World Economic Forum USA

For those who are not aware there's a big meeting going on this week in Davos, Switzerland.  There's a pretty impressive membership of companies which you can find here.  World Economics involves healthcare and quality of life for all, this I felt it was worth adding the blog this week.  I posted a video earlier this week with Bono answering the "Davo Question".  Now what is totally amazing here is the coverage and information we are getting from world famous Robert Scoble, who is streaming video and covering the event with his Cell Phone..yes you heard it correctly.  Here's a link to his broadcasting site where you can view live and pre-recorded video sessions.  He' even captured the likes of folks like Michael Dell with his cell phone...amazing technology...coming to a cell phone near you soon via Qik Technology.    This particular clip shows Mr. Scoble..talking with other bloggers...and really brings to light how blogging has really come in to it's own....BD 

The World Economic Forum USA is an independent non-profit organization committed to improving the state of the world by engaging industry leaders in partnerships to shape global, regional and industry agendas.
Incorporated as a non-profit business league (under §501(c)6 of the IRS code - approval pending) and based in New York, the World Economic Forum USA is impartial and not-for-profit; it is tied to no political, partisan or national interests. It is the North American affiliate of the World Economic Forum, a non-profit Foundation based in Geneva, Switzerland, under the supervision of the Swiss Federal Government.

World Economic Forum - World Economic Forum USA

Watch Live and Recorded clips from the Davos Meeting here

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Win An MRI - 2 Winners!

Lockport clearly pulled from behind and was able to get the community behind them...Sumter was way ahead in the race for quite a while, but community efforts and use of technology, to include finding class reunion folks through social networks and so on made this a success...the 2nd winner was Sumter...as Siemens donated an MRI for the hospital to add when the new facility is finished...nice ending for both hospitals...and goes to show what community support and a bit of technology can accomplish as well as the generosity of Siemens...BD  

Congratulations!  Lockport Hospital, Lockport, NY.

Lockport Hospital is the recipient of a brand new MAGNETOM® ESSENZA – one of Siemens’ latest developments in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technology.
Lockport won the MRI – worth approximately $800,000. Like most community hospitals in this country, Lockport has struggled with how to afford a state-of-the-art MRI machine.
With this new MAGNETOM ESSENZA, Lockport will be able to expand the diagnostic care that it can provide to its community, better addressing their healthcare needs.

Winanmri.com

The community of 42,000 on the Erie Canal managed to swing enough votes toward its hospital in an online contest to win an $800,000 MRI machine.

George Fritz, owner of Mills Jewelers on Lockport's Main Street, found a trove of voters in his e-mail contacts, not just customers but names compiled for a class reunion he organized, and from his volunteer work at the Palace Theatre.

Related Story:  http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/newyork/ny-bc-ny--mriprize0125jan25,0,6582602.story

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Facebook Based Mobile Fitness Hits Ground Running

Do you want to let everyone else know your workout program and how you are doing?  Enter Facebook with a new application for mobile devices...that's right, for the cell phone and items will post to the site...might be good for those working with others with common goals...Results are logged on users' phones are updated in real time on users' HFM Friends Leader Boards on Facebook. BD 

Health & Fitness Mobile has launched what it claims is the world's first free mobile fitness portal available on a WAP-enabled phone. The mobile portal delivers made-for-mobile training programs from the top minds in fitness, Health & Fitness Mobile. Programs range from functional strength to weight loss to sport-specific conditioning. Available in image and video formats, each program offers fitness models demonstrating exercises with proper form and technique along with trainer tips and encouragement. Designed with the health club experience in mind, the mobile portal enables users to record their workout progress during the natural rests taken between each exercise set.

Facebook Based Mobile Fitness Hits Ground Running

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Doctor fined for privacy violation

 Employee or girlfriend...if you are not the patient's physician...don't go there...according to this article...one more lawsuit and fine for the physician...BD

PITTSFIELD — A Berkshire Medical Center doctor accused of inappropriately reading the medical records of two women co-workers has been reprimanded and fined by the state's medical licensing board.

Dr. Boris Murillo signed a consent order with the Board of Registration in Medicine agreeing to accept the reprimand and pay a $2,500 fine. The settlement resolved a misconduct charge that had been brought to the board alleging that Murillo had violated patient privacy laws.

According to the consent order, Murillo, 41, was involved in a "dating relationship" with a nurse at BMC and twice read her electronic medical records, though she was not his patient.  Murillo also accessed the medical records of a female employee he had seen as a patient, the order states, and read her records 10 times. On at least one occasion, he had no medical reason to do so.

Berkshire Eagle Online - BMC doctor fined for privacy violation

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Last Day to Vote for the 50 Most Powerful Physician Executives in Healthcare...

  Welcome to the 50 Most Powerful Physician Executives recognition program. Modern Physician and sister publication Modern Healthcare co-sponsor this annual recognition program. Readers vote for one of 100 physician executives who make up the final ballot. The 50 physicians who receive the most votes make the final list, with the ranking determined by the number of votes received. Modern Physician and Modern Healthcare reserve the right to resolve voting irregularities. The nomination period for the 2008 competition closed on Dec. 7, with more than 7,300 nominations received. Voting will begin Dec. 23 and run through Jan. 25, 2008. The final ranking will be published in the April 7 issue of Modern Physician and the April 14 issue of Modern Healthcare.

Web site and where to vote...

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Mayo, Microsoft partner on new health management system

Strategic partnerships are the name of the game, just last month IBM had also announced their partnership with Mayo...BD 

Mayo Clinic Health Solutions said it plans to partner with Microsoft Corp. to develop new tools for health-care management.

Rochester-based health care provider Mayo said Friday that its Health Solutions Group entered into a strategic agreement with the Redmond, Wash., software giant Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) to develop new technology for health care management.

No further details were provided, but the two organizations said they planned to announce further details of the project before the end of 2008.

Mayo, Microsoft partner on new health management system - Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal:

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Health company to layoff 79 in Dubuque

Restructuring and relocating resources to where they are needed...BD 

McKesson Corp., which provides health care products and services, will eliminate 79 jobs from its Dubuque operation, company officials said Thursday.
The San Francisco-based company will phase out the jobs in the next nine to 18 months and will offer outplacement services and severance packages to employees who do not get positions elsewhere in the company, said spokeswoman Leslie White.

Health company to layoff 79 in Dubuque | DesMoinesRegister.com | The Des Moines Register

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Lack of Capital Biggest Barrier to EHR Adoption, Survey Finds

It all comes back to money....with looming compensation cuts in the air, where is the incentive for physicians to adapt to electronic records?  With the current economic crunch facing many small practices and the potential of many dropping from accepting Medicare, where does this leave us...we all know electronic records are a much better and efficient method for health records, but someone needs to help the physicians...some hospitals are making strides in this area but that may only be a small handful....and the records all need to "talk" to one another as well...BD 

Lack of capital is the biggest barrier to electronic health record adoption, and financial support would be the biggest incentive to adopt an EHR system, according to preliminary survey results, Modern Healthcare reports.
The physician EHR adoption survey, which began in July 2007 with the goal of reaching 5,000 physicians randomly drawn from the American Medical Association's Physician Masterfile, so far has received more than 1,500 responses. Initial findings from the survey were presented Tuesday to the American Health Information Community.

Eighty percent of respondents said financial incentives would impact their decision to adopt EHRs, while 82% said additional payments would help.

Lack of Capital Biggest Barrier to EHR Adoption, Survey Finds - iHealthBeat

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Wal-Mart CEO Announces Pilot Program To Provide Prescription Drug Services for Some Employers

Wal-Mart of course is known for driving down prices...will they have the same success with drugs as they have had with other suppliers?  Will be interesting to follow the roll out of the program once more details are revealed...BD 

Wal-Mart Stores CEO Lee Scott on Wednesday at an annual meeting in Kansas City, Mo., announced plans to begin a pilot program under which the company will help certain employers "manage how they process and pay prescription claims," an indication that Wal-Mart seeks to enter the pharmacy benefit manager business, the Wall Street Journal reports.
Scott did not name the employers or discuss the details of the program, but he said that Wal-Mart could save the companies more than $100 million this year. According to a Wal-Mart spokesperson, the employers might contract with the company to fill all or a majority of prescriptions for employees. Wal-Mart could reduce health care costs for the employers through a program that offers prescriptions of generic medications for $4 (Zimmerman/Martinez, Wall Street Journal, 1/24).

Prescription Drugs | Wal-Mart CEO Announces Pilot Program To Provide Prescription Drug Services for Some Employers - Kaisernetwork.org

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Life as a Healthcare CIO: Cool Technology of the Week

Good article about this device...and has some very nice security features too...answers a lot of security issues.  You could almost call it a "thin client in a small box and bring your own peripherals"....easily solves many connectivity issues and in essence would make life simpler for IT support too!  Great find and many thanks for sharing this!  BD  

We've investigated several thin client computers in the past, but the Cool Technology of the Week is the Jack PC from Chip PC Technologies. It's slightly larger than a pager fits inside a wall mounted network port. It's powered over Ethernet, offers VMware support and connectivity to Microsoft Terminal or Citrix servers.

Just plug a keyboard and flat panel screen into the wall and you're up and running! Very cool.

Life as a Healthcare CIO: Cool Technology of the Week

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Health Plan reports data breach affecting 30,000 members

What do we not understand about encryption?  The technologist stated it had not been protected as originally stated...security breach story of the week...and once more why was this information stored on a local computer?  With the speed and connectivity resources we have today there's almost no reason for anyone to be carrying around patient information on a computer, but yet I see it all the time, staff removing information to perhaps take home to work with, but a secure VPN connection could help solve these issues easily...BD 

WORCESTER— Fallon Community Health Plan said this afternoon the names, dates of birth and Medicare identification numbers of approximately 30,000 Senior Plan members was on a laptop computer stolen earlier this month from a Boston-based vendor of the HMO.
The health plan said it will offer free credit monitoring services for 12 months to those affected by the data breach. Fallon health plan officials said the data was not password protected or encrypted, in violation of the company's policies.

Mr. Schultz said the laptop containing Fallon's information was one of three computers stolen from a Boston office on either Dec. 31 or Jan. 1. The vendor discovered the theft Jan. 2 and originally said the material had been encrypted. But the health plan, with the assistance of a forensic technologist, came to the conclusion Jan. 14 that the information was not protected.

Worcester Telegram & Gazette Breaking News

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The Many Uses For The New Electron Microscope Include Medical Research Into Liver Disease

Not only for health care but also being used for developing technology, such as cell phone, and computer chips as well...this is one big powerful microscope!  BD 

A unique electron microscope, the first of its kind in the world, was unveiled yesterday at the STFC Daresbury Laboratory in Warrington. It will enable scientists to study atoms within materials in a way that has never before been possible and will pave the way for pioneering research relating to every aspect of our lives, from research into liver disease, to the creation of the mobile phones and computers of the future. Sponsored by the EPSRC and led by the University of Liverpool, the SuperSTEM 2 has been created by a collaboration of leading scientists from the universities of Liverpool, Glasgow and Leeds and the Daresbury Laboratory.

The SuperSTEM 2 is now being applied to a whole raft of projects, including medical research to achieve a deeper understanding of liver disease. It is also being used in the future development of mountain bike tires and the next generation of computer chips in the quest to make smaller, yet more powerful, computers and mobile phones.

The Many Uses For The New Electron Microscope Include Medical Research Into Liver Disease

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Hey, doc, wash your hands

The article states it's not a bad idea to ask your nurse or doctor to wash their hands...patient awareness....in life we can all use someone or something to occasionally remind us as we all get busy and sometimes forget...something none of us should take offense to...BD 

It’s a question no hospital patient should have to ask: “Hey, doc, did you wash your hands?”

But in an era of rising rates of drug-resistant infections and overburdened medical staffs, hygiene experts say the best-protected patients are those willing to take safety into their own hands — by asking health workers to wash theirs.

Doctors, nurses and other hospital staffer too busy, too distracted — or, sometimes, too arrogant — to wash up are the target of a growing movement aimed at cutting rates of hospital-acquired infections that kill nearly 100,000 people in the U.S. each year, according to federal estimates.

Hey, doc, wash your hands - Health care- msnbc.com

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Bon Secours DePaul Medical Center Orthopedic Surgeon Is First In Virginia To Implant 'Motion Preserving' Spinal Device To Treat Lumbar Spinal Stenosis

The 83 year old woman states she feels like a new person...BD 

The research study is comparing posterior dynamic stabilization in patients using the Stabilimax NZ device to patients receiving traditional fusion surgery to treat their Lumbar Spinal Stenosis, a common lower-back disorder where deterioration of the joints and discs leads to increased pressure on the spinal nerves. Dr. Byrd's first patient was 83-year-old Elizabeth Williams.

J. Abbott Byrd, III, M.D., a board-certified orthopedic surgeon affiliated with Bon Secours DePaul Medical Center, is the first spine surgeon in Virginia to implant the Stabilimax NZ® Dynamic Spine Stabilization System as part of a randomized, controlled, national research study.

Bon Secours DePaul Medical Center Orthopedic Surgeon Is First In Virginia To Implant 'Motion Preserving' Spinal Device To Treat Lumbar Spinal Stenosis

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Pelosi Speaks

Pretty powerful words....how do we spend our money?  BD 

Finally, she compared the cost of healthcare reform to the cost of the war in Iraq: “For the cost of 40 days in Iraq we could insure 10 million children in America.”

What does Iraq have to do with healthcare? The answer is that, in a world of finite resources, we have to make decisions about how to spend our wealth.

Health Beat: D.C. Dispatch: Pelosi Speaks

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5 patients sue over tainted syringes

Would this fall under the "preventable" clause?  BD 

CHICAGO - Five people filed a lawsuit Thursday against the manufacturer of a batch of pre-filled syringes that were contaminated with bacteria, claiming they became seriously ill and were hospitalized.

In December, doctors traced numerous infections to heparin-filled syringes used during home treatment for cancer and other ailments. About 40 people in Illinois and Texas became sick, including 20 outpatients from Rush University Medical Center in Chicago.

The syringes are used to flush catheters and intravenous lines.

5 patients sue over tainted syringes - Health care- msnbc.com

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Transplant patient changed blood types

Would be wonderful if this process could be replicated...BD 

CANBERRA, Australia - An Australian teenage girl has become the world’s first known transplant patient to change blood groups and take on the immune system of her organ donor, doctors said on Friday, calling her a “one-in-six-billion miracle.”

Demi-Lee Brennan, now 15, received a donor liver when she was 9 years old and her own liver failed.

“It’s like my second chance at life,” Brennan told local media, recounting how her body achieved what doctors said was the holy grail of transplant surgery. “It’s kind of hard to believe.”

Transplant patient changed blood types - Health care- msnbc.com

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Computers That Recognize Your Face

This can be a bit help with health care with computers that recognize and log one in and out...in a busy medical office how many times a day would this be beneficial to not have to manually log in and out when caring for patients....the You Tube video shows how the technology could be used in a somewhat humorous fashion.  If you want to try the technology on your own computer with a web cam, use this link for a free application that actually works pretty well and will give you an idea on how it works...BD 

"It was this model that made us think, if we've captured something about the face-earning process, maybe we can use this same process to boost performance in automatic face recognition," he said. "Basically, we were trying to build a model of familiarity into the machine."

 

In the study, researchers used the web site MyHeritage.com to test their theory. The Web site uses face recognition software called FaceVACS, which is currently being tested at the Sydney Airport. The database at MyHeritage consists of 30,000 photos of celebrities.

ABC News: I Spy: Computers That Recognize Your Face

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Bitter Pill Drug Companies Sued Over Ads

What happens when you release a controversial study...lawsuits...class action lawsuits...and it probably wouldn't be happening if the cost of the drugs were not so expensive...the only way anybody is going to win here is affordable healthcare and drugs...BD  

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) - The makers of popular cholesterol drugs Vytorin and Zetia are being sued in at least four states over allegations that Merck & Co. and Schering-Plough Corp. misled consumers into thinking the drugs were more effective than generic ones. 

The four lawsuits - filed in New Jersey, New York, Florida and Washington state - all seek class-action status. They were filed on behalf of patients and medical insurers who paid for the expensive cholesterol drugs.

ABC News: Bitter Pill: Drug Companies Sued Over Ads

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GE Healthcare Teams With Centrak To Introduce Battery-Based RFID Asset Optimization Solution

RFID is growing and showing up everywhere for tracking and offering time saving solutions.  There's also a new UMPC that has a modular RFID reader that can be attached to work with several RFID systems....read more here... video from CES show from GBM...and posted at the top side of the information column here...more new advances with RFID in Health Care....BD 

GE Healthcare announced a predominantly battery-operated radio frequency ID (RFID) tracking system in partnership with CenTrak, Inc. of Newtown, PA. The new asset optimization solution, an innovative introduction to the marketplace, will enable healthcare facilities to reduce installation barriers and costs, compared to current RFID  systems, thereby serving them to maximize return-on-investment (ROI) potential. In addition, the solution's ability to accurately view locations at the room-level will enhance a hospital's operational efficiency and improve overall patient care.

GE Healthcare Teams With Centrak To Introduce Battery-Based RFID Asset Optimization Solution

CenTrak Web site

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Bono Responds....

Healthcare and poverty go hand in hand....nice work here...and watch how Robert Scoble captures (2nd video below) the recording on Qik below....cell phone hard at work capturing and streaming...no doubt there's some room for this technology somewhere in health care in the future....BD 

  

I mentioned the Davos Conversation YouTube site a few days ago, where anyone can create a YouTube video and answer the question “What one thing do you think that countries, companies or individuals must do to make the world a better place in 2008?” and upload it to the Davos Conversation YouTube site.

http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/01/24/bono-responds-to-the-davos-question/

http://www.qik.com/video/11364

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Microsoft's Big Brother Patent?

 Update:  There's been quite a bit of press lately over this patent request and privacy issues...where and how it will be used if the patent is granted remains to be seen...this is a tongue and cheek response here that in a humorous way makes a few points...from an observer's standpoint this would be great to have this available to see how presidential candidates do when discussing healthcare, you think?  BD 

Government assemblies, like the U.S. Congress. C-SPAN could broadcast  different politicians' life signs, so the people democratic could really see where political leaders really stand on new policies. And if the politician's pulse and blood pressure reaches a certain level that indicates lying, the people could give him or her a little electrical shock. Why, Microsoft biometric monitoring on C-SPAN could make for the ultimate in reality TV.

Microsoft Watch - Corporate - Microsoft's Big Brother Patent?

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Health Providers To Expand IT Adoption in 2008, Study Says

Can't function without it these days....especially in Health Care...and the good news is that higher management is becoming more aware of the ROI and value...BD  

The annual study, called "Provider Clinical Technology Expenditures 2007," found that nearly half of all hospital executive respondents are allocating 40% or more of their technology budget to clinical tools. The study concludes that by the end of 2008, more than 80% of facilities will have invested in applications, such as:

• Computerized physician order entry;
• Digital medical imaging;
• Electronic health records;
• Medication management/electronic prescribing;
• Mobile tools;
• Patient care planning tools;
• Patient documentation; and
• Radio frequency identification devices/drug distribution.

Health Providers To Expand IT Adoption in 2008, Study Says - iHealthBeat

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Blue Cross Blue Shield Calls for E-Prescribing Mandate, More IT Use

One more jumping on the E-prescribing band wagon...and they are also planning on a personal health record plan for members this year as well...BD 

A proposal released Wednesday by the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association to cover 35 million uninsured U.S. residents relies heavily on wider use of health IT, Modern Healthcare reports.
BCBSA's five-point plan cites electronic prescribing as a tool to boost health care quality, reduce medical errors and empower consumers. BCBSA specifically recommended that e-prescribing be mandated under Medicare and that adoption of e-prescribing systems be linked to provider reimbursement.

Blue Cross Blue Shield Calls for E-Prescribing Mandate, More IT Use - iHealthBeat

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Ivanhoe's Medical Breakthroughs - New Treatment for Macular Degeneration

New study taking place...couple years before any real results are known...BD 

HOUSTON, Texas (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Age-related macular degeneration is the leading cause of vision loss in Americans over age 60. There’s no treatment or cure for the most common form of the disease, dry AMD.  "It’s an antioxidant. It’s kind of like an eye drop vitamin," Dr. Brown says.

"I kept going back to the doctor telling him I couldn’t read, I kept saying, 'I can’t read.' I couldn’t read," says Charles Wampler.  Dr. Brown says it will be at least two years before the research and the data show if the drops are effective.

Ivanhoe's Medical Breakthroughs - New Treatment for Macular Degeneration

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FDA Approves Additional Indication For Astellas' MYCAMINE(R)

New treatment for Candidemia fungal infections...BD 

Astellas Pharma Inc. announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved their Supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) seeking approval for the use of MYCAMINE(R) (micafungin sodium) for Injection in the treatment of patients with Candidemia, Acute Disseminated Candidiasis, Candida Peritonitis and Abscesses. MYCAMINE was approved in 2005 for the treatment of patients with esophageal candidiasis and is the only echinocandin approved for the prophylaxis of Candida infections in patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

FDA Approves Additional Indication For Astellas' MYCAMINE(R)

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Doctor Anonymous: Dr. A Show TONIGHT

Join in the discussion, use the embedded link on the site here to participate, located in the right hand column...BD 

Thursday, January 24th, 2008 at 9pm Eastern Time

Join us tonight for Dr. Wes. At the bottom on this post, you'll see an embed from ustream.tv. The last couple of shows, the Internet connection has cut in and out which sometimes interrupts the video stream. We'll see what happens this week.

Doctor Anonymous: Dr. A Show TONIGHT

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End user training – Whose job is it?

Good article about IT training and the employees...goes full circle and discusses every area to including the resistant employee with change...and the fact that it's pretty much a thankless job..BD 

In the grand scheme of things, having end users skillfully use the tools I deploy to do their work better and faster is what makes IT so satisfying. I’m not silly enough to think that every employee is going to do so or is capable of doing so (which is why you employ defensive computing) but my hope is that the vast majority will and maybe one or two might actually thank me for a job well done. The thanks aren’t necessary, but sure are welcome.

» End user training – Whose job is it? | IT Leadership | TechRepublic.com

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30 Minutes - The HMO

One somewhat humorous video about working with an HMO...this is a long video so make sure you have a few extra minutes to view...addressing the points here on how children and seniors are not getting the best deal in town....BD 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70CCHXSXXDA&eurl=http://bravenewfilms.org/blog/26204-30-minutes-the-hmo

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Dannon Sued Over "Probiotic" Bacteria Claims

This one makes no sense...if you don't want it, buy the cheaper product...waste of time and money with this legal action...BD 

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) Jan 24 - A proposed class action filed on Wednesday in California accuses The Dannon Co Inc of mounting a massive false advertising campaign to convince consumers to pay more for yogurt containing "probiotic" bacteria because of the products' health benefits.

The lawsuit, filed in a Los Angeles federal court, said Dannon's own studies failed to support its advertised claims that its Activia, Activia Lite and DanActive were "clinically" and "scientifically" "proven" to have health benefits that other yogurts did not.The lawsuit claims Dannon has spent "far more than $100 million" to convey deceptive messages to U.S. consumers while charging 30 percent more than other yogurt products.

Dannon Sued Over "Probiotic" Bacteria Claims

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London Drunks Get Ride on 'Booze Bus'

The NHS Booze Bus..emergency care in the UK for those who have over indulged with alcohol..saving lives...BD 

ABC News went aboard the Booze Bus, a larger-than-average ambulance that picks up drunk people in central London and can handle as many as five patients at a time. The bus, officially called the Alternative Response Vehicle aka the Vomit Comet, is operated by the British National Health Service and treats only the inebriated.

According to the NHS, every day paramedics answer 125 emergency calls related to alcohol. Each year, 3,000 Britons die of liver cirrhosis.

"We got nothing against people going out, having a few beers, getting merry, getting tipsy," paramedic Brian Hayes told ABC News. "It's when it goes over that limit, from being a social fun thing to a burden on themselves and on society."

"It seems to be a culture in this country that it's fashionable to get drunk. [But] it's a time bomb that is waiting to explode."

ABC News: London Drunks Get Ride on 'Booze Bus'

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Sargramostim Liquid Injection Withdrawn From US Market

January 24, 2008 — The liquid formulation of sargramostim injection (Leukine, Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals) is being withdrawn from the US market, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advised healthcare professionals today.

Reformulation of the product to include edetate disodium (EDTA) has been temporally linked to an upward trend in spontaneous reports of adverse reactions, including syncope, according to an alert sent from MedWatch, the FDA's safety information and adverse event reporting program. These events have not been reported in connection with the lyophilized formulation, which does not contain EDTA.

Sargramostim Liquid Injection Withdrawn From US Market

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Doctors report transplant breakthrough

Secret lies in bone marrow transplants....BD 

LOS ANGELES - In what's being called a major advance in organ transplants, doctors say they have developed a technique that could free many patients from having to take anti-rejection drugs for the rest of their lives.

The treatment involved weakening the patient's immune system, then giving the recipient bone marrow from the person who donated the organ. In one experiment, four of five kidney recipients were off immune-suppressing medicines up to five years later.Eliminating the need for anti-rejection drugs is "a huge advance," said Dr. Suzanne Ildstad, a University of Louisville immunology specialist who had no role in the work.

Doctors have experimented with giving marrow before, during or after organ transplants, while also tinkering with patients' immune systems to prime them to accept the new organs.

Sachs' treatment involved weakening each kidney patient's immune system with intravenous drugs several days before the transplant. After the transplant, the patient got an infusion of marrow from the donor to create a new immune system.

"There's reason to hope these patients will be off drugs

Doctors report transplant breakthrough - Yahoo! News

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2007 Medical Weblog Awards

Congratulations to Mr. Levy....a busy Hospital CEO who takes the time to blog and make a difference.  I like what he has to say as well and admire the true efforts of bringing transparency to healthcare...and giving us a lot of insight from the top level...something we all value...and besides that he has a good sense of humor too as you can see by reading his blog:)...BD 

BEST MEDICAL BLOG:

 Running a Hospital, the blog by Paul Levy, CEO of Beth Israel-Deaconess in Boston, Massachusetts. Levy has lifted the veil on hospital administration at one of the world's premier institutions -- he writes openly about his salary, his hospital's infection rates, controversial partnerships and upcoming plans. His candor and openness, and willingness to respond to commenters and critics has inspired readers and bloggers alike. Alone among an excellent field of nominees, Running a Hospital is a blog that might actually change the way healthcare works in this country. For this reason, and many more, readers have chosen Paul Levy's site as the Best Medical Blog.

2007 Medical Weblog Awards Sponsored by ScrubsGallery.com: Meet the Winners! - Medgadget - www.medgadget.com

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Who Killed Marcus Welby?

This office is trying something different in Washington, called Qliance...taking insurance out of the loop for standard office visits and billing....no insurance required...an organized boutique office it appears...BD 

What happened to the old family doctor so wonderfully represented by Marcus Welby?

Insurance killed him. 

Today's insurance reimbursement process is an impediment to the delivery of affordable, patient-centered primary care. To get paid, your doctor has to meticulously track everything he does—and why—then navigate an incredibly complex system of billing codes that is prone to error. He'll have to negotiate and resubmit charges when the insurance carrier denies payment, which it often does. And when he finally gets paid for your visit, he'll get a low contract rate—about $50–$70 in Seattle. It's no wonder that today's primary-care doctor has to see so many patients each day just to make ends meet.

Who Killed Marcus Welby? - Features - The Stranger, Seattle's Only Newspaper

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Employers put health coverage in workers' hands

I have spoken myself with several small employers and all of them would love to be relieved of the responsibility...as there's more than just cost as you have administrative time to add to the process as well....BD 

Nick Trikolas plans to drop health insurance for his employees and give them money to buy their own coverage. He says doing so will put him in the vanguard of a movement by employers searching for answers to rising health costs.

"This may be the future of health insurance," says Trikolas, CEO of Ilios Partners in Chicago, which plans to switch its 100 employees from group to individual coverage this year.

As health insurance costs continue to rise, some employers are adopting a controversial new approach: ending group coverage and giving employees $50 to $200 or so a month to help them buy their own.

"It was certainly a blow," Berneche says. "The choice was having the health plan we had or going out of business."

After he canceled the group plan, he heard about Pilzer's program and signed on. Cardinal puts $100 to $200 a month into each employee's health reimbursement account.

Employers put health coverage in workers' hands - USATODAY.com

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Health changes matter more to US Democrats

I would guess that is why the SCHIP bill was vetoed a second time....BD

BOSTON, Jan 23 (Reuters) - Only half as many Republicans as Democrats want to expand health insurance coverage for the uninsured, according to a survey in states holding early contests to choose party candidates for the U.S. presidential election.
"There are huge differences between Republicans and Democrats on what should be done to improve health care," said Robert Blendon of the Harvard School of Public Health and the chief author of the survey, which was conducted in early November.

Health changes matter more to US Democrats - study | Reuters

Democratic congressional leaders modified the bill, tightening rules to exclude illegal immigrants, adding incentives for states to drop families earning more than three times the poverty level, and forcing adults out of the program more quickly. But the second bill attracted even fewer Republican votes, and Bush vetoed it again.Yesterday's defeat was expected, but Democrats said they will not give up. "This won't be your last opportunity this year to address this issue," House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.) told fellow lawmakers.

Related Story:  http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/23/AR2008012302020.html?hpid=moreheadlines

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Neurosurgeon shares a story of unimaginable survival on National Geographic show

Interesting story on how she awoke during surgery and was clinically "dead", or supposed to be...BD 

The surgical procedure is called hypothermic arrest, though many use its nickname "standstill." Developed by cardiac surgeons in the 1960s, the surgery can be used to remove some previously inoperable brain aneurysms.

Once Reynolds's aneurysm was cauterized and clipped, the bypass pump was restarted. When her body temperature was high enough, Spetzler had to shock Reynolds' heart twice before it began beating again on its own. Then the patient — in a drug-induced coma — woke up on the operating table.

"I'll never forget it because they were playing the title cut from 'Hotel California' — 'You can check out anytime you like but you can never leave.' I told Dr. Greene I thought that was terribly insensitive. He looked like he swallowed a mouse and said, 'You need to sleep more, dear.'"

She was physiologically dead. No brain wave activity, no heartbeat, nothing. No blood inside her body of any consequence. She was dead.

Appleton Post-Crescent: Your Fox Cities News Source - Local neurosurgeon shares a story of unimaginable survival on National Geographic show

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NY doctor charged with taking mom's cash

NEW YORK - A physician was charged Wednesday with stealing his 94-year-old mother's life savings of more than $800,000 and leaving her virtually impoverished.

Motz, who lives on the Upper East Side with his third wife, is an internist who practices in Englewood, N.J., and has admitting privileges at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in Manhattan.Minnie Motz, a retired librarian, was mentally alert but had some physical ailments, Morgenthau said. He said Motz told his mother he was using her power of attorney — the legal right to make decisions for her — to consolidate her bank accounts to aid him in paying her bills

Motz' mother learned of her financial predicament when her Upper West Side co-op levied a special assessment to cover the cost of rebuilding a retaining wall which had collapsed and she was unable to pay it. With Minnie Motz facing eviction, the building's management called a social worker who contacted the district attorney's Elder Abuse Unit. That unit started an immediate investigation, Morgenthau said.

NY doctor charged with taking mom's cash - Yahoo! News

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Hospital system adopts Cerner software

Another hospital chain going electronic...BD 

Cerner Corp., which has been bucking downward stock market trends, continued its recent momentum by announcing a new contract Wednesday.

The North Kansas City-based health care information technology company (Nasdaq: CERN) reported that MedStar Health, the largest health system in the Baltimore/Washington region, will implement Cerner Millennium software programs at all seven of its hospitals. 

The hospitals serve more than 147,000 inpatients and 1.5 million outpatients a year.

Hospital system adopts Cerner software - Kansas City Business Journal:

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Ron Springs' wife sues surgeon, anesthesiologist

Kidney transplant...and then anesthesia problems with another procedure to remove a cyst from his arm created the problem and put him in a coma...suit claims the anesthesiologist did not adequately review his medical history...BD 

Adriane Springs, the wife of former Dallas Cowboys running back Ron Springs, has filed a medical malpractice suit against an anesthesiologist and plastic surgeon who performed surgery on her husband.

Springs, who had been suffering from type 2 diabetes, underwent a kidney transplant in February 2007, with the organ being donated by his former Cowboys teammate Everson Walls, a donation that garnered widespread media attention. Springs' body responded well to the transplant, and he was taken off dialysis.

Ron Springs' wife sues surgeon, anesthesiologist - Dallas Business Journal:

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Obagi Medical Products Introduces the New ELASTIderm Decolletage System

Obtained only via a physician...new treatment for wrinkles and skin spots...BD

LONG BEACH, Calif., Jan. 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Obagi Medical Products, Inc. , a leader in topical aesthetic and therapeutic skin health systems, today announced the introduction of ELASTIderm(TM) Decolletage System. Formulated with a unique combination of ingredients, it is the only system designed to treat mottled hyperpigmentation, including age spots and freckles, while reducing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles by replenishing elasticity and building collagen on the chest and neck area (also known as decolletage).

The ELASTIderm(TM) Decolletage System is the newest addition to the trusted ELASTIderm family of physician-dispensed skincare products.

Obagi Medical Products Introduces the New ELASTIderm Decolletage System

WebSite:  http://www.obagi.com/article/forphysicians/obagielastiderm/science/elastiderm.html

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Hospital industry may hit rough patch, Moody's warns

Same problem the doctors are having...getting the someone to pay the bill...BD 

The nations hospitals, which have enjoyed steady and even improving finances in recent years, could see some rough times ahead, according to a new report.
New York-based Moody Investors Service, which provides financial ratings and evaluates debt of the nations nonprofit hospitals, said its stable outlook for 2008 will be less certain in 2009 and 2010 should the economy take a turn for the worse.

More hospitals are turning to mergers and acquisitions as a way to gain economies of scale and clout with health insurance companies who pay for hospital medical services in the face of increasing numbers of uninsured patients who cannot pay their medical bills. In addition, hospitals are looking at mergers and other strategic initiatives as a way to raise cash to expand and upgrade facilities.

Hospital industry may hit rough patch, Moody's warns -- chicagotribune.com

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Man allegedly offers cop $5 and Oxycotin for a hit

I would think the only hit man one could get would be one with an Oxycotin addiction...BD 

INDEPENDENCE, Mo. - An man is accused of offering an undercover officer $5 and 90 pills of the painkiller Oxycotin to kill a woman.

According to court documents, Macklin's roommate called police after he repeatedly asked her to kill the girlfriend of a man with whom he once had a relationship. The roommate said Macklin wanted the girlfriend out of the way so the men could be together.  Macklin was arrested Tuesday night after he reportedly gave the officer $5 as a down payment.

Man allegedly offers cop $5 for hit - Yahoo! News

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Spray-On Condoms Ready for Production

The project was announced last year and now it looks like it's coming to market soon...BD 

We live in an era of safe sex (at least if you choose to practice it). We also live in an era of high-tech fixes for low-tech problems. Voice-recognizing GPS devices; guitars that tune themselves; a force feedback suit for boxing -- all interesting but not totally necessary. Now, a fancy spray-on replacement for the venerable condom is nearly ready for production.

 

The first is cost: The applicator will set you back around $35, with subsequent refills (providing 10-20 applications) costing about $10.

Spray-On Condoms Ready for Production - Switched: Gadgets, Tech, Digital Stuff for the Rest of Us

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Wi-Fi Detector Shirt - Interesting mobility companion

Interesting new apparel..are you a busy mobile physician with a need to connect to the web...and don't have time to take out your tablet to view wireless connectivity...well here's one way to do it....wear it...BD

Glowing animated shirt dynamically displays the current wi-fi signal strength.

Shows signal strength for 802.11b or 802.11g

Black 100% Cotton T-Shirt 

Animated Decal is Removable (with hook and loop fasteners) for Easy Washing

Battery Pack is Concealed in a Small Pocket Sewn Inside the Shirt

Runs for hours off three AAA Batteries (not included)

ThinkGeek :: Wi-Fi Detector Shirt

Hat Tip:  http://www.gizmag.com/wi-fi-detector-t-shirt/8698/

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Stryker to recall hip surgery product

FDA states some patients have had to combat with follow up surgeries, and asked the complaints from patients be addressed....US manufacturing does not seem to be indicated, devices made in Cork, Ireland is the subject of the recall...BD 

KALAMAZOO, Mich. (Map, News) - Medical device maker Stryker Corp. said Tuesday it will voluntarily recall certain hip surgery products, a week after it received a warning from regulators.

The company is recalling Trident PSL and Hemispherical Acetabular Cups that were made in its Cork, Ireland plant. Stryker, whose orthopedics division is based in Mahwah, N.J., said there are no safety issues for patients who received these products, based on expert opinion. Last week, the Food and Drug Administration ordered Kalamazoo-based Stryker to fix a host of long-standing problems in its manufacturing of hip replacement parts that have triggered multiple patient complaints and forced some to have follow-up surgeries.

Mich-based Stryker to recall hip surgery product - Examiner.com

Related story:  http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/569089?src=rss

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Parents sue Fort Worth hospital after baby's body sent to laundry

Now how did this happen?  BD 

FORT WORTH – The parents of a newborn who died at a Fort Worth hospital are suing the medical center after the baby’s corpse was accidentally sent to a laundry.

Kourtney McGee and Milburn Robinson filed the lawsuit Tuesday in Tarrant County against Huguley Memorial Medical Center. According to the suit, the couple’s son, Jacob Robinson, died last July shortly after his premature birth. While making funeral arrangements, the couple learned that Jacob’s body had been misplaced. 

The body had been collected with the laundry and sent to a commercial laundry facility, the lawsuit said.

Parents sue Fort Worth hospital after baby's body sent to laundry | Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | Dallas-Fort Worth News | Dallas Morning News

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Health IT Personnel Shortage Hampers EHR Adoption

I have a few comments on this topic....from personal experience for the most part...many don't want to deal with it and the changes it requires on how an office or hospital does business...those who have put off introducing any type of new technology have it the worst...if you have a good health care IT person as your disposal...use them!  There's a new specialty arising from health care and that is the IT health care specialist...one that handles and communicates with health care in a way different from the standard business of IT...as health care has many specific needs and concerns that are not always addressed by general IT staff members and consultants....and the needs go way beyond just electronic records...BD    

A shortage of health IT personnel is hindering widespread adoption of electronic health records, mainly because job classifications for health IT professionals have not been clearly established, a federal working group on EHRs said Tuesday, Technology Daily reports.
The working group's conclusion sparked HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt to ask the American Health Information Community to identify job classifications and the credentials required for those classifications within the next 364 days. Leavitt said the health IT work force shortfall was a problem six or seven years ago and remains an issue.

Health IT Personnel Shortage Hampers EHR Adoption - iHealthBeat

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WellPoint Fourth-Quarter Profit Rises 7 Percent

Another one with big profits...BD

NEW YORK (Reuters) Jan 23 - Health insurer WellPoint Inc Wednesday posted a 7 percent rise in quarterly profit, helped by membership gains and administrative cost savings, but said medical costs were higher than expected for some of its plans.

Investors were poised to focus on a key profitability gauge that showed medical costs ate into premium revenue more than expected, analysts said, a day after a similar report from rival UnitedHealth Group sent health-insurer shares down broadly,

"As with ( UnitedHealth) yesterday, we expect investor reaction will not be favorable," Goldman Sachs analyst Matthew Borsch said in a research note.

WellPoint Fourth-Quarter Profit Rises 7 Percent

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St. Jude Medical Announces FDA and European CE Mark Approval of the QuickFlex Family of Leads

St. Jude Medical, Inc. (NYSE:STJ) today announced U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and European CE Mark approval of the QuickFlex(TM) family of left-heart leads to treat heart failure patients.
The QuickFlex leads, used in CRT (cardiac resynchronization therapy), feature shorter tip and ring electrodes (used to conduct energy), reducing the length of the lead's rigid portions. The concept behind the shorter electrodes is that it may help the lead through bends in the heart's venous system that characterize the left side of the heart. This could enable physicians to better maneuver the lead to the optimal position for therapy.

St. Jude Medical Announces FDA and European CE Mark Approval of the QuickFlex Family of Leads - Forbes.com

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Liability Insurer Offers Credits to Doctors Who Adopt EHR Systems

Another good reason for thinking about making the change...$$...BD 

MHA Insurance will offer premium credits to physicians who use electronic health records certified by the Certification Commission for Healthcare IT, Health IT Strategist reports.
There is a "growing body" of research that indicates physicians who use EHRs have better patient safety, Karol Wareck, group vice president of the Risk Management and Patient Safety Institute at FinCor Holdings, said. MHA Insurance is a subsidiary under the holding company. Wareck added that the initiative is "positive encouragement" because it supports physicians who are trying to advance patient safety.

Liability Insurer Offers Credits to Doctors Who Adopt EHR Systems - iHealthBeat

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Wal-Mart Is Piloting E-Health Record System - Wal-Mart

The Dossia e-health program once again...with all the legal battles and other issues that have plagued this program...not to mention being backed by a major insurer...well I think there are other potential programs that could help the consumer...there's still a big issue here with privacy and how soon before the records are no longer private...better to take things in to your own hands with a plan not involving and funding from the insurers...my opinion only...look for a PHR...BD 

Wal-Mart has begun rolling out personal electronic health records to a handful of employees as part of a plan to eventually provide more than a million of the retailer's workers and their dependents with digitized health records.

The rollout by Wal-Mart is part of a larger project announced more than a year ago by Dossia, a coalition that includes Wal-Mart and several other large employers, including Intel (NSDQ: INTC), British Petroleum, Pitney Bowes, Cardinal Health, Applied Materials (NSDQ: AMAT), AT&T (NYSE: T), and Sanofi-Aventis.

Dossia is partnering with Children's Hospital Boston in developing the e-health system, which is based on Indivo, a scalable, secure, open-source personal health record system that Children's Hospital built in 1998 for its patients.

Wal-Mart Is Piloting E-Health Record System -- Wal-Mart -- InformationWeek

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Hospital Fair Pricing Program...New Law in California for Reporting

Search for a hospital policy by name or location to view it's discounting program for pricing...this is a result of a law prohibiting hospitals from charging low to moderate income patients more than the highest rates charged by Medicare or any other government payment program listed at the hospital...50 hospitals have not submitted policies yet...most of the hospitals who have not submitted are in southern California...BD 

If you are uninsured or have high healthcare costs, you may be eligible for free or discounted hospital care. California law requires every hospital to offer reduced rates to many uninsured and underinsured patients that are low-and moderate-income, and to have policies about who qualifies for free care.

With some exceptions, you could qualify for free or discounted care if:

1. Your income is below 350% of the Federal Poverty Level (currently about $36,000 per year for one person or about $72,000 per year for a family of four) AND
2. You do not have health insurance of any kind, or you have health insurance or coverage, but your medical costs are more than 10% of your family’s income in the last year.

Additionally, some hospitals offer discounts to people with incomes higher than 350% of the Federal Poverty Level. Also, note that rural hospitals may set eligibility standards below 350% of the Federal Poverty Level. It is important to read the hospital's policy and application to determine whether or not you qualify for the program.

Fair Pricing Search Page

Related Story:  http://www.ihealthbeat.org/articles/2008/1/23/California-Site-Lets-Users-Compare-Hospital-Discount-Policies.aspx

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Heart Disease, Stroke-Related Deaths Down in U.S.

Research and technology are paying off and the cardiologists and family practice MDs are making it happen...BD  

Death rates in the United States from heart disease and stroke are in the biggest and fastest decline ever recorded. A staggering 160,000 lives have been saved in just six years.

New data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that deaths in the United States from heart disease and stroke are down about 25 percent since 1999. "We knew we were making incremental progress, but the magnitude of the change we see here is really surprising," Dr. Dan Jones of the American Heart Association said.

ABC News: Heart Disease, Stroke-Related Deaths Down in U.S.

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St. Jude Medical Announces FDA Approval Of Next Generation Internet-Based Data Management System For Implantable Cardiac Devices, USA

Nice, and also can be exported to an Electronic Medical Records system...a system for gathering and working with data from cardiac devices....the interactive tutorial on the site walks you through every step...BD

St. Jude Medical, Inc. (NYSE:STJ) announced U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of software and firmware updates to the Merlin.net Patient Care Network (PCN). The new Merlin.net PCN 2.5 will expand availability of the system nationwide and provide physicians with improved options for remotely monitoring their  patients with the most commonly-used St. Jude Medical implantable cardiac devices.

This screen shows adding a clinical comment to the patient chart. 

St. Jude Medical Announces FDA Approval Of Next Generation Internet-Based Data Management System For Implantable Cardiac Devices, USA

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FDA Approves New HIV Drug For Marketing

FDA on Friday announced that etravirine tablets have been for marketing as a treatment for HIV infection in adults, approved following a priority review.
The drug, which will be marketed by Tibotec Therapeutics Corporation as Intelence, is for adult patients with HIV infections who have failed treatment using other available antiretrovirals.

FDA Approves New HIV Drug For Marketing

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Pa. Won't Pay for Hospital Glitches

Jumping ahead of even the Medicare laws that come in to play later this year, this is for Medicaid patients and thus far is the only state to initiate a new policy reflecting the change.  BD

Hospitals that treat low-income Medicaid patients covered under fee-for-service programs will have to absorb the cost of avoidable mistakes such as operating on the wrong body part or patient, failing to prevent patients from killing or seriously harming themselves, and discharging an infant to the wrong person.

"We believe it is another milestone in improving the quality of care," Public Welfare Secretary Estelle Richman said at a Capitol news conference.

Pa. Won't Pay for Hospital Glitches | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle

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Major Healthcare ISV Catches the Wave with Windows Media Center and Xbox 360 Solution

 Dr. Crounse from Microsoft updates us and gives some more of the inside scoop on the X-Box and how it is making it's way in to hospitals....I had a conversation the other evening with a physician and we somehow got on the subject and one quick comment made was "What hospital is that?  I might think about applying to be on staff there as well!"  Could we be on to something new here, X-Box privileges...the surgeons are already scoring with Wii...does this hold any water in attracting new physicians to be on staff?  All kidding aside the X-Box is appearing to be a nice addition to the hospitals...and I did a search just of my own blog on articles I have included relative to the X-Box and came up with a few stories as well from which you can read here...There's also a link to a news station video at his Health blog that will give a few more details and show it being used by a patient.  BD 

"Previously on HealthBlog I told you about some terrific work being done at Arkansas Children's Hospital to improve the patient experience for hospitalized children.  The hospital's own IT staff had developed a bedside information, communication, and entertainment center based on Microsoft Windows Media Center and Xbox 360.  The solution is now being implemented hospital-wide."

HealthBlog : Major Healthcare ISV Catches the Wave with Windows Media Center and Xbox 360 Solution

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Hopkins Hospital to begin implanting AbioCor replacement hearts

3 additional hospitals are slated to begin surgical procedures as well....the replacement heart is for patients with no hope of a transplant and expectations are around 4,000 patients a year to receive the units...BD 

Johns Hopkins Hospital is one of four sites selected to begin implanting the AbioCor Implantable Replacement Heart in patients. The heart was developed by Abiomed Inc.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has given Humanitarian Device Exemption approval to the AbioCor, which is intended to replace a severely damaged human heart in patients who are not eligible for a transplant and have no other treatment alternative.

Such patients would otherwise die of heart failure.

Abiomed expects to charge $250,000 per AbioCor unit in a controlled roll out at up to five U.S. centers.

Hopkins Hospital to begin implanting AbioCor replacement hearts - Baltimore Business Journal:

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230 retailers affected by data breach after tape lost

Data breach story of the week..."The missing backup tape was unencrypted."..enough said?...GE Money could be used to finance other small business items such as a large software purchase too...thus far it states only retailers and hopefully it's limited to one identifiable group..BD 

January 20, 2008 (IDG News Service) -- A backup tape containing credit card information from hundreds of U.S. retailers is missing, forcing the company responsible for the data to warn customers that they may become the targets of data fraud.

GE Money USA, which manages in-store credit programs for many U.S. retailers, first realized that the tape was missing from an Iron Mountain Inc. storage facility in October, said Richard Jones, a company spokesman. "We were informed that one of the tapes could not be located. But at the same time, there was no record of it ever having been checked out," he said.

The tape contained in-store credit card information on 650,000 retail customers, including those of J.C. Penney Co., he said. GE Money employees were also affected by the breach. Although J.C. Penney was the only company that Jones would confirm as affected by the missing tape, that retailer accounts for just a small percentage of all accounts that were compromised. In total, 230 retailers are affected by the breach. "Clearly, that number includes many of the national retail organizations," he said.

230 retailers affected by data breach after tape lost

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Diabetes Solution May Lie Under the Knife

Update...and why are we still doing staples when banding is less expensive and the odds of complications appear to be less?  BD 

CHICAGO (AP) - A new study gives the strongest evidence yet that obesity surgery can cure diabetes.  Most of the surgery patients were able to stop taking diabetes drugs and achieve normal blood tests.  Blood tests showed diabetes remission in 22 of the 29 surgery patients after two years. In the standard-care group, only four of the 26 patients achieved that goal. The patients who lost the most weight were the most likely to eliminate their diabetes.

Patients who had surgery to reduce the size of their stomachs were five times more likely to see their diabetes disappear over the next two years than were patients who had standard diabetes care, according to Australian researchers.  The patients had stomach band surgery, a procedure more common in Australia than in the United States, where gastric bypass surgery, or stomach stapling, predominates.

The death rate for stomach band surgery, which can cost $17,000 to $20,000, is about 1 in 1,000. There were only minor complications in the study. Stomach stapling has a 2 percent death rate and costs $20,000 to $30,000.

ABC News: Diabetes Solution May Lie Under the Knife

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New Option: Day Care for Aging Parents

One also added benefit could be the social side of things too, as one would be be alone all day long in the house if everyone is working....BD 

At 8:30 a.m. Camillia Bell heads off to work, but first she makes a stop at day care. It's not a child she is dropping off. It's her mother, Geraldine.

Like millions of Americans, Bell has experienced the heartbreak of witnessing her once-independent mom suffer a stroke and develop Alzheimer's disease.  And Bell, like many others, found the cost of full-time care prohibitive.  Word of mouth is important. Ask friends and neighbors or go online. Click here for helpful Web sites.

"She required 24-hour assistance, but when we checked into the cost for in-house care it was astronomical," Bell said. "I work full time. Most of my siblings live out of state."  Approximately 400,000 elderly Americans now attend adult day care and the demand is growing, according to the National Adult Day Services Association.

ABC News: New Option: Day Care for Aging Parents

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Surgeons Perform Better After Playing Wii

Update and continued interest in with the Wii, how about a nice friendly competition match between Beth Israel Medical Center in Massachusetts and Good Samaritan Medical Center in Arizona? All the recent reports and articles posted sure seem to indicate that it might not be a bad idea for hospitals to invest in a couple of these...in the doctor's lounge perhaps?  Could get some stress relief and gain some skills at the same time..and if it improves the skills of the surgeons, I'm all for it...BD 

You might think it a bad idea for trainee surgeons to play games on the Nintendo Wii when they should be studying, but it might be time well spent.

Kanav Kahol and Marshall Smith of the Banner Good Samaritan Medical Center in Phoenix, Arizona, have found that surgical residents performed better during simulated surgery after playing on the Wii console. They put it down to the console's novel "Wiimote" control system, which allows players to direct on-screen action using a wireless wand that detects acceleration in three dimensions.  James Rosser of Beth Israel Medical Center in New York had previously found that video games can also improve the dexterity crucial to performing minimally invasive surgery (Archives of Surgery, vol 142, p 18).

The researchers also found that some games - such as Marble Mania, in which the player guides a marble through a 3D obstacle course - are especially good because players must use small, precise movements of the wand. Others were less useful: "You don't gain a lot from swinging an imaginary tennis racket," says Kahol.

ABC News: Surgeons Perform Better After Playing Wii

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'Dark field' X-rays reveal bodies in new detail

No question here on the quality, but not ready for prime time use yet...BD 

A set of simple silicon filters could dramatically improve the quality of X-ray images produced in hospitals and at airport checkpoints.  The team adapted a technique known as dark-field microscopy, which is normally used by biologists to get a clearer view of cells under a light microscope.

The technique provides a more detailed picture of fractured bone and could help airport security scanners distinguish plastic explosives from harmless substances.  Although the process means exposing the subject to a higher total dose of radiation, Pfeiffer says this can be justified in some circumstances.

X-ray images normally reveal the way different materials, including body tissue, absorb X-ray radiation. Strongly absorbing areas are white and weakly absorbing ones black. But finer details are often lost in a fog caused by areas with intermediate radiation-absorbing ability.  The technique is not yet ready for deployment in hospitals as it only works with relatively low-intensity X-rays.

'Dark field' X-rays reveal bodies in new detail - tech - 21 January 2008 - New Scientist Tech

Hat Tip:  Engadget

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CMS to check hospitals for HIPAA security compliance

As the article states, those who have complaints on file could be the first to incur an audit...the advent of the HIPAA police...have the documents ready and if you are paperless, this will be a much easier task all the way around...but make sure the security is there and locked down, and having paper records may not be a buy out either as we read stories about folks dumping paper records all the time as well...if employees are using portable USB devices and have patient related material on portable computers, this is one of the first items it appears that will be addressed...and the results will be posted on the web for all to see...BD 

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will begin on-site reviews of hospitals’ compliance with security rules mandated by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996. 
CMS officials said at a workshop on HIPAA security yesterday that they expect to review 10 to 20 hospitals in the next nine months.
Until now, the agency has focused on outreach and education to promote compliance with the rules, said Tony Trenkle, director of CMS’ Office of E-health Standards and Services. After the reviews, CMS will publish the results and the lessons learned about data security issues in organizations that have individuals’ health information.

Remote access to data and use of portable storage devices are among the issues that CMS will review

CMS to check hospitals for HIPAA security compliance

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