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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.

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.

5 ways to feel less isolated at work

Lisa Mulcahy Mental Healthcare

Do you feel less than connected to your co-workers on a personal level? It might not be that you don't have things in common with them. Feelings of isolation might be caused by behavior you routinely practice but don't even recognize as a problem. Don't just accept feeling alone in your cubicle — use these science-driven tips to feel better physically and emotionally.

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.

Travel2020: Stressed sleepers gain no peace on the road

Lark Gould Travel, Hospitality & Event Management

A global study commissioned by IHG Hotels & Resorts has confirmed that lack of sleep is a primary concern for travelers, with 80% stating they have trouble sleeping when traveling away from home. Indeed, the National Sleep Foundation’s annual Sleep in America poll found that only 10% of American adults prioritize their sleep over other aspects of daily living such as fitness/nutrition, work, social life, and hobbies/personal interests. The findings from the IHG survey revealed that the average business traveler loses around 58 minutes of sleep each night when staying away from home.

Video: What’s the difference between a school counselor and a guidance…

Angela Cleveland Education

In the past, the title "guidance counselor" was used to describe counselors working in a school. Their role was primarily focused on "guiding" students to post-secondary education and scheduling. Their days were filled with tasks like sending out transcripts, writing letters of recommendation, etc. The title "school counselor" today recognizes that counselors address the needs of the whole student. They are proactive, data-informed leaders in the school community. Watch this video to learn more about the difference in roles.

Negativity: The mortal enemy of teamwork in healthcare

Keith Carlson Medical & Allied Healthcare

Teamwork in healthcare holds a place of the utmost importance when it comes to cooperation and the positive outcomes that both patients and providers desire to achieve. Collaboration and positivity need to be two of our highest-valued attributes in healthcare, and when negativity rears its ugly head on a consistent basis in any particular medical workplace setting, we see the mortal enemy of teamwork in action. Anyone can understandably have a bad moment or a bad day; however, when a bad day becomes a bad week, month, or year, that's another story entirely.

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