Connecting The Medical Dots
from Washington Post
 Congress is considering adding money for health information technology to January's stimulus package. Doing so could spur a critical mass of the nation's doctors to finally enter the information age, but unless the funds are tied to standards for the interoperability of health IT systems, the expenditure could do more harm than good. Before lawmakers act, they need to think: If stimulus money supports a proliferation of systems that can't exchange information, we will only be replacing paper-based silos of medical information with more expensive, computer-based silos that are barely more useful. Critical information will remain trapped in proprietary systems, unable to get to where it's needed. More
Health Care Spending in U.S. Grew at Lowest Rate in a Decade
from Washington Post
Due to slower spending on prescription drugs, health-care spending in the United States grew at the lowest rate in a decade in 2007, a new federal report found. Yet despite the slowdown, most health-care costs continue to rise, with consumers' out-of-pocket expenses having increased 40 percent in the last 10 years, largely due to an aging population and chronic diseases such as high blood pressure and diabetes, a second report found. Both reports are published in the January-February issue of Health Affairs.
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Washington Worst in Nation for Emergency Health Care
from Issaquah Press
When it comes to Washington residents’ access to emergency health care, the state gets a flunking grade. The American College of Emergency Physicians delivered this unflattering assessment in its recently released “National Report Card on the State of Emergency Medicine,” which looks at such criteria as access to care, quality of care, safety, medical liability, public health and injury prevention, and disaster preparedness. Each category was graded, and it was the access question for which Washington earned an F. The state also nearly flunked, with a grade of D-, in the category of “medical liability environment.” On the other hand, Washington did very well in quality of care and public health, with a grade of A in each.
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A New Tool Appears for Rating Hospitals
from U.S. News & World Report
Today a new hospital-rating tool, WhyNotTheBest.org, was launched by the Commonwealth Fund, a New York-based foundation that underwrites research in healthcare reform. It's aimed at hospital physicians, quality managers, and other hospital professionals and not, as opposed to America's Best Hospitals, at consumers. But anyone can access it, and the data come from public sources, so I think it is fair to offer a review.
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The Society for Healthcare Consumer Advocacy Presents:
Managing Risk As A Patient Advocate: Partnering With Others For Quality Care - Webinar
Wednesday, January 21, 2009, 1:00 p.m. CST
Join Judi Cranberg, RN, JD as she defines the roles of a patient advocate and risk manager and how these roles complement each other within a hospital setting. Learn best practices for patient advocates and risk managers, including tips on communicating effectively and appropriately in a variety of patient situations. Register today
Become a SHCA Board Member
Call for Candidates for the 2009 SHCA Board of Directors
Submission Deadline: January 7, 2009
This is an exciting time to be a member of SHCA! We encourage you to embrace this opportunity to serve your colleagues, your profession, and use your expertise and experience to advance Healthcare Patient Advocacy. Serving on the national Board of Directors positions you to give back to your healthcare community and promises you significant professional development. Please take a few minutes to review the detailed governance information containing qualification requirements in the Board of Directors Expectations and COI document.
There are three (3) positions open, each a 2-year term, that will expire on April 30, 2011.
Download the Candidate Interest Form if you wish to nominate yourself.
Download the Nomination Form if you wish to nominate a colleague.
All candidate interest information is due to Kourtney Sproat, Staff Liaison to the Committee on Nominations, by January 7, 2009 at ksproat@aha.org.
We look forward to hearing from you. Should you have any questions, please contact Kourtney at (312) 422-3861 or ksproat@aha.org.
Thank you for your ongoing support of SHCA and the patient advocate profession!
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New York Hospitals Implicated in Medicaid Fraud
from Fierce Healthcare
There's been a lot said about Medicare and Medicaid fraud in Southern California and South Florida lately; in fact, CMS even cut loose a number of medical device companies in those areas and imposed stricter rules on the rest. Now, there are at least seven hospitals in New York accused of Medicaid fraud.
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U.S. Government Sets Infection Control Goals
from Reuters
Urinary infections caused by improper use and placement of catheters are the top cause of infections among hospital patients, but simple measures can prevent them, the U.S. government said on Tuesday. The Health and Human Services Department released a plan to reduce hospital infections, which kill an estimated 99,000 people a year, affect 1.7 million patients and cost nearly $20 billion.
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Mental Patients Isolated for Years Despite Laws
from Daily News Transcript
Mental patients sprinkled throughout the nation's psychiatric hospitals are being locked up alone for years despite laws aimed at preventing the practice, because medical workers say they're too dangerous to handle any other way. Health officials call them outliers - rare, unpredictably violent people who don't respond to medication or other treatment. Advocates call them victims of a system that has lost patience and creativity in caring for those who are most difficult to treat.
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