Healthy lifestyle choices with information and articles.
The following scenario is played out with increasing regularity in the nation: An elderly person, let’s call her Edith is living alone because she has lost her husband. Due to one or more chronic conditions she has decreased independence. Maybe she can’t drive any more and needs to use a walker or wheelchair. Her condition …
Continue reading “It‘s Not Just Old Age – Depression in the Elderly”
The new policy unraveled in May of this year put out by the Joint Commission would have opened the door for texting to be used as an effective communication tool to exchange patient orders. Initially, the policy what is welcome news because it would’ve made sharing patient info easier. Summarized, it stated, along with some …
Continue reading “Texting Patient Orders Still up in the air with Joint Commission”
The Joint Commission Center for Transforming Healthcare has released Oro™ 2.0, an online assessment and resource library designed to assist hospital leaders with determining their organization’s level of maturity in multiple components of high reliability and striving for the goal of zero preventable harm. Oro 2.0 is a Web-based assessment for hospital leadership that is …
Continue reading “The Joint Commission Center for Transforming Healthcare release Oro™ 2.0”
Speak Up™ is an Antibiotics campaign targeted to the public in an attempt to educate on the appropriate and safe use of antibiotics, as well as the risks associated with antibiotic overuse. From JC: Each year, an estimated 2 million people in the United States become infected with bacteria that antibiotics cannot treat because the …
Continue reading “Joint Commission launches Speak Up™ Antibiotics campaign”
The problem with hospitals being owned by for-profit entities is that pricing can be arbitrary. IF you can get away with overcharging it doesn’t matter where you are, so long as people pay. Some hospitals gouge even further than the usual song and dance between healthcare provider and insurance. The largest offenders seem to be …
Continue reading “Hospitals Overcharging Consumers at 10X Cost”
The Joint Commission has issued new standards around protocols, documentation and education that are designed to reduce unnecessary medical imaging and improve quality and safety. The Joint Commission standards for diagnostic imaging are designed to help prevent duplicate and unnecessary medical imaging of patients, and reduce potentially harmful exposure to radiation when patients need CT …
Continue reading “New Joint Commission Medical Imaging Standards”
The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) is a proposed free-trade treaty between 12 countries throughout the Asia Pacific including the US and Canada. Respective governments have worked hard to push through legislation approving the new treaty. As deadlines approach more and more criticism and opposition has emerged over the proposed regulations. Critics fear that the new agreement …
243 individuals —- including medical professional such as doctors, nurses, and others–were arrested for their alleged involvement in Medicare fraud schemes totalling approximately $712 million in false billings. The arrests were a coordinated operation in 17 cities by Medicare Fraud Strike Force teams, which include personnel from the FBI, the Department of Health and Human …
Continue reading “FBI Arrest 243 Healthcare Professional and workers with Medicare Fraud”
House Republicans are proposing major changes to Medicare and Medicaid as a part of a blueprint to balance the budget within 10 years. The proposal depends on repealing the Obamacare, including financial assistance for low- and middle-income individuals, and the taxes implemented to help pay for coverage expansion programs. The budget calls for shifting to …
Continue reading “House GOP Aim to Balance Budget in 10 years with Medicare Reforms”
The Joint Commission announced changes to its standards for accredited hospitals, critical access hospitals, and ambulatory health care organizations that provide diagnostic imaging services, including ambulatory organizations that have achieved Advanced Diagnostic Imaging certification. The changes will be effective July 1, 2014 with additional requirements to be phased in by 2015.