HealthGrades And Other MD Rating and Referral Sites List “Dead Doctors” on Their MD Information Pages And Even Include the Insurance Plans the “Dead Doctors” Honor

This just goes to show you can’t really believe every thing you read on the web.  I came across this by accident when doing some searches relative to the Medical Quack.  I went to an obgyn doctor for many years and was very happy with her and would still be a patient today except for the fact that she unfortunately passed away from breast cancer. 

These sites are supposed to “rate and “help” people but I am not convinced how valuable they are when I see my former physician who has been dead for around 6 years still listed and according to the site, she takes HealthNet.  You can read on the site about the focus on helping hospitals with marketing and other software and management areas of business.  I guess they are too busy marketing to look for a little bit of accuracy here with the physicians they provide information for.  Marketing captures all today.  I did call her old phone number out of curiosity and it said it had been disconnected so goodness forbid that phone number being given out to anyone else here, they would kill the phone company with all the wrong numbers due to a listing as such.

Not too long ago we had a story in the news how the City of Buffalo paid over 2 million dollars worth of health insurance premiums on “dead employees” and I can’t believe there was no follow to see if these “dead employees” had their annual mammogram screenings, etc. and the premiums continued to be collected, so much for check and balances and now they may not be able to get the money back.

City of Buffalo Has Paid Over $2 Million to Provide Health Insurance for Hundreds of Dead People-Some as Many as 4 Years

It appears you can die and never make it out of some systems.  Back on course here this is a haven for crooks who might be mining data too, so the danger in not updating is there. 

Someone should think about investing in the Social Security Data base Death Index to cross reference as it only cost a few hundred dollars. 

Within the last month or so a big Private Equity firm just bought these folks too so they might want to get some of these issues in order.

Health Grades Hospital/Provider Rating Service Purchased by Private Equity Firm

Subsidiary Watch – The private equity firm of Vestar has over 7 billion in assets and under management.  There are several healthcare companies already included in their portfolio and the combination of information data bases and business structures could be right around the corner.  We are seeing business models connecting industries and companies that in the past would have never worked together but the big change today is that they all have “data” to work with, exchange and query for business intelligence type decisions that will lead to bigger profits by using algorithms to calculate. 

Now these folks of course are in the marketing business and recently on their page they listed all the press stories and again there are some big papers listed like Forbes, The LA Times, and more; how credible is all this information I ask and how often do they review it.  How accurate is it for the hospitals they rate too I wonder?

Now after I finished with their page I checked out a few other sites and I am guessing they may make a few dollars on reselling their data base, either that or these other sites use the same old outdated data. Here’s some examples below on the same “dead doctor”.  You can click on each image and go right to the page and perhaps these folks will clean up their act too.  Outside of the data area, it’s just disrespectful as well to have this linger. 

I left the best here for last as she’s listed on TrialsCentral.org too so perhaps she can come up out from the grave and participate with some clinical trials too.

Recently the company put out a list of the 10 deadliest hospitals, well maybe after this post we can look forward to the “mostly dead” doctors? (grin).  I tried to see if I could find the “Do Not Pay List” yet and it’s not out yet from the government.

The Creation of a “Do Not Pay List” Announced by Government – Will Help Keep those MDs in the Grave from Cashing In

We do need that for cases like this where criminal minds can locate information to use for fraud.

Probe finds dead doctors used in Medicare Scam

The post below explains a bit about why fraud is not more actively pursued as there are very profitable transaction fees that make big money, Bravo was one HMO that made a billion in profit last year for an example and was projecting twice that amount for this year and was just bought by an insurance company.

Two Florida Business Men–Medicare Fraud For Billing for Penis Pumps for Female and Male Patients–Lot of Transaction Money Made And Who’s Running the Algorithms for Profit?

Again I am not a big fan of ratings but the pages can be useful when look for addresses and phone numbers.  After seeing the lack of attention here on doctors I would hesitate myself to put a lot of stock into ratings and other information.  I didn’t think of it but perhaps I should have looked for “dead hospitals” too.

When we live in the world of data, data and more data today and as consumers are always assumed that they have the correct data all the time, think again and don’t believe everything you read out there. 

These dead doctors and deal patients of late certainly seem to be creating a lot of issues, they die in life but their data seems to live on forever. 

I hope with this example I was able to open a few ears here and again be careful about what ratings you read as they could be skewed with fiduciary data, with that dead data offering less than what you might expect.  BD

HealthGrades - Guiding America to Better Healthcare

Technorati Tags: HealthGrades,data bases,health insurance,human resources,tech denial,infrastrucure,lazy,employer insurance

HealthGrades,data bases,health insurance,human resources,tech denial,infrastrucure,lazy,employer insurance

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HMOS….It’s When Some Clown in A Suit Tells Your Doctor What They Can and Cannot Do For You (Image)

This just struck me kind of funny today as it was something sent to me via email but darn if it is not getting close to the truth!  BD

Technorati Tags: HMO,hospitals,clowns,healthcare,managed care,humor

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Hot Flashes Coming To Washington D.C. - Controversial New Film About Menopause, “Hot Flash Havoc”- Exclusive Premier Screening–September 28th - Men are Invited

Last week I had the opportunity to talk with Heidi Houston -  the Executive Producer of Hot Flash Havoc and what a conversation we had.  Today I just received a copy to view and review on the Medical Quack.  Last week I posted one of the trailers with an article regarding Wyeth and the Ghostwriters.  Now the Hot Flashes are making their way to Washington DC for a special premier and Hollywood will follow later.  This is an educational film that was created for the sole purpose of brining this awareness to light on what menopause is to further the development and research of women’s health. 

Wyeth Used and Paid Ghostwriters to Downplay the Harm of Hormone Replacement Therapy After the Women’s Health Initiative–New HRT Documentary Hot Flash Havoc

Of course, Heidi and myself talked about the subject, as we are both women who have experience in this area, not by choice I might say but there are answers and choices, what the film is all about, education so women can make the right decisions when it comes to doctors, treatments, and health.  There will be an official write up after viewing the film out on the Quack before the September 28th viewing in Washington DC.  I’ll talk about the file and my discussions with Heidi Houston.  BD 

Press Release:  “Where Sex in the City ends, Hot Flash Havoc begins”

Washington, D.C. takes a break from business as usual with the premier of a controversial new film on menopause; Hot Flash Havoc.

(Los Angeles) September 8, 2010 –Phyllis Greenberger, executive director for the Society for Women¹s Health Research (http://www.swhr.org), has forged a new partnership between health advocates and the world of entertainment.  In honor of National Menopause Awareness Month, Ms. Greenberger is joining forces with the filmmakers of the controversial new documentary; Hot Flash Havoc (www.hotflashhavoc.com).  A premier screening will be held on September 28, 2010, at Burke Theatre in Washington D.C. at 6:30p.m. 

Several of the film’s nationally recognized experts including Alan Altman, MD, Pamela Peeke, MD and Susan Wysocki, RNC head of the National Association of Nurse Practitioners will gather immediately after the screening for an informative discussion on the film’s key issues.

Hot Flash Havoc encourages everyone, including the experts, to break the silence of modern culture, speak up and reveal the truth that has remained shrouded in mystery for far too long.   Hot Flash Havoc is the definitive voice on menopause delivering this message of truth  and enlightenment to the nearly 1.6 billion perimenopausal or menopausal women around the world.  Washington D.C. health care providers along with policy makers will be offered the very first look. 

The film is circumventing a Hollywood release and instead is going directly into the hands of women¹s health advocates, care givers and policy makers in Washington D.C.  These are the stakeholders who can make the difference and increase educational access on a national level.  The grassroots initiative has already started and the Havoc has only just begun.

The Society for Women’s Health Research is breaking the rules by using this movie as a tool to reach men and women alike with the hope of making a difference on this important issue through research, health policy and media exposure.

Warner Brother’s famed blockbuster, “Sex in the City 2” took menopause out of the closet and onto the screen.  Hot Flash Havoc goes one step further shedding light on a decade of misguided facts, conveying poignant personal stories and providing the truth about women’s options. The film addresses the challenges of making empowering choices in the “Second Act” of a woman’s life in an entertaining and enlightening way.  It’s a hard, fast, funny and compassionate exploration of women in menopause at all ages and stages of life.

“Remember as one doctor said – this is not a solo journey. Whatever is happening to her is happening to you, so you better hope it’s pleasant,” said Heidi Houston - Executive Producer of Hot Flash Havoc.

About Society For Women’s Health Research:

The Society for Women’s Health Research (SWHR), a national non-profit organization based in Washington DC, led by Phyllis E. Greenberger is the only organization that dedicates it’s monies and resources for women’s health research specifically through education and research.  It is widely recognized as the thought leader in research on sex differences and is dedicated to improving women’s health through advocacy, education, and research.

About Dr. Altman:

President Of The International Society for The Study of Women's Sexual  Health (ISSWSH), Formerly Assistant Clinical Professor, Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Biology, Harvard  Medical School, Specialist in Menopause & Female Sexual Function, Aspen, CO. Author of Making Love The Way We Used To…or Better; Secrets To Satisfying Midlife Sexuality and The Betrayal of American Women; Don’t Throw Away Those Hormones So Quickly.

About Susan Wysocki:

President and CEO of the National Association of Nurse Practitioners in Women’s Health (NPWH). She is a woman’s health nurse practitioner and a nationally recognized speaker, writer, and opinion leader in the field of women’s health. Ms. Wysocki is also the editor of Women’s Health Care: A Practical Journal for Nurse Practitioners and Clinical Challenges in Women’s Health.

About Pamela Peeke MD, MPH, FACP:

Dr. Peeke is a nationally recognized best-selling author and expert in nutrition and fitness. She serves as Chief Medical Correspondent for Discovery Health Television, host of Discovery’s Fit to Live series (based on her latest book), and also the featured physician of the award-winning National Body Challenge series. She is also a New York Times bestselling author of Fight Fat after Forty and Body for Life for Women.

Technorati Tags: Society for Women¹s Health Research,Womens' health,Menopause,Hot flashes,Hot Flash Havoc,Washington DC

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Stand Up to Cancer–Tonight–September 10, 2010

Don’t forget to tune in tonight and donate!  The time is 8:00 pm eastern time, 7:00 pm central time and 6:00 pm pacific time. 

Michael Douglas will ‘Stand Up to Cancer’ – September 10th

Katie Couric in the vide talks about how cancer has affected her life and loved ones.  BD 

Harry Smith talks to Katie Couric about the star-studded fundraiser, "Stand Up To Cancer," airing on all four networks in primetime.

Katie Couric: Standing Up To Cancer - CBS News Video

Technorati Tags: Stand Up to Cancer,cancer,R and D,AACR,healthcare,grants,TGEN,Michael Douglas,Katie Couric

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Private Equity Firms Buy Hospitalist Company in Atlanta

Two different private equity firms have gone in together to purchase the “for hire” hospitalist company located in Atlanta.  How big I private equity getting to be in healthcare, a place where the “for profits” gather to talk about how to make more money from healthcare and compare portfolios.

How Big Are Private Equity Investments in Healthcare – Large Enough to Create a “Non-Profit” Trade Association To Talk About How to “Profit”

One of the points made on the website is their ability to drop down the length of stay versus peers and other hospitalists.  At this point with all the rumbling I am seeing, care is the only thing I give a darn about and so should you.  As a patient the business side of all of this means zero. 

The company may be doing a great job overall, but again as consumers this leaves us out and is marketed toward the bean counters wanting to save money so I hope with the new PE owners it continues to work and patient care doesn’t suffer.  BD

ATLANTA – Three healthcare-focused private equity firms have acquired Eagle Hospital Physicians, an Atlanta-based practice management company for hospitalist physician groups.

Eagle provides hospitalist contract services, telemedicine and hospitalist temporary staffing to its hospital partners, primarily in the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic regions.

Highlander Partners, a Dallas-based investment firm, and Flexpoint Ford, a Chicago-based company, are joined in the transaction by Health Enterprise Partners, a growth equity fund focused on the healthcare industry. The three firms have committed capital to support Eagle's future growth initiatives, said Robert Young, MD, Eagle's founder and current CEO.

Private equity firms acquire hospitalist practice management company | Healthcare Finance News

Technorati Tags: Private Equity,Hospitalist Group,Eagle Hospital Physicians,mergers and acquisitions

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Blue Light Special at K-Mart–Free Aneurysm Screenings at the Pharmacy Department September 20- November 5th

The group AAAanswers is being sponsored by Medtronic to perform the free screening.  Of course screenings are a good thing, but let’s not forget the marketing angle here too of getting more foot traffic in the stores too, all retailers look at every angle with marketing too. 

My preference, I prefer this test in a medical surrounding or even a telemedicine exam in a trailer set up to do so.  From a marketing stand point too this is a way for the pharmacy to pickup some new customers too.  I guess it’s a win-win for perhaps some rural areas.  BD

NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire - September 10, 2010) -  The Find the AAAnswers Coalition announced today that Kmart Pharmacy will join their effort to increase awareness of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA), a silent but deadly vascular condition that is currently undiagnosed in more than one million Americans,¹ by offering AAA education, risk assessment and screenings at Kmart Pharmacy locations nationwide.

K-Mart

• AAA Ultrasound Screenings at Select Kmart Pharmacies - Beginning this September at select pharmacies, vascular technologists will conduct free AAA ultrasound screenings for at-risk individuals; the ultrasound screening is simple, quick and painless. The first Find the AAAnswers screening event will take place on Friday, September 10th at the Kmart Pharmacy located at 8800 Frankford Avenue in Philadelphia, PA from 8 am - 5 pm. Screenings take just 15 minutes to complete, but space is limited. Interested individuals should call 866-371-3592 or visit www.FindtheAAAnswers.org for more information and/or to register.

• AAA Risk Assessment at Kmart Pharmacy Flu Clinics - With the assistance of a Kmart pharmacist, interested individuals can have their risk for AAA assessed during flu clinics offered at more than 900 Kmart Pharmacy locations this fall (Sept 20-Nov 5).

• Educational Guide on Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms - This guide provides an overview of AAA, including disease, risk factor, screening and treatment information. The guide will be available immediately while supplies last at Kmart Pharmacy locations nationwide. 

Kmart Pharmacy Joins Fight Against Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms (AAA)

Technorati Tags: abdominal aortic aneurysms,screenings,K-Mart,healthcare,retail,drug stores,Medtronics,pharmacies,AAAAnswers

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Two Florida Business Men–Medicare Fraud For Billing for Penis Pumps for Female and Male Patients–Lot of Transaction Money Made And Who’s Running the Algorithms for Profit?

Ok we have all these anti-fraud software companies, some are subsidiaries of insurance companies that are supposed to be checking for this type of fraud, but the problem here lies with cutting profitable revenue in catching fraud.  In other words is it time to catch these folks and cut off the stream of revenue generated for providing this service?  If a company is in this business for a profit where’s the incentive to catch fraud?  It doesn’t appear to be a priority and thus we come back to relying on law agencies of the government to really police this.

In this case it was the FBI that found these folks.  Again money talks and fools walk when it comes to profits.  The FBI had to report this to the Medicare Anti Fraud contractor!   I did a little looking around here to trace back where some of the auditing comes from.  SafeGuard Services, LLC the Medicare Contractor works with another partner, IntegriGuard LLC.

IntegriGuard, LLC, is wholly owned subsidiary of HMS Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ:HMSY), right a company traded on the stock market.  Correct me if I am wrong but we have circled back around to a company that works with insurers and gets those nice transaction fees that create profit so again unless we have US law agencies involved I don’t see where we can really obtain a full scrutinized effort here in fighting fraud.  I call this subsidiary watch as now more than ever with mergers and acquisitions you may not be dealing the same old company with the same old interests and business models.  All subsidiaries contribute to company bottom profits. 

“HMS provides a variety of coordination of benefit, program integrity, and other cost containment solutions to healthcare payors nationwide. Clients benefiting from our value-added services range from Medicaid and child support agencies to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to HMOs and managed care organizations. In addition, we have a suite of services for self-insured employers”.

Also in the news today relating to fraud, we have a woman pleading guilty to 23 million dollars worth of fraud with bogus HIV claims. 

Little Progress on Fighting Healthcare Fraud – Look At Who’s Getting the Anti-Fraud Contracts

How will these companies really enforce stopping fraud when the levels of profits from transaction fees and software use are so lucrative, I think we have a problem Houston.  If too many fraud dollars go away, so go some of the profits and available dividends paid to investors.  BD

It's one thing that a pair of Hialeah companies were fraudulently billing Medicare for penis pumps at $395 a pop to supposedly help male patients combat impotence.

It's quite another that Charlie RX and Happy Trips also billed the federal healthcare program for vacuum erection systems to aid female patients battle erectile dysfunction, authorities say.

And what's even more remarkable: Medicare paid the two medical equipment providers $28,600 after they submitted a total of $63,000 in false claims for the erection pumps, according to charges unsealed Monday in federal court in Miami.

Hernandez's company, Happy Trips, submitted $1,188,956 in false claims for inhalation drugs and other medical services, including $22,000 for the erection systems, officials say. Medicare paid his business $364,120, including $4,600 for those systems.

Earlier this year, Medicare shut down payments to both companies after FBI agents discovered a spike in billing activity and reported it to the agency's anti-fraud contractor, Safeguard Services.

2 Hialeah businessmen busted for bilking Medicare for penis pumps - Business Breaking News - MiamiHerald.com

Technorati Tags: Medicare fraud,subsidiares,healthcare,health insurance,data bases,algorithms,HHS,medical billing

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Terumo Medical Begins Patient Enrollment–Stent System for Treatment of Peripheral Artery Disease

If you are not familiar with with PAD is, last year I did an interview with another company that has stent products made to treat PAD in the legs too.

Cook Medical Interview Discussing PAD Leg Therapies– Rob Lyles, VP Peripheral Intervention Division

Terumo is also the same company running clinical trials with their Dura Heart product.  It was a little difficult to find some additional information on the exact stent and process here as the company has several website too but here’s the main pulmonary site where additional information can be found.  BD

First heart patients implanted with 3rd Generation mechanical heart pump - DuraHeart

The Misago stent system consists of a nitinol stent pre-mounted on the distal portion of a rapid-exchange delivery catheter system and has three radiopaque markers located on each end of the stent to help ensure accurate placement in the lesion.

The OSPREY trial is referred to as 'Medical Device Collaborative Consultation and Review of Premarketing Applications' under the larger Harmonization by Doing (HBD) initiative and will enroll patients in the US and Japan also.

In the US, OSPREY is a single-arm, multi-center, non-randomized prospective clinical trial for the treatment of atherosclerotic stenoses and occlusions of the SFA.

Terumo Medical starts patient enrollment in OSPREY study - Medical Devices Business Review

Technorati Tags: Terumo,Clincal Trials,PAD,peripheral artert disease,heart disease,arteries,blocked arteries,pulmonary procedure,minimally invasive procedures

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Molina Healthcare Moves Into Texas to Provide Healthcare Services for Low Income Children and Pregnant Women in Rural Counties With Subsidiary Molina Healthcare of Texas Insurance Company

Molina Healthcare has been expanding their services to rural areas and earlier this year launched their telemedicine program in California, with our Governor attending the launch.  In there expansion there have been a few bumps in the road as you can see with a lot of activity here to include the acquisition of Unisys Health Information Management. 

Molina Healthcare Acquiring Unisys Health Information Management for Approximately 135 Million

In Idaho, getting the data systems set up to work timely and pay the providers has been an issue, again today with integrating massive data system to work together these things take more time than they did in the past as we are linking and querying more real time information.

Molina Delayed Medicaid Provider Payments in Idaho– Working to Get the System Fixed–Good Example of Why IT Literate Individuals Need to be in Key Positions To Explain & Fix

I am guessing here in Texas just as it does in California, has the focus for getting pregnant women involved here is to ensure we have healthy babies, a good thing and in California with Medicaid, it’s the highest reimbursement item.  I had one provider client to where this was all he did, take care of pregnant women and then once they delivered, they go off to another physician as he covered his portion of the care.  He didn’t want to go into caring beyond this point as he told me he lost money. 

Molina offers their services in the state of California, Florida, Michigan, Missouri, New Mexico, Ohio, Texas, Utah, and Washington.   BD

SAN ANTONIO, Sep 09, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Molina Healthcare of Texas announced today that it has begun arranging healthcare services for approximately 63,700 low-income children and pregnant women in 174 predominantly rural counties through Texas' Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and CHIP Perinatal Program.

The contract is held by Molina Healthcare of Texas's newly formed, wholly owned subsidiary, Molina Healthcare of Texas Insurance Company, which has been approved to operate as an exclusive provider organization in the service area. Molina Healthcare of Texas will administer the contract on behalf of its subsidiary.

Molina Healthcare of Texas Begins Administering CHIP Program in Rural Areas - MarketWatch

Technorati Tags: Telehealth,Cisco,Molina Healthcare,HMO,technology,mobility,California,Governor,Twitter,Web visits,Unisys,Texas

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FDA Gets a Raise–User Fees for Medical Device Makers–Increase Is Effective October 1st

Back in April of this year the FDA proposed their increase and now it has been approved and the new costs start next month.  You can read the entire listing and how the increases apply here. 

The FDA Wants A Price Increase Too – User Fees for Medical Device Companies

Also, earlier this year, the FDA lost one of their chief regulators who went to work at Microsoft and this can actually be good as she will work with Microsoft and help address some of the IT infrastructure at the FDA.  BD 

FDA Medical-Device Regulator Leaves to Take Position at Microsoft Health Solutions Group – Director of Regulations and Policy

The Food & Drug Administration boosted the user fees medical device makers pay for applications for clearance or approval from the federal watchdogs.

The new fee schedule for fiscal year 2011, which goes into effect Oct. 1, institutes across-the-board hikes of 8.5 percent. Companies must pay an initial fee of $2,179 to register with the FDA.

The agency first announced its plans for the fee hike in April. Medical device companies, whose user fees have funded an increasing share of Food & Drug Administration's device review budget, will have a chance to weigh in on how well the program is working at a Sept. 14 public workshop. The federal watchdog agency will offer its own views and solicit input from consumers, patients, healthcare professionals, scientific and academic experts at the meeting, which is scheduled a full two years ahead of the September 2012 expiration date for the current medical device user fee program.

FDA raises user fees | MassDevice - Medical Device Industry News

Technorati Tags: FDA,government,budget,user fees,medical devices,heatlhcare,reform

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San Bruno Fire–Kaiser Medical Center Treats 15 People Others Treated at St. Francis memorial–4 Deaths– Hospitals And Doctors on Track With Emergency Reponses

Last evening I was watching the news coverage of the dire situation and what made it more difficult for fire fighters was the fact that the blast took out the water main too, so fire companies were trucking in water.  The second video below is an amateur home video from up on a hill that shows how huge the fire was at the onset.

In listening to the news the response of the hospitals to be ready was phenomenal too as they immediately put up tents to handle burn victims within a matter of minutes and later found they didn’t need the additional tents, but they were ready for a large amount of people to come through if needed.  This is truly tragic for those who lost everything and for those 4 who lost their lives.  I just read yesterday where the EPA was investigating the use of chemicals used when drilling for natural gas.  Sadly, this makes one more statement to the fact that our reliance on fossil fuels is not good.  Doctors and surgeons immediately arrived at the hospitals to see if they were needed to care for victims. 

Here’s a video of the situation as it erupted with the natural gas explosion, scary as this could happen anywhere.  I can bet we might see some infrastructure checks and balances coming in the near future.  Again, this is so sad and nobody had any warning.  There’s a huge hole in the ground where the explosion took place.  Not too long ago an HBO documentary came out about the effects of natural gas and drinking water, and as mentioned above the gas line explosion too the water with it, so this film might be regenerating more attention in the near future too.  BD

Drilling for Natural Gas Documentary – The Effect on Drinking Water and our Health "Gasland"

Fifteen people were being treated at Kaiser Medical Center in South San Francisco for burns, smoke inhalation and other injuries, spokeswoman Stacey Wagner said. Some critically burned patients had been transferred earlier to St. Francis Memorial Hospital in San Francisco, she said. Three patients went to Seton Medical Center in Daly City.

Five injured people were taken to San Francisco General Hospital. Spokeswoman Rachael Kagan said three were in critical condition - a man in his 50ss and a woman in her 80s, both suffering from burn injuries, and a woman in her 80s being treated for smoke inhalation.

A woman in her 60s was in serious condition with smoke inhalation, and the fifth victim was in good condition, Kagan said.

San Bruno, Calif., neighborhood explodes in flames, destroying 53 homes

Technorati Tags: Gasland,healthcare,drinking water,natural gas,disease,contamination,drilling rights,EPA,San Bruno,fire,gas explosion,hospital

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Michelle Obama Asks Congress to Join Childhood Obesity Fight–Maybe It Will Inspire Some of Those out of Out of Tolerance BMIs We See Sitting in Congress To Get Motivated –Fat Resides There Too

I commented on this item and when she was embarrassed when the President announced here program.  I did a little speculating and it was just that as I thought I might have felt the same if I were talking about nutrition and watching weight and seeing a crowd of many portly individuals surrounding me.

Why Was Michelle Obama 'embarrassed' by The Standing Ovation As Obesity Program for Children Was Announced

Our Congress does not do too well with technology so how about those with some big BMIs doing this as examples for the kids?  I hope this is not something that is just “for those guys over there'” like so much of what we hear today.

Michelle Obama's War on Childhood Obesity - “Let’s Move”

Now why was this maybe an embarrassment?  Going back to the cameras panning the audience, there were enough overweight and semi obese people listening to the President in the House to fill up a clinical trial on weight reduction and battling obesity!

If you read between the lines we have a large group of non participants that are creating laws and supposed to be working in the best interest of the the American public and with the focus on reducing obesity, sitting on a “fat” bottom kind of takes away from being any kind of role model, anyway my 2 cents on this topic. (grin).

Anyway, this is a good move and hopefully the laws and rules she is asking for, go forward, it makes sense and kids need good food today at school.  BD

SLIDELL, La. — Declaring the beginning of the “next phase” of a program to combat childhood obesity, the first lady, Michelle Obama, called on Congress on Wednesday to pass legislation that would make many of the program’s initiatives possible.

Under the act, food sold in schools would have to meet new nutrition guidelines, but schools would get an increased amount of federal reimbursement money for meals. It would also expand the number of poorer students who are eligible for free and reduced-price school meals.

Michelle Obama Asks Congress to Join Childhood Obesity Fight - NYTimes.com

Technorati Tags: obesity,healthcare,over weight,Michelle Obama,President Obama,healthcare reform,opinion,non participants,Congress

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Sheriffs In North Carolina Wants Access to State Computer Records to Identify Anyone with Scripts for Controlled Substances and Painkillers

This is kind of scary unless there were a criminal reason to ask for a warrant in a specific case for investigation purposes, but to just key in and start looking around at will could be a bit dangerous and of course there’s privacy.

One thing with life is that upon seeing a piece of information about someone else, we kind of tend to form some type of opinion or vision of another person or place and this could definitely lead to something like that with unnecessary assumptions, and law enforcement, strictly just by doing the job they do get veered off in those directions.  It can and does happen to all of us but I think we would see a lot of unnecessary judgments of individuals coming out of something like this.  BD

Sheriffs in North Carolina want access to state computer records identifying anyone with prescriptions for powerful painkillers and other controlled substances.

The state sheriff's association pushed the idea Tuesday, saying the move would help them make drug arrests and curb a growing problem of prescription drug abuse. But patient advocates say opening up people's medicine cabinets to law enforcement would deal a devastating blow to privacy rights.

Allowing sheriffs' offices and other law enforcement officials to use the state's computerized list would vastly widen the circle of people with access to information on prescriptions written for millions of people. As it stands now, doctors and pharmacists are the main users.

Others say opening up patients' medicine cabinets to law enforcement is a terrible idea.

"I am very concerned about the potential privacy issues for people with pain," said Candy Pitcher of Cary, who volunteers for the nonprofit American Pain Foundation. "I don't feel that I should have to sign away my privacy rights just because I take an opioid under doctor's care." Pitcher is receiving treatment for a broken back.

Sheriffs want lists of patients using painkillers - Crime/Safety - NewsObserver.com

Technorati Tags: Drugs,controlled substances,privacy,pharmacies,doctors,patients,law enforcement

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Nuance Introduces Dragon Medical Enterprise Network Edition, Advanced Capabilities Accelerate EHR Meaningful Use Running on Citrix

The enterprise version is for practices with 25 or more users and nice that it runs from the server where all speech files are stored securely.  It was just last month that Nuance announced mobile medical search for the IPhone. 

Nuance Dragon Medical Mobile Search Now Available From the Apple App Store

With the synchronization software, the user can switch back and forth between a keyboard and back to speech recognition.  The interface allows direct integration for most EHR systems so there’s one less interface to worry about opening.  For the IT support with Citrix there’s pretty much only one source to search out for trouble shooting too, much easier than every PC if you have a large system.  BD

I should probably also add here that Nuance also has a “free” pdf reader available for download if you are frustrated with Adobe and you can fill in and save pdf forms, a feature most do not have that are free pdf programs and with Adobe you pay for that upgrade.  BD 

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Press Release:

BURLINGTON, MA, September 8, 2010 — Nuance Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: NUAN) today unveiled Dragon Medical Enterprise Network Edition, a new solution designed for large physician practices and hospitals as they accelerate Meaningful Use of electronic health record (EHR) systems. As the newest addition to the Dragon Medical family, the world’s most popular, real-time, medical speech recognition solution, Dragon Medical Enterprise Network Edition adds enterprise-class features, including enhanced support for Citrix-based EHR environments and a new centralized management console. Dragon Medical Enterprise Network Edition’s significant new management capabilities will deliver better economic results, lowering the total cost of ownership for large scale, front-end speech recognition deployments that operate seamlessly within EHR workflows.

Dragon Medical Enterprise Network Edition empowers clinicians to navigate, dictate and correct medical documents directly within an EHR entirely by voice, even when operating within a Citrix environment. With the HITECH Act’s Meaningful Use criteria now finalized, healthcare organizations are moving forward with their EHR strategy and are increasingly turning to speech recognition as a best-practice tool to facilitate EHR adoption and promote ongoing EHR success. Today, more than 150,000 clinicians have chosen Dragon Medical as an integral part of their clinical documentation workflow. As shown through a recent study at Fallon Clinic, Dragon Medical can, among other benefits, improve physician satisfaction with generating notes within an EHR by as much as 57 percent. Dragon Medical can also improve note quality by more than 25 percent; see full study results here: Fallon Clinic Dragon Medical Study.

“The introduction of Dragon Medical Enterprise Network Edition coincides with many health systems’ decisions to purchase and deploy EHR systems as they invest to achieve Meaningful Use incentives,” said Janet Dillione, executive vice president and general manager, healthcare, Nuance Communications, Inc. “Without Dragon Medical as a key EHR input and navigation aide, we believe healthcare organizations will struggle to introduce EHRs as standard tool amongst clinicians due to reduced efficiency and lower quality patient notes. With this new Dragon Medical Enterprise Network Edition introduction, healthcare organizations can leverage speech recognition in the most cost effective way to accelerate enterprise-wide EHR adoption by empowering physicians to document care in their own words.”

Dragon Medical Enterprise Network Edition works with all major commercial EHR systems; many of the solution’s software enhancements were designed in direct collaboration with leading EHR vendors, such as Cerner, Epic and Allscripts, to provide enhanced interoperability in both thick client and Citrix-based EHR deployments.

“Speech recognition is an important component in helping our clients maximize their EHR investment,” said Tom Herzog, Cerner vice president of IT and medical devices. “The voice enabled EHR, which leverages Dragon Medical integrated with Cerner Millennium® solutions, enables clinicians to optimize and streamline the creation of high-quality, real-time patient documentation.”

Dragon Medical Enterprise Network Edition is exclusively designed for hospitals and physician practices with 25 or more physicians. It is available through Nuance and a group of specially certified authorized resellers. The Dragon Medical Enterprise Network Edition offers the following unique features:

• Improved Support for Citrix-based EHR Environment – Physicians across the enterprise are empowered to use speech recognition to fully control and document within the EHR. vSync, a new technology from Nuance, creates a virtual channel between the PC and a Citrix-based EHR client application, allowing physicians to switch seamlessly back-and-forth between dictation and typing as needed, play back dictation to hear what was recorded, correct medical notes via voice commands, and more. With this synchronized connection, Dragon Medical can replace the common and time-consuming EHR tasks that many physicians struggle to complete through sole use of the keyboard and mouse.

• Centralized Enterprise Management Tools – IT departments gain access to the new Nuance Management Console, a server-based management tool that provides the necessary capabilities to administer Dragon Medical as an enterprise IT tool alongside the EHR. Organizations can manage users and user options centrally, monitor license activity, distribute macros and automate software updates across the user base.

• Automated Updates – NuanceLink™ is an active link between the Nuance Management Console and the Nuance Update Server, which provides content updates to a provider organization. This connection provides updates to vocabularies, including new macro lists, medication lists, diagnoses lists, and disease lists, via a live feed. Administrators can push all updates to users with just one click.

Central User Profile Management – For the first time, IT departments can centrally manage individual Dragon Medical users’ profiles from the Nuance Management Console. New security login and passwords, only available in Network Edition, ensure that when clinicians approach a workstation to dictate patient records that their voice is easily and quickly recognized. A new version of the Language Model/Acoustic Model Optimizer now runs offline while physicians dictate, eliminating potential dictation downtime and accelerating overall physician dictation accuracy.

“We’ve been using Dragon Medical Enterprise Network Edition alongside our Cerner EMR since April and have seen significant benefits.  Not only are clinicians empowered to complete comprehensive, high quality notes in real-time by speaking, but many tasks associated with the system are now automated,” said Steven H. Zuber, M.D., Internal Medicine, Methodist HealthWest, Chief Medical Information Officer, Methodist Physicians Clinic.  “For example, user profiles are automatically loaded.  Now, clinicians can access their Dragon Medical profile and user settings quickly without having to re-select preferences.  We’ve also noticed that the profiles are optimized because of a number of updates occurring in the background.  The optimization has simplified problem diagnosis and repair, improved recognition accuracy and most importantly reduced the time it takes to create and finalize a patient’s medical record.  Dragon Medical Enterprise Network Edition works very well within a Citrix-based EHR environment; on average I’ve been able to save 30 minutes per day on documentation, carving out anywhere between 30 seconds to one minute from each record I create.” 

Dragon Medical users also have access to nearly 80 medical vocabularies and regional accent support models. Additionally, Dragon Medical offers customizable commands like Voice Shortcuts and DragonTemplates that help clinicians streamline the creation of Progress Notes, HPI Assessments, Consultation and Referral Letters, as well as other Care Plan documentation. For a full list of features found in all versions of the Dragon Medical family of solutions please visit: http://www.nuance.com/healthcare/products/dragon_medical.asp

“Dragon Medical has become standard issue for many healthcare provider organizations deploying an EHR, improving physician productivity and satisfaction while simultaneously reducing transcription labor costs and improving the quality of the clinical documentation,” says Peter Durlach, senior vice president of product strategy and marketing for Nuance Healthcare. “Dragon Medical Enterprise Network Edition sets a new standard for enterprise-class, real-time speech recognition. This new product is the next step in our ongoing commitment to deliver world-class speech solutions that healthcare organizations can roll out in a true enterprise class model and deploy on thinner desktop and mobile computing platforms like we have already done with our Dragon Medical Mobile applications on the Apple iPhone.”

Availability:

For hospitals and physician practices with 25 or more physicians, Dragon Medical Enterprise Network Edition will be available in September 2010 for purchase. For purchases made by September 30th, customers will receive the Dragon Medical Enterprise Network Edition at a promotional price. A special license conversion pricing program has also been created for existing customers of the Dragon Medical Enterprise Edition. The Dragon Medical Enterprise Network Edition will be available only from Nuance and a limited number of authorized Dragon Medical Enterprise Network Edition resellers. For further information, please call 1-866-748-9537 or visit: http://www.nuance.com/products/dragon-medical-enterprise-network-edition/

Effective October 1, 2010, Dragon Medical Enterprise Edition will no longer be offered for sale to new hospital customers or physician practices with 25 or more physicians. Nuance will continue to actively support existing Dragon Medical Enterprise Edition customers and will provide additional add-on licenses for purchase. Prior to October 1, 2010, customers can purchase Dragon Medical Enterprise Edition under the current pricing model.

For physician practices with less than 25 physicians, Nuance will continue to provide the Dragon Medical Box and Small Practice Editions. In addition, existing customers in this segment who have purchased Dragon Medical Enterprise Edition will be able to continue to purchase additional licenses. Dragon Medical Enterprise Network Edition has not been designed for and will not be available for physician practices with less than 25 physicians. For further information, please contact your authorized Dragon Medical reseller.

Nuance’s Healthcare Business

Nuance’s healthcare portfolio of proven, speech-enabled clinical documentation and communication solutions enable healthcare provider organizations to improve financial performance, enhance patient care, and increase patient safety. With more than 10,000 healthcare provider organization customers and 450,000 clinicians worldwide, Nuance has the experience and solutions that meet the individual needs of any size healthcare provider organization.

• Dictaphone® Enterprise Speech System: Onsite speech-assisted transcription
• eScription: On-demand/ASP-model speech-assisted transcription
• Dragon® Medical: "Real-time," transcription free speech recognition
• Dragon® Medical Enterprise Network Edition
• Dragon Medical Mobile: Mobile point-of-care solutions for real-time speech recognition and dictation capabilities
• RadWhere™: Real-time, speech-driven multi-site diagnostic reporting
• PowerScribe®: Real-time, speech recognition for diagnostic reporting
• SpeechMagic™: Speech recognition for system developers

Nuance Communications, Inc.

Nuance is a leading provider of speech and imaging solutions for businesses and consumers around the world. Its technologies, applications and services make the user experience more compelling by transforming the way people interact with information and how they create, share and use documents. Every day, millions of users and thousands of businesses experience Nuance’s proven applications and professional services. For more information, please visit www.nuance.com.

Nuance, vSync, NuanceLink, Dragon, and the Nuance logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Nuance Communications, Inc. or its affiliates in the United States and/or other countries. All other company names or product names may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

Technorati Tags: Nuance,iPhone,speech recognition,healthcare,Health IT,Dragon Naturally Speaking,Dragon Dictation app,Facebook,Twitter,pdf reader,Citrix

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Johnson and Johnson News: Participants With Prostate Cancer Trial Will Have Access After Completion and Company Launches Aid Program for Women and Children

Back in May of 2009, Johnson and Johnson purchased Los Angeles based Cougar Biotech who has been conducting the clinical trials for the prostate cancer drug for patients with cancer that has progressed to a serious state. Phase 3 of the studies is due to be released in Europe at a cancer meeting in Milan.

Johnson and Johnson Acquiring Cougar Biotechnology – Cancer Biotech Company Los Angeles

This is good news as many times when trials end so does the patient access so in this case J and J is going to give the participants access to the drug. Below is what Cougar currently has in the pipeline and the drug appears to also be testing for breast cancer.  They are also recommending those patients in the trial who received a placebo be given access to the drug as well.  An independent committee is recommending the results come forward as participants improvement in overall survival rates and the safety of the drug has been documented.  Stay tuned for next month when I’m sure there will be lot more information forthcoming. 

In other news J and J has pledged a grant to fund new HIV and TB medication  to improve health for up to 120 million women and children in developing nations.  One program is called Mobile Health for Mothers and will use cell phones to send text messages to expe4cting moms for coaching.  I think this is great for other countries where citizens may have not much more than a phone, but here in the US a multi tasking pregnant Mom might go a little nuts with everything else she may have going on with her phone. 

There are other parts to the project that involves distributing drugs to fight intestinal worms and to fight the HIV and TB.  Education is included to help women understand how to prevent passing the HIC virus on to their children as well.  We get some good news about J and J this week.  BD

Ortho Biotech Oncology Research & Development, a unit of Cougar Biotechnology, Inc., today announced that it has unblinded the Phase 3 study of abiraterone acetate plus prednisone for the treatment of patients with metastatic advanced prostate cancer (also referred to as castration-resistant prostate cancer) whose disease has progressed following treatment with one or two chemotherapy regimens at least one of which contained docetaxel.

Study COU-AA-301 included 1,195 patients who were randomized to receive abiraterone acetate plus prednisone or placebo plus prednisone.

The Independent Data Monitoring Committee's (IDMC) recommendation to unblind the study was based on a pre-specified interim analysis, which demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in overall survival and an acceptable safety profile. Based on these results, the IDMC also recommended that patients in the placebo arm be offered treatment with abiraterone acetate.

Study of Investigational Agent Abiraterone Acetate for Metastatic Advanced Prostate Cancer Unblinded After Meeting Pre-Determine | TradingMarkets.com

Technorati Tags: Biotech,Follow On Biotech,drug manufacturers,Drugs,pipeline,Congress,cheap drugs,FDA,Johnson and Johnson.m HIV,prostate cancer,Cougar Biotech

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Botox-Lawsuits, Fines, Suing the FDA and Now Waiting To Get Off Label Approval from the FDA for Migraines

Botox, made by Allergan has had quite the ride the last couple of years.  It is approved for use for migraine headaches in Europe.  Dysport is a cheaper drug that was approved by the FDA, that does the same thing as does Botox. 

Botox Given Approval in the UK for Migraine Headache Relief

In October last year Allergan sued the FDA wanting the the label ban removed.  There are also studies going on with Botox being able to shrink a prostate gland too.

Allergan Suing the FDA – Wants Off Label Ban for Botox Removed

Jury Awards Doctor $15 Million with Negligent Damage Related From Botox Injections – Sales Representative Testified To Providing Off-label Dosing In A Sealed Envelope - Allergan

The FDA has given approval for Botox for use with muscle spasms of the wrist and finger areas.  The headache shots would be somewhere from $1000 to $2000 for a session of 30-40 shots around the head, neck and shoulders, ouch!  the Mayo clinic has been testing the use of botox in their Phoenix, Arizona location.  As the article from the New York Times mentions there’s marketing involved here too which is really not supposed to occur with drugs as it does with devices and the software business with the big hypes.  BD 

In public relations, it’s known as “seeding the market” — stirring up excitement for a forthcoming product or application.

“What concerns F.D.A. is that, if companies can promote off-label uses without submitting evidence showing the drug to be safe and effective, it potentially puts patients at risk and subverts the drug approval system,” Dr. Joshua M. Sharfstein, the principal deputy commissioner of the F.D.A., said in a phone interview about the case on Tuesday.

Without an independent determination by agency experts on the optimal doses and precautions for a particular drug treatment, he said, doctors can wind up prescribing medications without good evidence.

Except for the one misbranding charge, Allergan has denied the criminal and civil accusations, including those of kickbacks and fraud, said Caroline Van Hove, a company spokeswoman, adding that the allegations were not proved.

“I want to be clear that Allergan is not charged with misleading doctors or causing any patient harm,” Ms. Van Hove wrote in an e-mail to a reporter on Monday, “and we adamantly deny any implication that this occurred.”

Dr. Sharfstein of the F.D.A. said the Allergan settlement for off-label marketing would not influence the agency’s scientific review of the migraine application. “I think the approval should follow the evidence,” he said.

Millions of dollars are indeed at stake for Allergan.

After Fine, Botox Awaits F.D.A. Approval for Migraine - NYTimes.com

Technorati Tags: : botox,Allergan,healthcare,headaches,migraine headeaches,UK,injections

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Arianna Huffington Interview with ABC News–Finally Someone Who Speaks Out About How Technology Has Affected the World and the US Economy–She Knows Algorithms & Their Power

I have embedded the video below and this is as close as anyone has come to crawling out of denial with acknowledging the fact that technology and the use of algorithmic formulas is changing the world.  I read all these items in the news that are jumping all around the place for the biggest OMG story and it get so tiring. 

As a politician you can get up there and make all kinds of statements, but if those algorithms running in the background prove you wrong, you’re sunk and thus we see tons of that today and mostly from those who are non participants in general consumer IT knowledge.  Adrianna Huffington today got as close to this “uncomfortable topic” as I have seen anyone get, it is what it is. 

The folks that run algorithms for profit to get money from the ignorant just love this as it buys them a whole lot more time to write some more and define what they are using to squeeze even more money out.  If you don’t subscribe to this fact, then you are lost, mad, frustrated and have no clue what is going on.

What do you think runs Wall Street – algorithms.  The folks that design these and the companies that run these is what has take the money from the middle class.  What determines your taxes – the algorithms run by the IRS.  What is silly today is the use of the term “circuit breaker” for the algorithm that slows down the markets when trading levels hit certain limits – it’s an algorithm.  A circuit breaker is what is on the side of my house to control electricity and that’s how I think of it. 

What do health insurers use to determine what they pay and cover on healthcare – the algorithms.  They score your health and project what your risk is going to be for them, just like Wall Street does with investments, as that is all you are is just one more brick in the Wall Street.  That goes for me too of course as I get the same stuff. with little or no ethics in the process.

What do you use when looking for information on the internet – probably those Google algorithms.  One of my favorite shows is Rachel Maddow and she’s no dummy and makes one heck of a show making fun of those politicians that are non participants in their showings and statements.  Yeah they make mistakes as all they are are magpies and as soon as they make a comment that conflicts with what is in the data bases, she nails them, and rightly so!  People that know technology know this and understand the “dummy”processes we see out there and it makes for great OMG news, but does little for the consumer except mislead and create an area of distraction and disruption.  It plays on our emotions while the algorithms continue to run 24/7 and make tons of money for their creators.

As a politician you can get up there and make all kinds of statements, but if those algorithms running in the background prove you wrong, you’re sunk and thus we see tons of that today and mostly from those who are non participants in general consumer IT knowledge.  Adrianna Huffington today got as close to this “uncomfortable topic” as I have seen anyone get, it is what it is.  Instead of being educated we get treated to bit of nonsense like this in the news, again no role models available to make it believable.  Have you ever seen Joe Biden using a cell phone, or anyone besides the President using technology?  There’s not much out there on the web with visuals, I have looked. 

HHS National Plan to Improve Health Literacy – Not Going To Happen Until We Focus on Using Technology (The Tool for Literacy) Which Includes Role Models at HHS And Other Places in Government

The folks that run algorithms for profit to get money from the ignorant just love this as it buys them a whole lot more time to write some more and define what they are using to squeeze even more money out.  If you don’t subscribe to this fact, then you are lost, mad, frustrated and have no clue what is going on.

What also irks me too is the fact that we have this big push for education and yet we don’t have any role models to speak of as they don’t use it and if you were to corner most politicians today on perhaps how they use mobile or health care technology you would get one big blank stare, duh? Hopefully we will see some additional interview like this coming forth too! 

We live and die by the decisions made by algorithms today so what anyone get up and promises especially throughout this election time, really is pretty much meaningless and the American public will continue this road of discontent and without more real education, we are on our way to emulating a 3rd world country very soon. 

It is scary as we hear the GOP stumbling all over themselves all the time with “dumb” statements and standing, and yet due to frustration of lack of education and where the smart individuals are that can help, the boneheads of the world may find their way into office out of shear frustration of the uneducated American public, but what’s in store after that fact could be scarier yet with a Congress full of even bigger “non participants” with the big bullhorns.  BD 

Arianna Huffington on 'Third World America' - ABC News

Technorati Tags: Adrianna Huffington,Huffington Post,ABC News,algorithms,technology,healthcare,Wall Street,opinion,non participants,role models

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