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AMGA, Avatar Solutions partner to provide patient satisfaction services

The American Medical Group Association today announced a partnership venture with Avatar Solutions to provide enhanced services for its Patient Satisfaction Benchmarking (PSAT) Program.

25 Mar 2015

$Bisphosphonate treatment following distal radius fracture associated with atypical femur fractures$

Bisphosphonate treatment following distal radius fracture associated with atypical femur fractures

Osteoporosis is a disease of progressive bone loss affecting more than 44 million Americans and contributing to an estimated 2 million bone fractures each year.

24 Mar 2015

New report highlights the need for disclosing Alzheimer's diagnosis to patients

The Alzheimer's Association's 2015 Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures report, released today, found that only 45 percent of people with Alzheimer's disease or their caregivers say they were told the diagnosis by their doctor.

24 Mar 2015

Publicly insured Americans who undergo lung transplantation fare worse than their UK counterparts

Publicly insured Americans who undergo lung transplantation for cystic fibrosis fare markedly worse in the long run than both publicly insured patients in the United Kingdom and privately insured Americans, according to the results of a study conducted by researchers from Johns Hopkins in Baltimore and U.K. colleagues working in that nation's government-funded National Health Service.

24 Mar 2015

Discontinuation of statin therapy may benefit patients with terminal illness

Discontinuing statin use in patients with late-stage cancer and other terminal illnesses may help improve patients' quality of life without causing other adverse health effects, according to a new study by led by researchers at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus and Duke University and funded by the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR).

24 Mar 2015

Study shows link between palliative care knowledge and less end-of-life disruption

When a nursing home patient is dying, aggressive interventions such as inserting a feeding tube or sending the patient to the emergency room can futilely exacerbate, rather than relieve, their distress. Palliative care focuses nursing home resources on providing comfort at the end of life, but nursing directors vary widely in their knowledge of it.

23 Mar 2015

ACS lends support to legislation that may provide much needed stability to Medicare program

The American College of Surgeons is lending its support to legislation introduced this week in the U.S. House of Representatives (H.R. 1470, the SGR Repeal and Medicare Provider Payment Modernization Act of 2015).

23 Mar 2015

Home care and hospice providers set to participate in NAHC's March on Washington

This weekend, hundreds of home care and hospice providers arrive in Washington, DC, for the National Association for Home Care & Hospice March on Washington taking place March 22-25, 2015. NAHC’s conference will raise awareness of key policy issues impacting providers and their ability to care for the growing number of Americans who rely on home health.

20 Mar 2015

Cenpatico, MHS expand Catasys' OnTrak program to Medicare Advantage members in Wisconsin

Catasys, Inc., provider of proprietary health management services to health insurers and employers, announced today that Cenpatico and Managed Health Services, a Centene health plan in Wisconsin, have expanded Catasys' OnTrak program to MHS' eligible Medicare Advantage members in Wisconsin.

18 Mar 2015

Duke researchers identify factors that correlate with repeat ER visits for kidney stones

One in nine patients released from the emergency department after treatment for a kidney stone will face a repeat visit, according to findings by Duke Medicine researchers.

18 Mar 2015

Health care system-level factors may increase likelihood of medication adherence among seniors

Specific system-level factors controlled by health care systems - including prescriptions with a medication supply greater than 90 days, mail-order pharmacy use, and lower copayments and out-of-pocket maximums - nearly doubled the likelihood that patients adhered to prescribed heart and diabetes medications, according to a new study published in the journal Medical Care.

18 Mar 2015

Transcatheter MitraClip system safe, effective for valve repair treatment

The commercial track record with transcatheter mitral valve repair, approved for patients at high risk for surgery, compares favorably with pre-approval reports, according to findings from a U.S. registry presented at the American College of Cardiology's 64th Annual Scientific Session.

18 Mar 2015

Senator Heidi Heitkamp honored for advocacy work, leadership on mental health issues

Senator Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) was honored last night by the American Psychological Association Practice Organization for her advocacy work and leadership on mental health issues. APAPO recognized Sen. Heitkamp with the 2015 Outstanding Leadership Award, given annually to a member of Congress who has championed the goals of professional psychology.

17 Mar 2015

UF Health Cancer Center - Orlando Health recognized as one of America's Best Breast Centers

UF Health Cancer Center - Orlando Health earns the 2015 Women's Choice Award as one of America's Best Breast Centers, acknowledging its dedication to providing exceptional patient care and treatment.

17 Mar 2015

Loyola's Neil Gupta recommends patients to ask four questions when planning a colonoscopy

"Most people focus on the dislike of the preparation, the need to arrange transportation and the fear of being anesthetized during the procedure and then potentially getting a cancer diagnosis," says Neil Gupta, MD, MPH, Director of Endoscopy at Loyola University Health System. "Screening colonoscopy is a very critical examination that really can determine life and death when it comes to colon cancer. It is now clear that not every colonoscopy is equal. Once you've decided it's time to get a screening colonoscopy, the next step is to make sure that you get a high-quality one."

17 Mar 2015

New hepatitis C drugs to place economic burden on health care system, predicts MD Anderson study

The cost of treating people infected with the hepatitis C virus (HCV) with newly approved therapies will likely place a tremendous economic burden on the country's health care system. The prediction comes from a cost-effectiveness analysis led by researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

17 Mar 2015

Potential solutions to help reduce high cost of cancer drugs in the U.S.

Increasingly high prices for cancer drugs are affecting patient care in the U.S. and the American health care system overall, say the authors of a special article published online in the journal Mayo Clinic Proceedings.

16 Mar 2015

Social media ratings may influence patient perceptions of hospitals, quality of care

Social media has become an important way for institutions to communicate - both sending messages and receiving feedback - with clients and with the general public.

13 Mar 2015

Houston Methodist Willowbrook Hospital recognized as one of 100 Top Hospitals in U.S.

Houston Methodist Willowbrook Hospital has been named one of the nation's 100 Top Hospitals by Truven Health Analytics, a leading provider of data-driven analytics and solutions to improve the cost and quality of healthcare.

12 Mar 2015

New study explores patient outcomes one year after TAVR procedure

In an analysis of outcomes of about 12,000 patients who underwent transcatheter aortic valve replacement, death rate after one year was nearly one in four; of those alive at 12 months, almost half had not been rehospitalized and approximately 25 percent had only one hospitalization, according to a study in the March 10 issue of JAMA.

12 Mar 2015

Medicare News and Research

AMGA, Avatar Solutions partner to provide patient satisfaction services

Bisphosphonate treatment following distal radius fracture associated with atypical femur fractures

New report highlights the need for disclosing Alzheimer's diagnosis to patients

Publicly insured Americans who undergo lung transplantation fare worse than their UK counterparts

Discontinuation of statin therapy may benefit patients with terminal illness

Study shows link between palliative care knowledge and less end-of-life disruption

ACS lends support to legislation that may provide much needed stability to Medicare program

Home care and hospice providers set to participate in NAHC's March on Washington

Cenpatico, MHS expand Catasys' OnTrak program to Medicare Advantage members in Wisconsin

Duke researchers identify factors that correlate with repeat ER visits for kidney stones

Health care system-level factors may increase likelihood of medication adherence among seniors

Transcatheter MitraClip system safe, effective for valve repair treatment

Senator Heidi Heitkamp honored for advocacy work, leadership on mental health issues

UF Health Cancer Center - Orlando Health recognized as one of America's Best Breast Centers

Loyola's Neil Gupta recommends patients to ask four questions when planning a colonoscopy

New hepatitis C drugs to place economic burden on health care system, predicts MD Anderson study

Potential solutions to help reduce high cost of cancer drugs in the U.S.

Social media ratings may influence patient perceptions of hospitals, quality of care

Houston Methodist Willowbrook Hospital recognized as one of 100 Top Hospitals in U.S.

New study explores patient outcomes one year after TAVR procedure

Event guide: 4th Extra-Hepatic Lipid-Based Nanoparticles Delivery Summit eBook

Advancing Intracellular Delivery with LumiPore®

How ELRIG Is Helping Mid-Career Scientists Navigate Leadership, Career Change and Redundancy

The role of UV-Vis in biopharma QC

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