How States Rank on Health Care - Health and Medical Information produced by doctors

Where I live, California was ranked 36, an eye opener for me.  BD

The scorecard is the first of its kind from the Commonwealth Fund, a private foundation focused on health care.

The Commonwealth Fund rated states based on 32 indicators, including access, quality, cost, insurance, preventive care, potentially avoidable hospital visits, and premature death (death before age 75).

The top five states in order are Hawaii, Iowa, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Maine.

The bottom five states are Nevada, Arkansas, Texas, Mississippi, and Oklahoma.

A full list of state rankings follows later in this article.

How States Rank on Health Care - Health and Medical Information produced by doctors - MedicineNet.com

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The Coalition for Responsible Healthcare Reform - one person's opinion

 

After working 25 years for health care reform I am still shocked by the underhanded practice of the for-profit health insurance industry. If you came across an organization called “Coalition for Responsible Healthcare Reform,” what would you expect? Even after working all these years on reform I would expect a coalition ready to do the right thing and represent reform that would do away with the injustice of the American health care system; something that would stop the tragedy of going bankrupt because of health care bills. But instead the coalition called “Coalition for Responsible Healthcare Reform” is misleading and will do nothing of the sort.

Blue Cross of California, the largest health insurer in California, has launched a campaign opposing health care proposals that would require insurers to sell policies to all residents, regardless of health status. This is an obvious diversion away from responsible health care reform that would eliminate the uninsured and under-insured (something that doesn't exist in other countries).

The Ithaca Journal - www.theithacajournal.com - Ithaca, NY

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Michael Moore Film "Sicko" Already Online for Free

I wonder if the same thoughts hold true for Sicko as were for 911, (read below).  When 911 came out, the only item that was objectionable  was the fact that nobody made a profit from the work that went into producing the movie and there were no objections to one downloading and sharing with others.  BD

The new Michael Moore new documentary "Sicko" has been pirated and is now widely available for download on peer-to-peer content sites free of charge a report claims.  An Ad Age reporter said he was able to download and watch the film, which won't officially be released for two weeks, "with ease" last night. The film’s general release date is June 29.

About 911: 

"I don’t agree with the copyright laws and I don’t have a problem with people downloading the movie and sharing it with people,” Moore said. “As long they’re not doing it to make a profit off it, as long as they’re not trying to make a profit off my labor. I would oppose that… I make these books and movies and TV shows because I want things to change and so the more people that get to see them the better. I’m happy when that happens.”

National Ledger - Michael Moore Film "Sicko" Already Online for Free

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2-year wait can mean debt or death

 

The report, "Too Sick to Work; Too Soon for Medicare," estimates that 1.5 million men and women with disabilities are now struggling through the waiting period and that 600,000 of them will be without a shred of insurance during that time. Each year, says the report, more than 16,000 die waiting for Medicare.
Original Medicare, the federal health insurance program, was passed in 1965 for Americans 65 and over. In 1972, President Richard Nixon extended Medicare to people under 65 with severe physical and mental disabilities.

The most medically vulnerable Americans are those between the ages of 50 and 64, who are suddenly struck down with traumatic injury or a disabling and debilitating disease.

2-year wait can mean debt or death - Newsday.com

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Insurance companies to halt ad campaigns for Fee for Service Medicare Plans

Good news here to no over confuse the already confusing issues and perhaps decrease the fraud, but what would really be beneficial is to see some of the funding that has been directed for the ad campaigns sent to pay insurance health claims.  BD

In an effort to stop senior citizens from being fraudulently enrolled in Medicare replacement health plans, seven companies selling private fee-for-service plans have agreed to stop marketing the health plans to senior citizens.

The seven companies include Humana Inc. and UnitedHealth Group's Secure Horizons, which are major players in the San Antonio market.

A Medicare official announcing the agreement Friday said the companies aren't being investigated or held culpable for the actions of unscrupulous agents, but are expected to make sure seniors won't be fraudulently enrolled in the plans.

The other firms voluntarily ceasing marketing of the fee-for-service Medicare Advantage plans include BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee, Coventry Health Care Inc., Sterling Life Insurance Co., Universal American Financial Corp. and Wellcare Health Plans Inc.

MySA.com: Business

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Colgate Warns of Fake Toothpaste

 June 14, 2007 -- The Colgate-Palmolive Co. today warned that counterfeit toothpaste falsely labeled as "Colgate" has been found in four states and may contain a poisonous chemical called diethylene glycol (DEG).

The counterfeit product has been found in "several dollar-type discount stores" in Maryland, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania, states a Colgate-Palmolive news release.

Colgate Warns of Fake Toothpaste - Health and Medical Information produced by doctors - MedicineNet.com

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PayPal, eBay offer Security Key to U.S. customers

Great idea for PayPal and would make it easier for physicians and hospitals to honor PayPal accounts for payments of medical bills.  BD

 

San Francisco (InfoWorld) - PayPal unveiled a new Security Key on Friday that will add an additional layer of security to user accounts and help prevent online criminals from gaining access to them. The PayPal Security Key is a small electronic token that generates a unique code that can be used in addition to a user name and password when users sign in to their PayPal account.

The company announced the news as part of eBay's week-long Developer Conference in Boston. It provides PayPal customers with so-called "two factor" authentication that makes it harder for online criminals to raid accounts, even if they do trick users into giving up their user name and password using online "phishing" scams, according to Michael Barrett, chief information security officer at PayPal.

PayPal, eBay offer Security Key to U.S. customers - Yahoo! News

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The uninsured in the US

This is well worth the watch and gives some real good insight as to how the young adults view health insurance.  BD

Hat Tip:  Kevin, MD (thanks for finding this one!)

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Oven cleaner offers glaucoma hope

 

The active ingredient finds it hard to penetrate the eye

A substance found in oven cleaner could be used to treat the eye disease glaucoma, US research suggests.

Cerium oxide nanoparticles, also commonly used in window cleaner, may help in more effectively delivering an active ingredient into the eye.

According to details published in the New Scientist, the substance did not irritate the eye when it was tested on both rats and rabbits.

Experts said proper trials were needed before any real claims could be made.

But they did stress that a more effective way of delivering medicine would be welcomed.

BBC NEWS | Health | Oven cleaner offers glaucoma hope

Hat Tip:  Medlaunches

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ATM running on Windows?

 

http://www.msblog.org/index.php/2007/06/13/atm-running-on-windows/

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Tablet PCs and Roger Waters -Dark Side of the Moon, Light Side of the Tablet

Thanks to Linda at Tablet PC for the pictures and information.  A couple pictures showing the use of Tablet Kiosk EO UMPC and Sahara tablet at the Hollywood Bowl, in hand with sound Designer Fred Vogler.  Who said tablets are just for doctors?  BD

        

 

Source:  http://tabletpc2.com/Roger-Waters_and_Tablet_PCs-Article70020613.html

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Don't ignore "unsolicited" reports - Malpractice Consult from Medical Economics

 

Have you heard about the doctor who was sued for $3 million by a patient she never saw? You could find yourself in the same predicament if you aren't careful about how you handle unexpected laboratory, X-ray, and ECG reports. To see how this plays out in the real world, let's look at that $3 million malpractice case. I've changed the names to simplify things.

Source:  Don't ignore "unsolicited" reports - Malpractice Consult - Medical Economics

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OC doctors operate on wrong ear at Childrens Hospital of Orange

 

A state investigation determined the surgery team failed to complete the required "time-out" before the surgery to identify the correct incision site, failed to mark the child's skull and did not document the error in the patient's medical record.

ORANGE, Calif. -- Surgeons with Children's Hospital of Orange County inserted a tube into the wrong ear of a child, the second wrong-site operation by hospital doctors in 18 months.
The June 5 outpatient surgery at St. Joseph Hospital, where Children's Hospital surgeries are performed, was done to insert a tube into a child's right ear.

A doctor mistakenly inserted tubes into both ears rather than just one. When the mistake was discovered, the left tube was removed and the family was notified, according to the hospital.
The hospital said in its statement Tuesday that it regretted the incident. The name and age of the child, and the names of the surgeons, weren't disclosed by hospital spokeswoman Denise Almazan.

Source:  OC doctors operate on wrong ear - North County Times - State / West -

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Southern California Urologist Invited to China to Train Physicians

 

LOS ALAMITOS, CA--(Marketwire - June 14, 2007) - Dr. Robert Pugach, Medical Director of Pacific Coast Urology Medical Center, has been invited to train urologists in Beijing and Shanghai. Dr. Pugach and Gladys Rentie, RN, the Center's Nursing Coordinator, will spend one week with Chinese physicians and nurses providing instruction and hands-on training in thermotherapy using the new CoolWave system. Thermotherapy is used to treat men with Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) or an enlarged prostate. Dr. Pugach focuses his practice on minimally invasive urological procedures and is one of the most experienced physicians in thermotherapy in the world.

BPH is a non-cancerous condition in which the prostate cells increase in number. Starting at age 35, the prostate starts to enlarge and puts pressure on the urethra which prevents the bladder from emptying completely, making urination difficult and painful. Left untreated, BPH can result in urological problems including frequent urination, a weak stream and sudden urges to use a bathroom. More serious problems include bladder infections, bleeding, incontinence and kidney failure.

source:  Pacific Coast Urology Medical Center - Local Urologist Invited to China to Train Physicians

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Medicare Payment Delays Cause Community Pharmacies To Close

Doctors aren't the only ones waiting, sad but small pharmacies can't wait this long and sustain large lines of credit either.  The small pharmacies are getting crowded out by the large drug store chains.  Last year the number decreased by over 1500.  BD

Medicare prescription drug plans can take as long as 45 days to reimburse pharmacies for medications dispensed, and the delays have caused three community pharmacies to close each day since the program began, according to groups that represent community pharmacies, CongressDaily reports. According to the National Community Pharmacists Association, delays in reimbursements from Medicare prescription drug plans for medications dispensed have forced community pharmacies on average to open $700,000 lines of credit, compared with $250,000 in the month before the program began.

Source:  Medicare | Medicare Payment Delays Cause Community Pharmacies To Close - Kaisernetwork.org

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Telemedicine brings specialists via technology to southwest Montana

Nice 2 way video conferencing between the patients and doctors.  This could be useful anywhere for follow up visits too.  The patients can avoid the long drive to see specialists in some circumstances too and as the story indicates, this is a 12 hour drive for some. BD

If you live in rural Montana the health care expertise you my need is not always next door. Travel may be 60 miles or more for serious heath conditions.
Barrett Hospital and Healthcare providers are well aware of the struggle and expense their patients face. So the hospital is working to make life a little easier for people living in some of the incredibly remote parts of southwestern Montana.

“It’s pretty cool stuff that is available today that wasn’t 10 years ago,” he said. “There have been a lot of times that I have taken a photograph and sent it through email to a doctor down in Utah. It has usually been with burn victims.” The technology brings the long distance process one step closer to hands on care and heightened expertise as doctors and patient are able to interact together.

Source:  .:: The Montana Standard ::.

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For health's sake, trash those paper records

This story is from Canada, but the same holds true here in the US.  Granted, there are many questions still not answered, but records in a practice office can easily be converted to electronic records.  I still the see the fax and paper chase alive and well in so many offices.  Even "baby steps" for this are a step in the right direction.  Turn the computer on, there's the records instead of illegible paper charts that you have to pay staff to fetch for each patient visit.  It is very obvious as an outsider when you walk into an office that is organized versus those who are still doing the paper chase 100%.  All you have to do is watch the staff for a few minutes and see the trail to the fax machine with the stressed staff tripping over each other racing to get the fax they need.  BD

One of the most poignantly pathetic images in health care is that of the patient lying on a gurney in a hospital hallway in a paper gown, bare bottom hanging out.

Nobody looks good in paper.

Same goes for health systems: None of them look good when they are dependent on paper records.

Source:  globeandmail.com: For health's sake, trash those paper records

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HMOs favored over hospitals - New York

 

The association said insurance companies are receiving federal funding at about four times the rate of hospitals and other health care providers.

The study, "Falling Behind: Medicare Hospital Payment Policy in New York," says hospitals' costs for providing services have risen 43.2 percent in the past decade while Medicare hospital rates have increased 15.4 percent.

The association's report said as reimbursement rates to providers have lagged, payments to insurance companies have grown. In the past decade, New York Medicare Advantage managed care plans' rates have increased 62.6 percent.

Report shows HMOs favored over hospitals - Business First of Buffalo:

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ClearCount Medical Solutions receives FDA clearance - checking for surgical sponges

RFID chips are relatively inexpensive and basically this is a pretty simple technique to scan the surgery area to see if any material has inadvertently been left inside.  RFID technology here sure makes easy work versus the manual process of counting sponges.  RFID technology is finding it's way into many other areas of health care too, in helping hospitals just keep track of medical equipment, like stethoscopes that walk out the door all the time too.  BD

ClearCount Medical Solutions, a Pittsburgh-based company focused on developing smarter solutions to improve patient safety inside the operating room, announced today that its patented SmartSponge™ System based on radio frequency identification (RFID) received Food and Drug Administration (FDA) 510(k) clearance.

According to another study in Massachusetts, foreign objects were left in the body in one out of every 10,000 surgeries. Those objects added four days to an average hospital stay and resulted in 57 deaths in 2000. Two-thirds of all objects left in the body cavity were surgical sponges.

The SmartSponge System™ is the first of a family of products developed by Pittsburgh-based ClearCount Medical Solutions. The system is a revolutionary product that was designed to replace the antiquated method of manual counting using sponge counter bags. It consists of a handheld wand-scanning device used to detect commonly used surgical gauze sponges that have been fitted with a radiofrequency identification (RFID) chip approximately the size of a penny.

The ClearCount SmartSponge System is based on Radio Frequency Identification technology (RFID).
RFID systems are comprised of two basic components: a reader and tags which
are applied to the items to be tracked. RFID tags are tiny microchips that act as transponders listening for a radio signal sent by transceivers, or RFID scanners. When a transponder RFID chip sewn onto the sponge receives a certain radio query, the sponge responds with a unique ID code back to the scanner. RFID tags are powered by the radio signal from the scanner. These broadcast signals are designed to be read between a few inches and several feet away, depending on the size and power driving the RFID tags. 

Source:  ClearCount Medical Solutions

Industry Link:  http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=74107&nfid=rssfeeds

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New Breed of Stethoscopes

Auscultation:
The sounds caused by the heart's activity are a treasure trove of information on the wellness of the heart. Auscultation is the oldest known method employed to decode cardiac sounds. With auscultation, an expert can identify cardiac problems such as murmurs, regurgitation, septal defects, stenosis, valvular defects as well as other pathologies. A normal stethoscope with its limitations lacks the basic provision to visualise and record auscultation data for reference or follow-up care, which results in increasing number of healthy patients being recommended for expensive procedures to ascertain the condition of the heart. A cost effective and highly capable cardiac device like ViScope® would meet these important needs. 

Source:   HD Medical Services

Hat Tip:  MedGadget

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Latest 'SiCKO' News from California Legislature Visit

Full story and additional videos on the site.  Compelling addresses from both parties.  Once the issue is "in our face" on the big screen, it's hard to ignore or pretend it doesn't exist.  BD

Linda Peeno, MD

Deborah Burger - California Nurses Association

"...a very strong and very honest documentary about a health system that's totally corrupt and that is without any care for its patients."

-- Stephen Schaefer, Boston Globe

Source:  http://www.michaelmoore.com/sicko/news/2007/06/sacto-goes-totally-sicko.html

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WellPoint Seizes Lead in Cheap US Health Insurance

The names are very different from conventional policy names, Thrill Seeker, Part-Time Daredevil for a couple, and then there's the Calculated Risk Taker policy all for the under 35 age crowd, and I am left out of that group but these are the target markets for selling policies to the young.  BD

June 14 (Bloomberg) -- Aetna Inc. and WellPoint Inc. are competing to sell no-frills health plans to a generation of so- called young immortals, Americans ages 18 to 34 who don't have medical insurance because they doubt they'll need it.

Aetna, WellPoint and about 160 other U.S. insurance providers see future sales growth in these 19 million young adults. The companies are offering policies with monthly premiums of $39 to $160, hundreds less than other plans. Insurers keep costs low by requiring customers to pay as much as $5,000 of their medical bills before coverage kicks in.

WellPoint has introduced its Tonik line of insurance for young adults in six states since 2004. Five states will be added this year.

The company's Tonik Web site has pop-art images of young people, including a woman sticking out her pierced tongue, and marketing slogans that jump and blink against backdrops of cobalt and chartreuse.

``What you say and how you say it is almost as important as the benefits'' in marketing to young adults, said Jude Thompson, WellPoint's president of business for individuals under 65.

In California, WellPoint sells Tonik policies called Thrill-Seeker ($77 a month with a $5,000 deductible), Part-Time Daredevil ($87 with a $3,000 deductible) and Calculated Risk- Taker ($106 with a $1,500 deductible.) In addition to major medical coverage, Tonik provides dental, vision and generic drug benefits and several doctor's office visits a year. Maternity benefits are excluded.

Bloomberg.com: Worldwide

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Patient permission necessary for medical experiments?

If my life were saved due to experimental procedures, I don't think I would fine myself complaining.  BD

YOU COULD be severely injured, perhaps from a nasty fall or a car accident. Maybe it's a family member or friend. The person is whisked away to the hospital for emergency medical treatment. Once there, hospital personnel begin to administer aid. Sounds pretty routine? Sure, unless you are one of the more than 20,000 patients unknowingly involved in medical research.

The federal government is spearheading the most ambitious set of studies ever mounted to test various degrees of medical research at a cost of $50 million over five years at 11 sites in the United States and Canada.

The catch? These medical experiments are done without a patient's permission.

Source:  Inside Bay Area - Patient permission necessary for medical experiments

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California health care plans are shaky

 

The political hoopla about extending health insurance to the 6.5 million Californians who lack it escalated this week _ including a much-hyped visit to the Capitol on Tuesday by propagandistic filmmaker Michael Moore, whose latest production, entitled "Sicko," deals with the issue.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has a plan, or at least an outline of a plan, Assembly Speaker Fabian Nzqez has a plan, Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata has a plan and those to the left of the legislative leaders are backing still another plan by Sen. Sheila Kuehl for "single-payer" coverage. Even conservative Republicans are presenting health care plans of a sort.

Schwarzenegger continued to tout his version of universal care this week, telling a "town hall" meeting in Chico that "the bottom line is, we will do it (because we) all agree that it is a broken system and that we will fix it this year."

Ultimately, all of the promises and hoopla expanding health care could be merely that _ and something of a cruel joke on those whose hopes for coverage have been raised.

Source:  California health care plans are shaky | ScrippsNews

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Orange County board changes mind on budget cuts

 

Supervisors back away from proposed cuts in funding for drug-court counselors and emergency medical help for the uninsured.

Orange County supervisors on Tuesday backed away from some of the biggest proposed cuts in the county's budget for the coming year, saying they would rather try to find the money to pay for drug-court counselors and emergency doctors and hospitals who treat uninsured patients.
The board also voted to set aside $850,000 to cover three years' worth of lost tax collections from boaters at Dana Point Harbor. The county essentially forgot to collect taxes on boat slips and dry storage in the marina because of a bureaucratic oversight. For a time it considered making boaters pay the back taxes, but the appropriation means they will have to pay the assessment only beginning this year.

O.C. board changes mind on budget cuts - Los Angeles Times

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RediClinic now accepts Medicare

 

RediClinic LLC has formed a provider agreement with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to accept traditional Medicare in RediClinic's 46 locations nationwide.

RediClinics are in-store health care facilities that offer consumers easy access to high-quality, routine medical services at affordable prices.

The Houston-based, retail-based convenient care company said the Medicare coverage is in addition to the Medicare Advantage coverage already in place through existing contracts with Aetna, CIGNA, Humana and UnitedHealthcare.

Source:  RediClinic now accepts Medicare - Houston Business Journal:

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ActiPatch - Pulsed Energy Device

In view of the recent story this week, this could be a potential replacement for creams that contain drugs to reduce swelling and pain.  BD

BioElectronics is the developer and marketer of  ActiPatch™ medical devices which deliver pulsed electromagnetic frequency (PEMF) therapies to accelerate healing of soft tissue injuries. A reduction of pain and swelling allows patients to return to normal activities much sooner. This patented technology is based on clinically proven, widely accepted PEMF therapy.

The Company's ActiPatch is a drug-free, painless, pulsed energy patch. The ActiPatch has FDA clearance for the treatment of edema following blepharoplasty.

We deliver a solution that:

• Provides continuous treatment
• Is easy to use
• Is safe
• Is affordable
• Provides localized, non-systemic treatment
• Is lightweight

ActiPatch is not:

• Not A Magnet - ActiPatch delivers a pulsed electromagnetic field.
• Not Heat Therapy - ActiPatch is heat free, not a diathermy unit.
• Not A TENS Unit - Unlike TENS, PEMF does not deliver an electrical current through the body to block pain.
• Not A Pharmaceutical - ActiPatch in not ingested or injected and is not systemic.
• Not An Office Based Therapy - ActiPatch can be worn in the comfort of the patient's home.
• Not A Bone Growth Stimulator - ActiPatch is delivers a low power pulse and is not designed to heal hard tissue (bone).

Source:  BioElectronics: Home

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Filmmaker Moore, nurses rally for health-care bill

More information at the web site.  The California debate on health insurance continues....BD

Nearly a thousand nurses, some from as far away as Massachusetts, descended on the Capitol today to join filmmaker and provocateur Michael Moore to push for guaranteed health care.

Members of the California Nurses Association swarmed the west steps of the Capitol to urge passage of Senate Bill 840, sponsored by Sen. Sheila Kuehl, D-Santa Barbara, which seeks to provide every Californian with affordable health care.

"There is no room for the concept of profits when taking care of people when they are sick," he said. He asked the crowd: "What kind of sick, cruel system is this?"

"The insurance companies are the problem, " said Rose Ann DeMoro, the executive director of CNA, at the briefing. She held the companies responsible for what she called "terrible atrocities."

The hearing was broadcast on large-screen TVs in tents pitched outside the west steps of the Capitol.

Several interview subjects died before the film was completed. "It was pretty somber working on this film," Moore said.

Transcript here:  http://www.calchannel.com/MEDIA/0612E.asx

Source:  MichaelMoore.com : SiCKO : 'SiCKO' News : Filmmaker Moore, nurses rally for health-care bill

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Hospital slow to warn of security breach - CEO was not spared with his identity stolen as well

This is everybody's nightmare and the CEO had his identity stolen as well.  It makes you wonder why the IT staff didn't report this immediately or if other management advised against making the report immediately.  BD

Concord Hospital CEO Mike Green discovered that his identity had been stolen when the police told him that someone was trying to buy a motorcycle on credit in his name. The theft jeopardized Green's plan to refinance a mortgage and took six weeks to straighten out. He was lucky. Reclaiming one's identity and cleaning up credit reports can take months or years.

Last Saturday, more than 9,000 Concord Hospital patients learned that they face an increased risk of identity theft due to a security breach on the part of Verus, the company that does the hospital's online billing. That risk may be greater because the hospital waited 10 days to notify the attorney general's office and 11 days to contact by letter those whose names, addresses and Social Security numbers were available online for six weeks.

That was a mistake.

Source:  Hospital slow to warn of security breach - A Concord Monitor Article - Your News Source - Concord NH 03301

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Profit surges at hospital seeking trauma subsidy

"For profit" hospitals also look to the community for taxpayer assistance, regardless of the 14 million dollar profit made last year.  BD

FORT PIERCE — Lawnwood Regional Medical Center & Heart Institute's profit leaped 73 percent last year, raising questions anew about why the hospital needs an annual $7 million stipend from St. Lucie County taxpayers to build a trauma facility.

But Lawnwood Regional officials say they've already invested the hospital's $14.4 million profit in renovating and expanding its emergency department and upgrading other areas of the hospital.

Lawnwood Regional's 2006 profit was the highest of any of the 10 HCA or Tenet Healthcare Corp. hospitals in Palm Beach County and the Treasure Coast, according to audited financial statements from the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration.

Source:  Profit surges at hospital seeking trauma subsidy

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Call an ambulance - don't change your mind on the way to the hospital and decide you don't need medical care

Paramedic over the edge and perhaps suffering from stress?  He may have needed medical attention after the incident.  BD

CHICAGO -- Attorneys for a man who says he was beaten by a Chicago Fire Department paramedic two years ago released a videotape Monday that shows the man cowering as he takes blows to his face.

The paramedic on the tape was reportedly upset that Robert Cole, 43 -- who had called for an ambulance after feeling dizzy -- changed his mind on the way to the hospital and decided he didn't want medical attention.  The tape shows Cole being tossed out of the ambulance and onto the ground in a parking lot. Later, Cole is shown on the ground outside the emergency room as Ward stands over him, repeatedly hitting his face, attorneys said.

But no one contacted the state's attorney's office to inform officials that the statements that led to the charges were contradicted by the tape, LeCompte said. "No one really cared," she said. "He was collateral damage."

Source:  Hospital Beating Caught On Tape - News Story - WMAQ | Chicago

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Hospital CEO addresses letter to community - Palo Verde Community Hospital, ready to lose Medicare Services and asking for bylaw relief for contracted emergency surgeons

I can't remember reading a letter addressing the community like this before.  If you read the entire letter, it sounds like he's putting everything right out on the line with the need for contracted physician services, which have not been allowed and is pretty straight forward about asking the management of the board and MDs to begin governing. The failure of the chief of staff not being a team leader, amongst other issues are also listed.  Both the management and physicians appear to have failed the system and community - nobody is winning this battle. 

The current medical staff bylaws do not allow a temporary physician to simply provide hospital emergency on-call services at the hospital. On the map, Blythe is on the border of California and Arizona off interstate 10 and is a relatively small community in each state so the fact that emergency on call physicians are not allowed by the bylaws just does not make sense, much less the fact that the hospital will lose Medicare services.  BD

Hospital CEO addresses letter to community
Richard Fallon,CEO, Palo Verde Hospital
I remain optimistic but very concerned with the events at the hospital.
This hospital organization is young, many of our managers are new to the hospital and some are new to management. We are financially fragile and have many needs as a hospital. We have many that rely on your hospital for their health care, their livelihood and their life.

We have had employees hospitalized over the stressful emotion of situations at the hospital. The tension in the hospital is so thick you could cut it with a knife. People are concerned for their jobs and their ability to support their families if something should happen to the hospital or if they are targeted for elimination for expressing their opinion.

Hospital management was contacted by the Centers for Medicare Services in San Francisco on Thursday of last week and notified that because of the lack of surgical on-call coverage, we are in violation of not only our hospital licensure but also our contract with the federal Medicare program.

As I see it, the only choices we have for the long term is to either close the Surgery Department at the hospital, which we can do under state law and still keep the hospital, including the Emergency Department, operating, or the medical staff has to change their bylaws to allow us to cover the hospital services with temporary contracted physicians.

Then again, it pains me to see patients being transferred for medical reasons or worse yet, sent home when the physicians would have admitted them just six weeks ago.

This still leaves the original issues of hospital management control to be resolved. What is painfully obvious is that the current chief of staff will and has put the hospital's survival in jeopardy in an attempt to force his will upon the Board.

Your chief of staff has failed you and the community with his leadership.
His lack of basic social demeanor, refusal to communicate and heavy handedness has given the medical staff a black eye in this community by jeopardizing the entire health care infrastructure.  He may be a good surgeon but he is not a team player or a manager, and he certainly is not a leader.

This hospital is very quickly running out of cash and decisions need to be made.

Source:  Hospital CEO addresses letter to community

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Bluetooth Scale - send your results to your cell phone or computer

This can make it easy to keep track of your weight if you are dieting or directed by a physician to follow a weight management program.  BD

 

UC-321PBT was designed based on the UC-321PL, which has a 200kg(450lb) capacity with a fine resolution of 100g(0.2lb). It shares some characteristics with the UC-321 Precision Personal Health Scale series. Extended capability of wireless communication is provided by Bluetooth®.

Source:  UC-321PBT A&D

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Hospital Bugs - Flies in the Ointment

I guess standing water anywhere can attract insects...BD

FAIRBANKS – Officials at the Fairbanks Memorial Hospital have stopped performing non-emergency surgeries after flies were found under the floor of the hospitals pharmacy – the pharmacy is next to the surgical suites.
The Hospitals Chief Executive Officers said that the collection of flies were found in a pool of water, near a pillar, below the pharmacy.
A wall has been demolished and the hospital is spraying.

Source:  Hospital Bugs | Alaska Superstation -- Alaska News, Weather and Sports -- Anchorage, Fairbanks, and Juneau | State News

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George Foreman USB iGrill

Can't get away from the computer to fix dinner, well this George Foreman USB grill attached to your PC might do the trick.  BD

Cooking For The Web Set

The low-fat, high-bandwidth solution to your networked cooking needs is finally here. The George Foreman USB iGrill conveniently connects to your home or office PC using USB 2.0 technology, and provides a sophisticated web-based cooking interface.

Source:  ThinkGeek :: George Foreman USB iGrill

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Insomniacs Have Higher Medical Bills

Is this a catch 22?  Which is the correct answer here?  Hopefully insomnia won't become a qualifier for eligibility at any time, but it appears if you get treated perhaps your medical bills could be less expensive down the road, sleep now or sleep later.  BD

They found that patients who had been diagnosed with insomnia or received a prescription treatment for insomnia averaged around $9,000 in health care costs. That's roughly triple the expenses of patients without the sleep disorder. As many as one in 10 adults suffers from chronic insomnia, making it the most common sleep disorder in America, doctors said.

Experts believe that treating the insomnia may reduce many of the associated medical conditions and lower the health care costs at the same time.

Source:  Insomniacs Have Higher Medical Bills - Health News Story - KOCO Oklahoma City

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Two California Hospitals Complete Full Transition to KP HealthConnect

Kaiser is moving right along with their electronic records program.  BD 

OAKLAND, Calif., June 12 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Kaiser Permanente today announced two of its California hospitals, West Los Angeles Medical Center and Santa Rosa Medical Center, completed their deployments of Kaiser Permanente HealthConnect(TM), the organization's electronic health record. KP HealthConnect is recognized as the largest civilian implementation of an electronic medical record system to date.

Source:  Two California Hospitals Complete Full Transition to KP HealthConnect(TM)

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California Committee for the secure exchange of healthcare information

With all the recent articles regarding privacy, I thought this page deserved mention on the site.  BD

CalRHIO is a statewide community of health care providers and payers, government, and consumer organizations committed to the secure exchange of information and investment in information technology.

An independent organization, CalRHIO brings together health plans, providers, hospitals, consumers, public agencies, researchers, policy leaders, and others around a shared vision: using information technology to make health care safer and more efficient throughout California.

Member listing

source:  Overview

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LabCorp to offer patch to reduce needle pain

Anyone who has ever had blood drawn could appreciate this item.  BD

A New Jersey firm has struck a deal with Laboratory Corp. of America Holdings to offer its pain-relieving patch to physician offices across the country.

The patch, made by Fair Lawn, N.J.,-based Vyteris Inc., can be used to reduce the unusual pain sensitivity some patients suffer when getting injections or having blood drawn.

Under terms of the agreement, Burlington-based LabCorp will be the only independent medical testing lab in the United States to offer the LidoSite patch.

 

 

Source:  LabCorp to offer patch to reduce needle pain - The Business Journal of the Greater Triad Area:

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Upright Wheel Chair by Porsche Design Studio

A picture is worth a 1000 words, looks like a great new design.  BD

 

Source:  http://www.yankodesign.com/index.php/2007/06/11/pegasus-upright-wheelchair-by-porsche-design-studio/

Hat Tip:  Medgadget

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Former inmate launches lawsuit alleging medical neglect referencing recent medical treatment with Paris Hilton

 

LOS ANGELES - A former inmate at the Century Regional Detention Facility filed a claim against Los Angeles County Monday, alleging she was not given the same level of medical review and care provided to hotel heiress Paris Hilton during her time at the jail.
Pamela Richardson, a 51-year-old black veteran whose legs were both amputated, claims she was treated far worse than Hilton because of her race and disability.

An attorney for the county said he had not yet seen the claim and could comment on the allegations.  Richardson was never charged with a crime, and is currently receiving medical care at the Veterans Administration facility in Westwood.

Source:  Former inmate launches lawsuit alleging medical neglect - North County Times - State / West -

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Former Jaguars Tackle Seeks Medical Help For Former NFL Players

 Former football players want medical assistance as well.  BD

JACKSONVILLE, FL -- Jaguars fans remember Brian DeMarco as a young offensive lineman out of Michigan State who started for the Big Cats in 1995 and 1996.
Today, Brian DeMarco is so debilitated by the wear and tear of the NFL, he has to be helped up to the podium to speak.
DeMarco was part of a Gridiron Greats press conference in Chicago on Monday where former players are taking a stand against Union president Gene Upshaw and the lack of dollars for medical help.

DeMarco went on to say that because of his disabilities and medical bills, he's been able to work and has actually been homeless on three different occasions.

Source:  Sports - Former Jaguars Tackle Seeks Medical Help For Former NFL Players

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Paperless records - it took a hurricane to get some offices on board

 

In the future, the rows and rows of manila folders tabbed by color-coded numbers in medical offices will be part of history.

Technological advancements have changed the way that patients receive health care and in about 15 percent of the physicians offices in the state, it’s already changed the way that care is recorded in a patient’s medical file.

Because converting to a paperless medical record system is costly — as much as $10,000 year in the first five years, the state is investigating ways to ease the financial burden on physicians, said Dr. Roxane Townsend, the state deputy secretary of the Department of Health and Hospitals.

Source:  The Daily Advertiser - www.theadvertiser.com - Lafayette, LA

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World's First Personal DNA Analyzer

 

World's First Personal DNA Analyzer

Spartan Bioscience Inc. today announced the commercial launch of the Spartan DXTM real-time PCR (polymerase chain reaction) DNA analyzer.  The Spartan DXTM provides DNA results in 30 minutes or less for 4 samples at a time.  It is available at a manufacturer's suggested retail price (MSRP) of USD $14,995.  Spartan is now accepting orders for shipment during the month of July.

Source:  Smart Economy: World's First Personal DNA Analyzer launched by Ottawa-based Spartan Bioscience 07-189

Hat Tip:  Medgadget

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Hospitals threaten to bill seniors who refuse long term care - Ontario, Canada

 

Hamilton seniors are being strong-armed into long-term care homes they didn't choose by hospitals desperate to get them out of their beds.

Local hospitals threaten to charge seniors $300 a day if they don't take the first available long-term care bed in the city no matter how far it is from their family, or what families think of the home.

With at least 120 seniors clogging up hospital beds and 70 more waiting in a temporary unit at St. Joseph's Villa in Dundas, hospitals can't afford to let patients wait around for their top picks.

Source:  Hamilton Spectator - News

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Medical Breakthrough -- Stroke Patients Move Again

   

At age 32, Maggie suffered a stroke.

"What happens in a stroke is, an area of brain tissue is damaged and brain cells die" says Joel Stein, Chief Medical Officer at Spaulding Rehabilitations Hospital.  

After standard therapy,  Maggie only regained 25-percent of the function in her arm.   Then, she heard about a new powered elbow brace.  It uses a computerized system to detect electrical impulses in muscles. 

Three years after her stroke, Maggie has not only regained confidence, she now has 75-percent of her arm motion back.

In a study at MIT, people who underwent 18 hours of training using the device over a period of nine weeks, improved arm movement by 23-percent.  Muscle stiffness also improved.

The device will be available to all patients this fall. It may be used as a rehab or training tool and can be used any amount of time after a stroke

Source:  Medical Breakthrough -- Stroke Patients Move Again

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Medical Clinics come to the supermarket in New Jersey

$39.00 a visit and currently not accepting insurance, but plans to later.  The clinics will be staffed by a nurse practitioner with physical therapists down the road a possibility.  BD

Shoppers can buy fruits and vegetables and get treated for ills.

CRANBURY - ExpressCare of Cranbury last week staked its claim in the growing market for walk-in medical clinics by opening a location in a ShopRite supermarket in Neptune.

The clinic is the first of six that ExpressCare plans to open in ShopRite stores, where nurse practitioners will treat patients, write prescriptions for common illnesses and dispense advice on smoking cessation and other health issues. Subsequent clinics will be in stores in Woodbridge, Ewing and Brick in New Jersey and in Philadelphia and East Norton, Pa.

Customers can check in at ExpressCare kiosks if workers are busy, at which point they will be handed the kind of beepers that some restaurants hand to waiting diners. Shoppers can then pick up groceries and be paged when their turn comes.

Source:  NJBIZ.com

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Prospect Medical Holdings in Discussions to Acquire Hospital Group in Southern California

I'm sure there will be more to come on this soon, as this reads this is a little different from the recent IPA acquisition of ProMed in the inland empire..BD

CULVER CITY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Prospect Medical Holdings, Inc. (AMEX: PZZ) (“Prospect”), which manages the medical care of approximately 250,000 HMO enrollees in Southern California, today announced that it is in substantive discussions to acquire a private, for-profit hospital management company that owns and operates several community-based hospitals in Southern California.

The acquisition is subject to, among other things, the signing of a definitive agreement, finalizing the financing for the transaction, obtaining regulatory and other consents, and other customary closing conditions. Prospect is making this announcement in advance of contemplated regulatory filings and lender-sponsored meetings connected with the proposed transaction.

Source:  Prospect Medical Holdings in Discussions to Acquire Hospital Group in Southern California

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Doctors urged to make good first impression

New study on how doctors interact with first visit based on videos gathered.  This is elementary to most physicians I'm sure, but going back to my days in sales, the same thing holds true about having a lasting impact and calling people by name, just good PR any way you look at it.  BD

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Doctors should know that when meeting a new patient for the first time there is no second chance to make a good first impression, researchers said on Monday.  "Greetings are just a small slice of the visit, but they can have a lasting impact," study leader Gregory Makoul of Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine said in a telephone interview.

Makoul said it is important for a doctor to, at the very least, ensure he or she is seeing the right patient. A leading cause of medical mistakes is doctors mixing up patients and their treatments, studies show.

Source:  Doctors urged to make good first impression | Health | Reuters.com

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California looks to help local students fill nursing shortage

 

Nicole Oswell was a straight-A student passionately interested since first grade in following in her mother's footsteps as a registered nurse. But she had to wait two years to get into Los Angeles Trade Tech's nursing program, she said, her frustration mounting as national nursing shortages worsened.
Lizbeth Gutierrez got lucky. Her wait was only six months. But that's because she won a lottery for a space at East Los Angeles College, one way that nursing schools overwhelmed with applicants now select students. There are currently 17,000 qualified California applicants waiting to enter nursing programs and more than 130,000 in other states.

One local hospital trying to do just that is Downey Regional Medical Center. The hospital has deliberately decided against relying on foreign nurses and instead produces its own nurses through partnerships with two community colleges.
Heather Conwell, Downey's chief nursing officer, said the hospital's experiences with foreign nurses weren't ideal. Several Filipino doctors retrained as nurses couldn't quite make the transition, she said, and a pair of Canadian nurses quit in mid-contract because, the hospital was told, Downey wasn't "close enough to the beach."

Source:  California looks to help local students fill nursing shortage - Los Angeles Times

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United HealthCare Challenged in Omaha

 

NASHVILLE, Tenn., June 11 PRNewswire — HealthLeaders-InterStudy, the leading provider of managed care market intelligence, reports that there could be a shakeup on the HMO front with the pending sale of Mutual of Omaha's group commercial business to rival Coventry Health Care. According to the latest Omaha Market Overview, the combined HMOs will pose a strong challenge to UnitedHealth Group's position as Omaha market leader at the same time the national insurer comes under fire from area physicians and the Nebraska Department of Insurance.

UnitedHealth Group's plans are the largest HMO, fully insured PPO and the only provider of managed Medicaid and Medicare products in the area. However, the company and its United HealthCare of the Midlands unit are under fire from the Nebraska Department of Insurance for a history of late payments, and some physicians are threatening to stop accepting United plans. The Nebraska Department of Insurance will attempt to resolve its issues with the insurer at a hearing later this month.

Source:  Digital50: HealthLeaders-InterStudy News and more Business News

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Hospitals including more advertising in budgets

 

(June 11, 2007) — Local billboards, as well as print, television and radio advertising, are increasingly being filled with messages about where to go if you have a heart attack, are battling cancer or have a teen abusing drugs.

Medical advertising is now commonly thrust upon Rochester-area consumers amid other messages about personal injury attorneys, television/Internet packages and casinos. And while such advertising apparently isn't as common as in some metro areas, hospital officials say the need to advertise is simply a sign of the times.

Source:  Democrat & Chronicle: Local News

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Hospital strike set for June 12 for southern California hospital

 

BURBANK - Management at Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center and the union that represents its employees have discussed bringing in a federal mediator to help move stalled contract negotiations forward, but it won't be in time for a planned one-day strike at 6 a.m. on June 12.

The 1,500 employees represented by the SEIU United Healthcare Workers-West and SEIU Local 121RN -- announced last month that they will protest unfair labor practices and call on the hospital to work with its employees on issues affecting patient care.  Caregivers have been negotiating with the hospital since February over safe staffing protections, job security, training and education, fair pay and a secure retirement. The union says these standards have been adopted by every other major California hospital system.

Source:  LA Daily News - Hospital strike in Burbank set for June 12

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Medical blogs get ethics treatment

 

The medical blogosphere -- the modern equivalent of a doctors lounge -- is experiencing growing pains. Gone are the musings of, among others, Dr. Flea and Barbados Butterfly -- popular doctors who wrote anonymously about their medical practices on blogs for the world to read on the Internet.

"I think that the recent issues pertaining to employers shutting down blogs and the Flea situation are part of the normal growing process of blogs," said Pho, who uses his name on his blog and who decided early on that he would never write about his patients. (Kevin, MD)

Said Pho, "The ground rules are still being written. Over the next couple of years, once people are more aware of the phenomenon, it's going to become more mainstream. I think there's tremendous interest in how medicine is run."

Source:  Medical blogs get ethics treatment

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Chinese hospitals used ‘fake plasma' on patients

Be aware of products imported from China..we all heard about the toothpaste recently that was deemed unsafe and further stories indicate the counterfeit or fake "knock offs" are finding their way into health and medical products in other areas as well as potential toxins in some products.  BD

BEIJING — Eighteen big hospitals in northeastern China have been using fake human albumin, or plasma protein, to treat patients, state television reported in the latest food and medicine scandal to hit the country.

In the most recent scandal, U.S. consumers were alarmed by a spate of pet deaths blamed on tainted wheat gluten and rice protein exported from China, as well as reports of toxins and disease in other Chinese exports.

In regular checks made by the food and drug administration in Jilin province, seven of 36 batches of the albumin, fed into the bloodstream by drip, contained zero protein.

"There was no protein component," Xu Fei, deputy chief of Jilin food and drug inspection department, told China Central Television. "It will not have the benefit it should have. We can say it is an out-and-out fake product."  Experts said that use of the fake drip could put lives at risk for those already seriously ill.

Eighteen hospitals and 39 drug trading companies were found to be using the fake human albumin, which led to huge profits because of its low production cost.

Source:  globeandmail.com: Chinese hospitals used ‘fake plasma' on patients

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China has issues with HMOs

Other countries are facing issues with regulating HMOs...BD

Privately managed health-care providers may make inexperienced doctors scapegoats for wrongdoings unless the government enhances its proposal to become a stringent monitoring system, an alliance of medical professionals said.

A recently proposed appointment of a medical director in health maintenance organizations to oversee operations is a move the health authorities believe will ensure ethical medical practices. 

Currently, the number of HMOs is still unknown as they are not required to register with the government.  But Kwok estimates there are at least 200 in operation. "It's a potential crisis, you can't shut down a HMO even if it were found to be prescribing unsafe drugs," Siu said.

Source:  The Standard - China's Business Newspaper

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NASA - NASA Technology Helps Detect and Treat Heart Disease and Strokes

 

PASADENA, Calif. -- NASA space technology is helping doctors diagnose and monitor treatments for hardening of the arteries in its early stages, before it causes heart attacks and strokes.
Hospitals and doctors around the country are using ArterioVision software initially developed at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., along with a standardized, painless, non-invasive ultrasound examination of the carotid artery, which carries blood from the heart to the brain.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the new diagnostic tool, called the ArterioVision CIMT procedure. Robert Selzer, MTI chief engineer, worked in JPL's Image Processing Laboratory for 15 years, where the technology was developed that ultimately led to the software used in ArterioVision.

 

A standard carotid ultrasound measures plaque and blood flow within the artery.

Source:  NASA - NASA Technology Helps Detect and Treat Heart Disease and Strokes

Hat Tip:  Medgadget

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GM CEO Says Company Will Seek To Reduce Health Care Costs

One more article about reducing health care costs...BD

General Motors will make efforts to reduce health care costs a priority this year, company CEO Rick Wagoner on Tuesday announced at an annual shareholder meeting in Wilmington, Del., Reuters reports (Reuters, 6/5).
At the meeting, Wagoner said that GM over the past two years has made progress in negotiations with the United Auto Workers to improve competitiveness but added that the company must "further reduce our still-unsustainable health care bill, which was a staggering $4.8 billion in 2006" (Krisher, AP/Philadelphia Inquirer, 6/6).

Source:  GM CEO Says Company Will Seek To Reduce Health Care Costs

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Health Costs Push Companies to Set Targets for Workers

More employers are getting involved in health care as well as cost soar.  The one item that would tend to make me feel uncomfortable is the overseeing by an insurance carrier.  Also, there is a big "supposed" in the final line below as to who will have access to the records.  Let's hope this is true to form.  BD

WATCH your cholesterol and triglycerides. Your boss and fellow workers are counting on it. As the nation’s employers aim to get their money’s worth from ever more expensive medical insurance, many are playing a bigger role in managing and monitoring their workers’ health. Employers not only want a healthy group, they want to keep a lid on health costs — and insurance premiums. 

Take Intuit, the Silicon Valley software company known for its Quicken and TurboTax financial software. Intuit pays employees $100 each for voluntarily filling out an online medical questionnaire that is intended to flag problems and suggest remedies.

Textron, a multinational conglomerate that insures more than 30,000 employees in the United States, tries to head off major medical expenses by using a contractor to sift through employees’ insurance claims. If the process detects a condition that may warrant closer monitoring, the employee will receive a call from a “health coach” to offer guidance for questions to ask a doctor.

Ms. Wilkins of Intuit said that when her company introduced its health questionnaire last year, she fielded many questions about who would see the data. She said that she reassured workers that no one at Intuit would have access to the questionnaires, which are overseen by Optum, a unit of the insurer United HealthCare. She also reminded them that the survey was voluntary.

Medical records are "supposed" to be accessible only to third-party health-plan administrators or other outside vendors the employee has authorized.

Source:  Health Costs Push Companies to Set Targets for Workers - New York Times

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Banner Desert iCare monitors seven hospitals

 

Doctors and nurses monitor dozens of intensive-care patients in seven hospitals 24 hours a day via flat-screen computers in a command center at Banner Desert Medical Center in Mesa.
High-tech cameras in ICU rooms at the hospitals allow the doctors to check a patient’s breathing, analyze their pupils, read the medicine labels on IV bags or the pressure gauges at their bedsides — and even give patients and their family encouragement through a speaker in the wall. In the near future, two-way cameras will allow patients to see their doctors. For now, a small “R2D2”-shaped camera moves around the room.

There are 126 beds that can be monitored now from iCare. They are at Banner Estrella Medical Center and Banner Good Samaritan Medical Center Neuro ICU, both in Phoenix; Banner Desert’s cardiac ICU, Banner Mesa Medical Center, Banner Baywood Medical Center and Banner Baywood Heart Hospital, all in Mesa; and North Colorado Medical Center in Greeley, Colo. In the next two to three years, Banner plans to provide the telemedicine care to all of its 391 ICU rooms.
Nurses say the extra eyes focused on their most critical patients have not only boosted care for those patients but even provided mentoring for new nurses. It helps them prevent patients from pulling out tubes or standing up too quickly.

Doctors can analyze late-night tests. One doctor in the center helped health care workers in Colorado save a man whose lung had collapsed by giving directions over the in-room speaker

Source:  Banner Desert iCare monitors seven hospitals | EastValleyTribune.com

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Who Pays for Efficiency?

 

Dr. Baron’s office has saved money — in transcribing medical reports, for example — and his practice now handles its 6,000 patients with three fewer office employees. He described other benefits, mainly the ability to find information quickly for patients, hospitals, insurers and labs with a few keystrokes.

The technology, Dr. Baron said, has also helped make him become a more adept physician. But it has not yet paid off in dollars and cents: the savings in salaries is less than the costs entailed in computerization. “It is a high-risk venture,” he said, “and you do it at your own financial peril.”

Today, an estimated one-fourth of primary-care doctors use electronic health records, but only 5 percent of them are in offices with five doctors or fewer — where about half of all doctors practice.

Who Pays for Efficiency? - New York Times

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Medical Tourism - We have it here, but nobody pays the bill

Citizens from other countries travel here, but who absorbs the bill?  This hospital in New Jersey is struggling with this very issue.  BD

North Jersey hospitals are treating increasing numbers of foreigners who travel to the U.S. for medical care -- and leave without paying their bill.

Mindful that U.S. emergency rooms must take all comers, these medical tourists head from the airport straight to the hospital -- sometimes armed with CT scans and doctor's notes. As soon as they're well, they're back on the plane home.

These are cases like the 67-year-old woman from the Dominican Republic who arrived "near death" at Holy Name in 2005 and would spend the next 401 days as a patient there.  Her bill would eventually reach $1.9 million. Medicaid would pay just $78,000, hospital officials said.

U.S. citizens face collection agencies and lawsuits if they fail to pay their medical bills. Yet hospitals often let medical tourist cases go because it's not cost-effective to chase after debt in other countries.

A very small portion of those costs is reimbursed through the state charity-care program. Medicaid can sometimes be tapped for these bills, but in most cases, hospitals must absorb the costs.  They already have in California, where 84 hospitals have closed, overwhelmed by free health care to non-citizens.

Source:  North Jersey Media Group providing local news, sports & classifieds for Northern New Jersey!

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Novartis Samples Wilt In Sales Reps’ Garages

Where does your drug rep store their samples and how secure are they?  BD

Sales reps ride around with an awful lot of samples in their cars. And at the end of the day, those samples should be stored in “conditions that will maintain their stability, integrity, and effectiveness, (to) ensure that the drug samples are not contaminated, deteriorated, or otherwise adulterated,” says the Prescription Drug and Marketing Act.

Common sense, right? Get ‘em out of the trunk into a cool place. But some Novartis reps complain the drugmaker is allegedly willing to reimburse only $50 a month for storage, which doesn’t cover costs. So some admit to keeping them in the car overnight or the garage, according to the chatter on CafePharma, the web site where overheated sales reps love to vent. Here are some comments…

ANOTHER NOVARTIS “REVELATION” FROM CAFE PHARMA:

“Samples need to be discontinued altogether! ship them directly from manufacturer! we keep them in our garages; overheated cars and my friend found BUGS in hers!! this isnt just novartis but all reps that sample; i drove by a drug reps house one time and they had all their samples in the garage door wide open and no cars around and no one home!”

Source:  Pharmalot » Novartis Samples Wilt In Sales Reps’ Garages

Hat Tip:  Kevin, MD

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Privacy arguments follow rollout of electronic health records

(article continues below after commentary)

As electronic records evolve, who has the records, who stores them, who has access, who shares the information and so on is still a highly debated and discussed item.  We all can agree that documentation can lead to better health care, but who will be the "store keeper" here?  Will a patient have "any control" over the "store keeper"?  Will the primary care physician have any influence or control with dealing with the "store keeper"?  As outlined in this article, insurance companies are certainly in the forefront with accelerating this technology and offering various plans and avenues for individuals to document their personal health records and have access via the Internet. 

Next question that comes to mind...once the information is contained in an offering from an insurance company or any other commercial offering , where else does the information go?  Does it go to the huge MIB (medical insurance bureau) to be shared with all members (insurance companies)?   As a patient I am not too overly concerned about the potential hackers at this point, but rather where the information could travel from here and whether or not it could be used against me for qualifying for insurance or have the potential of rejecting medical claims. 

The one comment below from a nurse stating that alcoholics didn't want their condition on paper reflects another side of this coin for fear that it would affect the quality of care they receive.  With all the data collected today, anything along this line has the potential of affecting the quality of care we receive.  If an individual is a diabetic today, how does this affect the quality of care received? 

Physicians are helped immensely by having access to this information to provide a plan of action whether it be health maintenance or emergency care.  We all read the recent stories of Mr. Universe being arrested for behavior related to hypoglycemia, with the misunderstanding that he was intoxicated.  It's a very scary feeling when one is about to pass out and is in need of sugar to relieve the low blood sugar attack and timing can be everything with the individual not having enough time to explain and in a state of panic - just needing the sugar to avoid a black out.  Granted having something with him could have eliminated the incident, but we are human and do the best we can and may not always be 100% prepared, especially if this is a new chronic condition diagnosed or if a new medication was being used, as was stated in this case.  We are humans and sometimes might forget.

When information goes beyond the physician-patient relationship we seem to enter somewhat of a "gray" area.   Some medical record information is now being used in courts and this is the fine line of privacy issues we all worry about.  My real question here is are we creating records for the pursuit of better health care or are we generating "media"?  If you have ever signed a release for a media interview we are aware of the fact that anything we say can be printed, etc., so does the same go for our medical records?  Are they "media objects" or a tool used in the pursuit of better health care?   As data bases of personal information continue to grow and evolve, what is the answer?  Is it possible to remove the financial and political areas of this topic and focus on better health care?

Electronic health records are a good thing and save lives and I could almost bet any physician would not dispute the fact that having this information available is a huge benefit when it comes to better health care and saving lives, and we all depend on their advice, directives and actions in helping us live better lives.  The physician-patient relationship should never deteriorate, nor be coerced to a level of "created media".  As the old saying goes "media loves media" and hopefully we can find a solution for medical records that will neither expose or violate crossing the fine line of privacy and dignity we enjoy as US citizens.  BD

____________________________

 HARTFORD, Conn. -- Privacy groups are sounding alarms as the nation's largest insurance companies finalize plans to allow millions more customers to post their health records on the Internet.  Insurers like Hartford-based Aetna Inc. say Web-based tools help patients and physicians keep track of medical information while potentially holding down spiraling medical costs.

But privacy advocates say there's no guarantee that the records will be safe from hackers. Some worry that patients may refuse to disclose some illnesses to their doctors to keep documents out of databases.

"As a former nurse I know that back in the 1980s, patients who were alcoholics did not want to have paper records," said Sue Blevins, president of the Institute for Health Freedom in Washington, D.C.. "They just didn't want people to know. They didn't tell people they were alcoholics. That could affect the quality of their care."

Source:  Privacy arguments follow rollout of electronic health records - Newsday.com

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$1,500 price tag on your health - the boutique practice alternative

 

Can you put a price on good health? How about $1,500 a year?

That is what doctors Arnold Goldstein and Barbara Shonberg will charge patients in their longtime Middletown internal medicine practice starting next month. The membership fee isn't the only change patients can expect, either.

The Bucks County doctors are joining a small, but growing number of colleagues nationwide who are practicing concierge — or fee-for-access —medicine in an effort to return to the days where patients came before paperwork.

Patients who pay the retainer get enhanced services or amenities such as cell phone numbers for doctors, same day appointments for non-urgent care, personalized lifestyle improvement plans, and a CD with up-to-date, personal health data including test results and X-rays.

The U.S. Health and Human Services Department has concluded that as long as the fee clearly covers services Medicare doesn't, they don't violate the law.

Source:  $1,500 price tag on your health (phillyBurbs.com) | Local Business

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