplace. To help you bring healthy behavior into the workplace, the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association have created a Healthy Workplace Food and Beverage Toolkit. I find that when I am working on a healthier me, it is easier to accomplish my goals if I work with a team. It is important to have a support team in place. Your team can be made up of friends, family and co-workers.
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Study evaluates 9 coronary risk scores used to evaluate undifferentiated…
Lynn Hetzler Medical & Allied HealthcareNonspecific chest pain is the second most common reason for presentation to the emergency department, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Acute coronary syndrome (ACS) identification with appropriate disposition is quite challenging. While most ED patients with undifferentiated chest pain do not have ACS, missing this diagnosis has major morbidity and mortality implications. In a first-of-its-kind study, researchers compared the performance of nine different risk scores within the same population presenting to the ED with undifferentiated chest pain.
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For many hospitals, the fax machine is still the dominant information sharing…
Scott E. Rupp Medical & Allied HealthcareThe fax machine has not gone anywhere in medicine. This so-called "ancient relic" is still operational and is considered a simple, yet powerful tool for those in healthcare, despite the other more modern modalities of exchanging information. According to newly released federal data, almost three-quarters of nonfederal acute care hospitals routinely use faxes to receive summary of care records from providers outside their system, according to the data released by the Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) for Health IT.
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FDA condemns use of teething jewelry for infants with teething pain
Tammy Hinojos Oral & Dental HealthcareFor anyone who has raised a child, I think we can all agree that the teething season is awful! The crying, the fussing, the drooling. Then there’s the baby! Just kidding. Teething is no joke and most babies go through some level of discomfort during the season of time that baby teeth are erupting along the gum line. As a dental professional, you may have had patients ask you for your advice on how to deal with their baby’s teething.
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Hand hygiene in the operating room: Halting the spread of staph infections
Dorothy L. Tengler Medical & Allied HealthcareIn 2014, approximately 14.2 million inpatient operations were performed in U.S. hospitals. A survey of healthcare-associated infection (HAI) prevalence, conducted by the Centers for Disease Control, revealed an estimated 157,500 surgical site infections associated with inpatient surgeries in 2011. Although advances have been made in infection control practices, surgical site infections remain an alarming cause of morbidity, prolonged hospitalization, and death. In fact, these infections are associated with a mortality rate of 3 percent, and 75 percent of deaths are directly attributable to these infections.
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How to give your cardiologists the support they need
Lisa Mulcahy Healthcare AdministrationAs an administrator, you know that cardiologists are often nothing short of miracle workers. A little-considered fact, however: these highly skilled and brilliant physicians often work under emotional and physical constraints that make their jobs difficult, even dangerous — and that can compromise patient care. To give the cardiologists in your organization the assistance they may need, but may not ask you for, implement these important research-driven points. Doing so will ensure safe, satisfactory outcomes.
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