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UMHS approach to medical errors and malpractice suits could be used by hospitals nationwide: Study

The University of Michigan Health System doesn't claim to be perfect. But its response to medical errors, near-misses, unexpected clinical problems and unintended outcomes is a model for the nation that other hospitals can and should copy, according to a new paper in a prestigious health care journal.

14 Dec 2012

Cautious Patient Foundation, SIDM partner to raise awareness of diagnostic errors

The Society to Improve Diagnosis in Medicine (SIDM) and the Cautious Patient Foundation announced today a collaboration to help patients avoid diagnostic errors in their own care. Diagnostic error, defined as wrong, missed or delayed medical diagnosis, occurs in 10 to 15% of diagnostic encounters, is the largest contributor to medical malpractice claims, and is responsible for 40,000 - 80,000 deaths per year in the United States.

29 Nov 2012

State highlights: Texas pursues some Medicaid providers

It has been nearly a year since Texas officials accused Dr. Glenn Wood of overbilling the state's Medicaid system by $17.9 million through his business, Carousel Pediatrics. Dr. Wood denies the accusations.

17 Nov 2012

Lack of 'fiscal cliff' talk offers proof that the urgent issue is frozen until after election

The fact that House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, and President Barack Obama have not discussed looming automatic spending cuts leads this roundup of Capitol Hill news.

19 Oct 2012

Viewpoints: Cancer doctors reject 'phenomenally expensive' new drug; Protecting patients' rights

At Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, we recently made a decision that should have been a no-brainer: we are not going to give a phenomenally expensive new cancer drug to our patients.

16 Oct 2012

State highlights: Controversial Pa. Health Secretary quits; Kansas court decision on malpractice cap expected today

Pennsylvania Health Secretary Eli N. Avila, who became known in the Capitol for a dispute over an egg sandwich and other episodes, has quit his $146,500-a-year post in Gov. Corbett's cabinet. The governor announced the departure Thursday in a news release that said Avila, 52, was leaving to pursue "other interests" and was looking forward to spending more time with his family in New York.

6 Oct 2012

Johns Hopkins undergraduates invent disposable suturing tool

After a surgeon stitches up a patient's abdomen, costly complications -- some life-threatening -- can occur. To cut down on these postoperative problems, Johns Hopkins undergraduates have invented a disposable suturing tool to guide the placement of stitches and guard against the accidental puncture of internal organs.

17 Aug 2012

Roundup: Seeking medical malpractice alternatives part of Mass. cost control law; Low-Income Health Program signs up 400k in Calif.

It may not seem like big news, but if you've followed the long-running, stubborn and mostly dug-in debate over reforming medical malpractice in the U.S., you know that when doctors and lawyers issue a joint news release, something is really going on. ... Formally, it's called "Disclosure, Apology and Offer" and it's a key provision of the new state health cost law. Massachusetts doctors and lawyers have agreed to work side by side on this less hostile (and potentially cost-saving) approach to dealing with medical errors and malpractice.

9 Aug 2012

Missouri Supreme Court strikes down cap on medical malpractice damages

Missouri's Supreme Court has ruled that a 20-year-old, $350,000 cap on noneconomic medical malpractice damages -- pain and suffering -- takes away a citizen's right to trial by jury and is unconstitutional.

3 Aug 2012

Roundup: Investors not shaken by accretive decision in Minn.; Conn. state abortion coverage conflicts with federal regs

Accretive Health got off pretty easy -- at least according to some on Wall Street. The $2.5 million that the Chicago-based firm must pay Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson is "relatively immaterial," wrote analysts from Credit Suisse on Tuesday, July 31, as they sized up the settlement announced between the parties.

2 Aug 2012

Viewpoints: Health law no threat to innovation; Failure to expand Medicaid would 'doom' thousands; Don't stigmatize mentally ill

For better or worse, the Democrats incorporated a good deal of mainstream Republican thinking about health care reform from the past decade, including mandated coverage and health insurance exchanges, into the Affordable Care Act. This leaves the GOP, embarrassingly, with little to say about what is wrong with the act.

31 Jul 2012

Roundup: Ore. Gov. suggests malpractice reform; Mass. Gov. proposes new scrutiny for health care providers; Texas has offered HPV vaccine since 2007

The state can cut health care costs and reduce the number of medical-related lawsuits by requiring earlier notification of injuries as well as pretrial mediation, according to a recommendation Gov. John Kitzhaber issued Wednesday. The product of closed-door talks between representatives of interest groups including the Oregon Medical Association and the Oregon Trial Lawyers Association, Kitzhaber's recommendation now goes to a work group including lawmakers, a trial lawyer and doctor that begins public meetings next week.

27 Jul 2012

State roundup: Mass. to allow coupons for some branded drugs

Johns Hopkins Hospital lost its coveted spot as the nation's top-ranked hospital for the first time in 22 years, edged out by Boston's Massachusetts General Hospital in the latest analysis by U.S. News & World Report to be released Tuesday. Hopkins still ranked No. 2, and marketing experts said falling one spot will hurt the hospital's ego more than its reputation.

18 Jul 2012

Safety of breast implants

Following the recent scandal, described in May 2012 by the BBC as the “PIP breast implant scandal”, (1) many women may have been put off having breast implants. But how safe exactly is breast enlargement? And how do the different methods compare?

29 May 2012

Research roundup: Electronic health records don't seem to improve diabetes care; Beefing up adult vaccination rates

Federal officials and health policy experts believe that electronic health records (EHRs) will improve patient care. Researchers measured adherence to diabetes care guidelines as well as patient outcomes over three years at 16 practices using EHRs and 26 practices using paper records. Practices with EHRs did not show signs of better care and providers using them "have not made the necessary changes to both work processes and ways of thinking about care that would lead to improvements in chronic illness management."

19 May 2012

APS announces recipients of prestigious achievement awards

The American Pain Society (APS), www.ampainsoc.org, today announced the recipients of its prestigious achievement awards during the organization's annual scientific meeting. APS rewards excellence in pain management with awards for career achievement, pain scholarship, education and public service, advocacy on behalf of children, outstanding service to APS, early career achievements and journalism.

18 May 2012

State legislative news: Mass. legislature poised to consider cost control plan

Meanwhile, in Connecticut, the legislature approves a bill giving collective bargaining rights to home health care workers and goes against leadership to gut a bill that would loosen requirements for suing a health care provider.

5 May 2012

State roundup: Mass. may vote on assisted suicide; Colo. to try medical homes

Heather Clish has become a leading advocate for affording terminally ill patients in Massachusetts the same choice her father had. Clish and other supporters are pushing a ballot initiative to legalize the practice they call Death with Dignity, more commonly known as physician-assisted suicide.

30 Apr 2012

Paper identifies essential practical components of Michigan Model

For just over a decade, the University of Michigan Health System has been a leader in demonstrating a new way to handle patient safety and malpractice concerns. The approach has simultaneously promoted safer care; helped patients, their families and clinical staff deal with unanticipated outcomes in a non-adversarial way; and saved UMHS money at the same time.