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C. difficile infection has become common among hospitalized children in the US

Hospitalized children in the United States are more frequently becoming infected with the bacteria Clostridium difficile, according to a report posted online today that will appear in the May print issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

3 Jan 2011

Aetna acquires Medicity

Aetna today announced that it has completed its acquisition of Medicity Inc., a health information exchange technology company, headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah.

3 Jan 2011

New approach to Alzheimer’s care

Protocols and practices at an Arizona nursing home that allows patients with Alzheimer’s disease freedom to eat and sleep when they want makes appears to make them happier and easier to care for, the New York Times reports. Beatitudes, a ministry of the Church of the Beatitude, has also done away with restraints. Each patient is cared for according to his/her individual needs.

3 Jan 2011

Looking ahead: What health system changes to expect in 2011

[M]illions of Americans [are] already exploring realities of the health-care overhaul, provisions likely to remain in place even as lawmakers threaten to repeal or defund it. Several key measures began taking effect for insurance plans written or renewed starting in September. More are scheduled for 2011, some benefiting consumers directly, others affecting insurance companies in various ways (Conaboy/Avril, 1/2).

3 Jan 2011

KHN video: Health care battles to surge anew in 2011

In this video feature, Kaiser Health News reporters preview some of the big issues coming this year: The GOP's fight to repeal the law and what the party can offer instead; states' efforts to beat back growing Medicaid costs; consumers' troubles affording care (1/3).

3 Jan 2011

Deceptive food labels lead to increased risk of deadly diseases

Did you know that when you pick up a product promoted as trans fat free, you may still be ingesting a significant amount of this potentially harmful substance? An article by Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine student Eric Brandt, published in the January/February 2011 issue of the American Journal of Health Promotion, reveals that misleading labeling practices can result in medically significant intake of harmful trans fat, despite what you read on Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved labels.

3 Jan 2011

LA Times: Exploring the fairness of wellness incentives

Wanna make a fast buck? Quit smoking. According to the National Business Group on Health, which represents large employers including Wal-Mart and Wendy's, about 68% of its members either offer a discount of several hundred dollars on health insurance premiums to employees who quit smoking, or provide other incentives or penalties to make it happen (Borrell, 1/3).

3 Jan 2011

Today's Opinions: End-of-life counseling; Rising costs of boomers; Controlling infections in hospitals

Death panels. Government-sponsored euthanasia. Pulling the plug on grandma. Those were just some of the blatantly false terms conservatives threw around last year to scare Congress into stripping a provision out of the health-reform bill that would have allowed Medicare to reimburse doctors for providing voluntary, end-of-life counseling to their patients. The scare tactics worked (1/2).

3 Jan 2011

Cyfluent Chart, Version 2.0 receives Complete EHR certification

Cyfluent, Inc. announced today that Cyfluent Chart, Version 2.0, is 2011/2012 compliant and was certified as a Complete EHR on Friday, November 12, 2010 by the Certification Commission for Health Information Technology (CCHIT®), an ONC-ATCB, in accordance with the certification criteria adopted by the Secretary of Health and Human Services. The 2011/2012 criteria support the Stage 1 meaningful use measures required to qualify eligible providers and hospitals for funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).

3 Jan 2011

Quantum mechanics technique against flu

With the current outbreak of the flu season in Israel, hospitals are reporting overcrowding, and doctors are advising people who have not yet been vaccinated against flu to get their shots.

3 Jan 2011

Saint John's Health System and St.Vincent Jennings parter with Indiana Health Information Exchange

Joining a network that includes 19,000 physicians and over 80 hospitals, long-term care facilities and other healthcare organizations, Saint John's Health System and St.Vincent Jennings Hospitals are now part of the Indiana Health Information Exchange (IHIE). The two hospitals are now connected through their participation in IHIE's DOCS4DOCS ® Service.

3 Jan 2011

SAIC awarded NIH follow-on task order to provide support to Center for Scientific Review

Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) announced today its was awarded a follow-on task order by the National Institutes of Health to provide software and technical support to the Center for Scientific Review (CSR). The indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity task order has a six month base period of performance, 9 six-month options and a total contract ceiling of more than $24 million if all options are exercised. Work will be performed in Bethesda, Md. The task order was awarded under NIH's Chief Information Officer-Solutions and Partners (CIO-SP2) contract.

3 Jan 2011

MedCath completes sale of TexSan Heart Hospital to Methodist Healthcare System

MedCath Corporation announced today the completion of the sale of substantially all the assets of TexSan Heart Hospital, owned by MedCath and its physician investors, to Methodist Healthcare System of San Antonio. The transaction, which was announced in November, and was subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory requirements, was completed effective December 31, 2010.

3 Jan 2011

MEDNAX acquires Neonatal Medical Associates

MEDNAX, Inc., today announced the acquisition of a neonatal physician group in Long Beach, CA.

3 Jan 2011

First Edition: January 3, 2011

Today's headlines include forward looking reports about the health law's possible impact in 2011 as well as early plans for the new Congress.

3 Jan 2011

Book on the business side of medicine

The Medical Entrepreneur Pearls, Pitfalls and Practical Business Advice for Doctors (Nano 2.0 Business Press 2010) was written to help physicians, residents and medical students prepare for the business side of private practice. "In medical school curricula there is barely enough time to cover all the necessary medical courses so there certainly is no room for teaching the business of medicine," says Dr. Steven Hacker, author of The Medical Entrepreneur and a successful physician entrepreneur.

3 Jan 2011

LHC Group announces acquisition of hospice locations in Alabama and Louisiana

LHC Group, Inc., a national provider of home health and hospice, announced today that it has acquired hospice locations in Alabama and Louisiana and entered into a home health joint venture in Kentucky.

3 Jan 2011

Team care to help multiple chronic conditions

According to a new study patients with multiple chronic diseases like diabetes mellitus and heart disease are at higher risk of depression that can render medication ineffective. Lead researcher Dr. Wayne J. Katon and colleagues at University of Washington in the study found that patients who received care from nurses who worked with patients and physicians to manage the care for depression and diabetes and heart disease had better outcomes. The study was published in the Dec 30, 2010 issue of New England Journal of Medicine.

2 Jan 2011

A ‘tough’ 2011 for Britain’s NHS

The NHS would have a tough year ahead said the NHS Confederation suggesting 2011 could end up being the “toughest year” in the NHS’ 62-year history. The major issues would be the structural reforms from health secretary Andrew Lansley, the difficulty of finding £20 billion of efficiency savings and the uncertainty created by debate over a major piece of healthcare legislation would all contribute to a tough year.

30 Dec 2010

Winner Medical receives Shenzhen Baoan District Quality Award for quality, organizational performance

Winner Medical Group Inc., a leading manufacturer of medical dressings, medical disposables and non-woven fabric made from 100% natural PurCotton® products in China, today announced that it was honored to receive the Shenzhen Baoan District Quality Award from the Market Supervision Administration of Shenzhen Municipality.

30 Dec 2010