Healthcare News

RSS

Many people skipping health care in the past year

As economic conditions remain poor, a majority of the public continues to say that they or a member of their household have delayed or skipped health care in the past year, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation's April health tracking poll.

23 Apr 2009

Palliative care skills training needed for health-care staff in sub-Saharan Africa

A new study, led by Lucy Selman and colleagues from King's College London, has found that patients with incurable, progressive diseases and their family carers in sub-Saharan Africa often do not receive enough information about the patient's disease and its management, which impacts negatively on their ability to cope with illness.

22 Apr 2009

Medicare recipients see declines in continuity of care

According to a study by researchers at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, elderly Medicare recipients transitioning from outpatient to hospital settings were more likely to experience lapses in continuity of care in 2006 than 1996.

22 Apr 2009

Continuity of care for older adults from outpatient to hospital is low, and decreasing

The proportion of Medicare patients experiencing continuity of care between outpatient and inpatient settings decreased substantially between 1996 and 2006, with decreases occurring in all areas of the country and in all types of hospitals, according to a study in the April 22/29 issue of JAMA, the Journal of the American Medical Association.

22 Apr 2009

Surgical education programs have demand for physician assistants and nurse practitioners

New research published in the April issue of the Journal of the American College of Surgeons indicates that large numbers of physician assistants and nurse practitioners – collectively known as physician extenders (PEs) – have been hired by general surgery residency programs in the last five years to enable the resident education experience, and these professionals continue to be in demand.

21 Apr 2009

New drug use screening tools for physicians

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health, today unveiled its first comprehensive Physicians' Outreach Initiative, NIDAMED, which gives medical professionals tools and resources to screen their patients for tobacco, alcohol, illicit, and nonmedical prescription drug use.

20 Apr 2009

Healthcare reform should start with paying evidence-based financial incentives to doctors

Healthcare Reform should start with "evidence-based reimbursement", structuring physician payment incentives around existing empirical evidence of clinical benefit, which would improve quality and reduce the cost of healthcare, says a commentary written by two cardiologists and published in Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes .

20 Apr 2009

$1.4 million raised to support local cancer care, research at Wilmot

More than 800 people and local corporations demonstrated their support for the James P. Wilmot Cancer Center at Saturday's 10 th annual Discovery Ball.

20 Apr 2009

U.S. nursing shortage highlights need for retention programs

The recent health care summit at the White House spotlighted the nursing shortage, which threatens the quality of patient care throughout the nation's hospitals.

15 Apr 2009

Hispanics appear to face poorer quality nursing home care

Nursing homes serving primarily Hispanic residents provided poorer quality care compared to facilities whose patients were mostly white, according to Brown University research.

12 Apr 2009

Stakeholders participate in regional White House forum on health care reform

At Monday's White House forum on health care reform held in Los Angeles, the discussion concerning how to fix our broken health care system and cover the 47 million Americans (6.8 million Californians) who are uninsured underscored the need for action now.

9 Apr 2009

Large safety gaps identified between top and bottom performing hospitals

The 2009 HealthGrades Patient Safety Excellence Award™ recipients were identified in a report issued today by the leading independent healthcare ratings organization.

8 Apr 2009

Mexican health care program has reduced health care costs

In results from the largest health policy study of its kind, a Mexican health care program created in 2003 has been found effective in reducing crippling health care costs among poorer households.

8 Apr 2009

Court of Appeal says women are free to pursue claims

Around 7,000 women will be free to pursue their claims for equal pay following a ruling in the Court of Appeal today in the cases of Hurst v Suffolk Mental Health Trust and Arnold and others v Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council.

8 Apr 2009

Major health care overhaul in China

Chinese officials have unveiled a health-care plan which promises to deliver to all its 1.3 billion citizens, fair and affordable health services by the year 2020.

8 Apr 2009

Lawmakers prepare for budget resolution conference committee, reconciliation likely will be sticking point

House Budget Committee Chair John Spratt (D-S.C.) on Thursday said he hopes the conference for the fiscal year 2010 budget resolution happens "as soon as possible" so that the appropriations process can begin quickly, CongressDaily reports.

6 Apr 2009

GAO official names first 13 members of HIT Policy Advisory Committee

Government Accountability Office acting Comptroller General Gene Dodaro last week named 13 members to a policy committee on health care information technology established under the federal economic stimulus package, CongressDaily reports.

6 Apr 2009

CMS announces $35.8 million for state health insurance assistance programs

CMS on Friday announced that State Health Insurance Assistance Programs will receive $35.8 million to provide health insurance information to Medicare beneficiaries, CQ HealthBeat reports.

6 Apr 2009

Improving U.S. hospitals' efficiency could save at least $4 billion, Thomson Reuters says

U.S. hospitals can improve patient care and save at least $4 billion by being more efficient, according to Thomson Reuters, Reuters reports.

6 Apr 2009

Mississippi Medicaid fraud-prevention rule criticized for eliminating beneficiaries from program

Mississippi state lawmakers last week rejected efforts to repeal a state rule requiring Medicaid beneficiaries to show up in person to renew their enrollment each year, the AP/Miami Herald reports.

6 Apr 2009