Healthcare is ever changing, so it’s important to stay up to date on advancements and issues that may impact the operation and growth of your business. Here are some relevant conversations and important developments happening in our industry as of late:
Hospital costs should be cut 24 percent by 2022 to break even, outsourcing may help, survey says
Hospital leaders are exploring ways to outsource services to free up resources, and if the results of a new Black Book survey are any indication, this strategy will come none too soon. In order to break even, average hospital costs will have to be reduced by 24 percent by 2022 and, according to the survey, hospital leaders are determining whether to work with third-party vendors for cost efficiencies in both clinical and nonclinical functions. Continue reading…
CMS debuts strategy to improve rural healthcare
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently unveiled the Rural Health Strategy, a plan to take proactive steps to ensure rural communities receive quality and affordable access to healthcare. The new policy aims to advance programs that help to meet the healthcare needs of nearly 60 million people living in rural areas across the country. Continue reading…
PiB-PET study strengthens link between amyloid, dementia
According to a study published online in JAMA Neurology, the presence of amyloid on PET scans may be a sign that adults with no symptoms of dementia are still at risk of mild cognitive impairment or even Alzheimer’s disease as they age. Researchers conducted PET scans with carbon-11-labeled Pittsburgh Compound B (PiB-PET) and found that adults ages 50 to 59 who had amyloid were twice as likely to develop dementia by the time they reached their 80s compared with age-matched counterparts with no signs of amyloid accumulation. Continue reading…
4 elements that enhance patient experience
During AONE 2018’s keynote presentation, Chip Heath, an expert in organizational behavior at Stanford Graduate School of Business, spoke on the importance of creating positive moments and how they have the potential to influence a patient’s healthcare experience. During his talk, The Power of Moments: Why Certain Experiences Have Extraordinary Impact, he discusses how moments have the power to jolt, elevate, or change a person. Nurse leadership can build these peak moments that will stick with patients for a lifetime and improve a patient’s healthcare experience through the use of four elements. Continue reading…
Addressing productivity, labor to bend the healthcare cost curve
From alternative payment models and value-based purchasing to artificial intelligence and data analytics tools, the healthcare industry is transforming how care is delivered and paid for to reduce constantly rising medical costs. While payment reform and health IT bring promises of reduced costs and increased productivity, there’s doubt as to whether can these efforts truly bend the healthcare cost curve. Continue reading…
Glucose and beyond? Experts debate optimal targets for managing CV risk in diabetics
For diabetic patients with or at risk for cardiovascular disease, experts at the 2018 European Atherosclerosis Society (EAS) meeting agree that glucose management should not be the only treatment target, but how much priority it should take compared with other risk factors remains an open question. In the past, interventional studies did not show any type of improvement in the cardiovascular outcomes. Now there is data that can reduce cardiovascular outcomes in patients with diabetes if the correct treatment is used. Continue reading…
Cardiology societies release consensus on ionizing radiation in cardiovascular imaging
A new expert consensus document that guides the optimal use of ionizing radiation in cardiovascular imaging was published in the May 2, 2018 online edition of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. The document offers best practices for safety and effectiveness when using computed tomography (CT), nuclear imaging, and angiographic/fluoroscopic imaging. Its purpose is to assist cardiovascular practitioners in providing optimal cardiovascular care when employing ionizing radiation in diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. Continue reading…
