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The importance of relationships to healthcare delivery
Keith Carlson Medical & Allied HealthcareWhen a patient walks through the door of a physician's office, the success of that visit is largely predicated upon the relationship between the doctor and the patient. If a nurse is readying an anxious patient for surgery, the nurse's ability to connect with that individual and provide compassionate care is crucial. And when a school nurse tends to a disabled child's tracheostomy, the previously established trust between child and adult is central to comfort and a sense of mutuality. Healthcare is built upon a foundation of relationships; without those links, the provision of such care can feel sterile, lifeless, and devoid of any deeper meaning.
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HIMSS releases report forecasting healthcare trends for 2019
Scott E. Rupp Medical & Allied HealthcareIn late January, the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) announced the availability of a new report, "2019 Healthcare Trends Forecast: The Beginning of a Consumer-Driven Reformation." The paper features commentary and analysis from leaders across HIMSS, Healthbox, Health 2.0 and PCHAlliance, each of whom have a bird's-eye view of industry trends and the levers of change. The report is organized around four key trends: digital health implications and applications, consumer impact, financial and demographic challenges, and issues of data governance and policy.
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5 new ways to protect your heart
Lisa Mulcahy Medical & Allied HealthcareKeeping your ticker healthy should be a priority for everyone. That's why new research on cardiovascular health can help us all take fresh, proactive steps to safeguard our hearts and feel a lot better, too. This piece will outline science-based advice we can put into practice right away.
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Common pain relievers may promote C. difficile
Dorothy L. Tengler Medical & Allied HealthcareClostridioides difficile (C. diff) is the most commonly diagnosed cause of antibiotic-associated diarrhea and has surpassed methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus as the most common healthcare-associated infection in many U.S. hospitals. Healthcare costs attributed to these infections can reach nearly $5 billion each year. Commonly occurring in older hospitalized adults after the use of antibiotic medications, C. diff affects the normal flora of the gut. This hardy type of bacteria is very difficult to treat. An estimated 15,000 deaths are directly attributable to C. diff infections, making it a substantial cause of infectious disease death.
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Ways to protect your healthcare workers from workplace violence
Lisa Mulcahy Healthcare AdministrationPatient-driven abuse: it's a sad but true reality for nurses, doctors and medical assistants today. As a hospital administrator, keeping your staff safe is obviously an essential priority, and your organization no doubt has policies in place to make this happen. Are those policies as effective as they can be, though? Reassess your strategies by reviewing and implementing the following research-driven findings.
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Evidence continues to show that youth e-cigarette use is growing
Dr. Denise A. Valenti Medical & Allied HealthcareYet another survey is demonstrating that teenagers are adopting the use of electronic cigarettes at an alarming rate. One of the latest, released in December 2018, is called "Monitoring the Future." It was administered by the University of Michigan and was given to 14,000 eighth-, 10th- and 12th-graders across the United States. Other risk behaviors monitored in the survey, such as opioid use, binge drinking, and conventional cigarette use, either remained level or declined. The use of nicotine vaping products showed the largest and most significant increase in any category since the survey began in 1975.
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Study: Female brains may age more slowly
Tammy Hinojos Medical & Allied Healthcare"Anything you can do, I can do better! I can do anything better than you…" It's an oldie for sure, but it turns out, the catchy tune by Irving Berlin from "Annie Get Your Gun" might just have been on to something. It turns out that female brains tend to age more slowly than those of men, researchers report. Women's brains appear to be about three years younger than those of men at the same chronological age on average. This finding could provide one clue to why women tend to stay mentally sharp longer than men, the authors noted.
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Study: Patients experiencing high trauma from hospitalizations had more…
Lynn Hetzler Medical & Allied HealthcareHospitalization can be traumatizing for patients. Previous research shows that one in three patients who survived an ICU stay for an acute lung injury suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Disturbances in patients’ sleep, nutrition, mobility, and mood are common in medical inpatients, and these disturbances can be traumatic for patients. Traumatic hospitalization can also increase the risk of readmissions and emergency department (ED) visits. The results of a new study, published in JAMA, show that patients who experience high trauma of hospitalization may have a greater risk of an ED visit or readmission within 30 days compared with patients with low trauma exposure.
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Financial world weighs in on new CMS price rule
Christina Thielst Healthcare AdministrationThe Motley Fool is a media channel dedicated to helping the world invest for a better financial future. It is no surprise, then, that it has addressed the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' (CMS) new Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment System rule, which requires hospitals to publish their standard charges online in a machine-readable format. In The Fool’s words, "hospitals are now required to list prices for all of their services, thereby giving patients a clearer notion of what to expect. But while it's a good idea in theory, so far, the rule is only adding to consumers' confusion without in any way alleviating the cost burden for patients."
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When healthcare and politics intersect
Keith Carlson Medical & Allied HealthcareHealthcare consumers and providers may not always speak of politics and healthcare in the same breath; however, these two powerful cultural and societal forces are often inextricably linked in multifaceted ways. For healthcare providers who want to have an impact in this regard, understanding politics and the political nature of medicine and patient care is paramount. A large swath of Americans may not be aware of the fact that many healthcare providers serve in local, state, and federal governments in a variety of positions.
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