Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

AMGA, AMGF announce grantees in COPD Best Practices Learning Collaborative

The American Medical Group Association (AMGA) and the American Medical Group Foundation (AMGF) today announced recipients of grants for quality improvement initiatives focusing on care management for patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). Recipients are medical groups, IPAs, academic practices, and integrated delivery systems that responded to a request for proposals distributed in August 2010.

8 Dec 2010

Golden Living establishes in-house consulting pharmacy company

Golden Living has established a new, in-house consulting pharmacy company that will focus on improving medication safety and patient outcomes. Golden Clinical Rx Services is based on an innovative clinical pharmacist model that will make certified geriatric pharmacists (CGPs) part of the interdisciplinary clinical teams that care for Golden LivingCenter patients and will leverage technology to improve patient outcomes.

8 Dec 2010

Some progress, but big challenges remain in prevention of cardiovascular disease

'Some progress, but the big challenges remain'. This was the verdict after the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) hosted the 2010 European Summit on CVD Prevention on 30 November. The summit was attended by a broad cross-section of medical experts, healthcare organisations, national societies, regulators and representatives from the European Union (EU).

8 Dec 2010

Private insurers more effective in controlling health care spending than Medicare

Private insurers appear to be more effective in controlling health care spending differences between two Texas cities than Medicare, according to researchers from The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) School of Public Health. Researchers found that sharp disparities in per-capita Medicare healthcare spending between McAllen and El Paso were significantly diminished when private insurance paid for health care costs in the under-65 population.

8 Dec 2010

IEEE members are transforming the future of medicine and healthcare

Members of IEEE, the world's largest technical professional association, are advancing the application of engineering sciences and technology with medicine and biology to make healthcare personal again.

8 Dec 2010

Med-Vision offers steps to maintain weight during holidays

Health and wellness strategists at Med-Vision, LLC offer simple steps to avoid holiday weight gain during the whirlwind of to-dos and tasty temptations.

8 Dec 2010

Cymetrix partners with Siemens Healthcare for financial system conversion support

Cymetrix, a leader in providing healthcare organizations with comprehensive revenue cycle management solutions, today announced an alliance with Siemens Healthcare for financial system conversion support.

From Siemens Healthineers 8 Dec 2010

Cardinal Health continues agreement with Walgreens to supply pharmaceuticals

Cardinal Health today announced the early renewal of its distribution agreement with Walgreens to supply pharmaceuticals to its national network of retail pharmacies. The new agreement extends into 2013.

8 Dec 2010

Health professionals discuss on reducing maternal, newborn mortality, morbidity

On Tuesday 7 December 2010, maternal health professionals from Africa and Asia will be attending a workshop in Liverpool to discuss the effects of 'Making It Happen', a programme with a life-saving training package for health care providers at its heart. Participants will share successes and lessons learned from this maternal and newborn health intervention, to better determine how the programme can be scaled-up.

8 Dec 2010

UC researchers launch clinical trial to study post-stroke brain injury

The largest clinical trial of therapeutic brain cooling after stroke has launched, led by researchers at the University of California, San Diego, the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, and at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. This study looks at whether hypothermia can safely be used in elderly stroke patients.

8 Dec 2010

Jackson Health System selects MedAssets as its strategic partner

MedAssets, Inc. announced today that Jackson Health System has selected the Company as its strategic partner to implement MedAssets' transformational approach to significantly lower supply costs, drive operational efficiencies and engage physicians in the cost and clinical utilization management improvement process.

8 Dec 2010

Diabetes has negative impact on women's sex lives

Almost half of women in the US who suffer from Type 1 or 2 diabetes report that it has a negative impact on their sex lives, according to a new study released today by MicroMass Communications, Inc., a leader in behavioral marketing in the healthcare industry. The research, which highlighted the need for improved education and support to help women build confidence in their ability to overcome the challenges of the disease, was conducted with a representative sample of more than 800 women with diabetes.

8 Dec 2010

Conn. addresses insurance rates, Mass. physician groups evaluate controversial payment plan

"House and Senate leaders are eyeing passage of a second midyear spending bill before the start of the next legislative session to address more caseload-driven accounts that are running short on funds five months after Gov. Deval Patrick signed the fiscal 2011 budget. The deficiencies, which follow inaccurate enrollment estimates for MassHealth and other social service programs, threaten to eat into some the revenue surpluses the state has amassed over the first half of fiscal 2011, when tax receipts have exceeded projections" (Murphy, 12/7).

8 Dec 2010

Some in health industry raising concerns about Accountable Care Organizations

CQ HealthBeat: "The medical device industry told the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services that it's concerned about whether accountable care organizations could give providers financial incentives to hold back on needed patient care, particularly on technology. Meanwhile, insurance plan executives warned CMS officials that the ACOs could give hospitals and doctors new bargaining leverage in negotiations with insurers.

8 Dec 2010

Military health costs skyrocket

CNNMoney: "The cost of health care is blowing the top off the Pentagon's budget. Mirroring the private sector trend, expenses have skyrocketed within the military's health system. The military spent $19 billion on health care in 2001 — and $49 billion in 2010. The Department of Defense forecasts a continued rise of 5% to 7% a year.

8 Dec 2010

One Lambda, Luminex renew 10-year human leukocyte antigen technology development partnership

One Lambda Inc., a leading manufacturer and supplier of quality products and technology for the HLA transplant community, and Luminex Corporation have agreed to a long-term renewal of their 10-year strategic partnership aimed at developing platforms and technologies for human leukocyte antigen (HLA).

From Luminex 8 Dec 2010

eLINCx to implement GE's eHealth Information Exchange across Wooster, Dunlap Community Hospitals

eLINCx, founded earlier this year to provide quality healthcare services to central Ohio communities, and GE Healthcare announced today that eLINCx will implement GE Healthcare's eHealth Information Exchange across Wooster Community Hospital, Dunlap Community Hospital and more than a dozen physician practices.

7 Dec 2010

European summit agrees that lifestyle change is the only answer to heart disease

‘Some progress, but the big challenges remain’. This was the verdict after the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) hosted the 2010 European Summit on CVD Prevention on 30 November. The summit was attended by a broad cross-section of medical experts, healthcare organisations, national societies, regulators and representatives from the European Union (EU).

7 Dec 2010

IASIS Healthcare fourth quarter net revenue increases 1.6% to $629.9 million

IASIS Healthcare LLC today announced financial and operating results for the fiscal fourth quarter and year ended September 30, 2010.

7 Dec 2010

Lutheran Medical Center implements Medsphere's OpenVista EHR solution

Lutheran Medical Center (LMC) and Medsphere Systems Corporation today announced the successful implementation of Medsphere's OpenVista® electronic health record (EHR) solution throughout the hospital. The full service 476-bed teaching hospital is now on track to achieve meaningful use and qualify for millions of dollars made available by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

7 Dec 2010