Quality

The focus of quality improvement in healthcare is to bolster performance and processes related to diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. Leaders in this space also ensure the proper selection of imaging exams and procedures, and monitor the safety of services, among other duties. Reimbursement programs such as the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) utilize financial incentives to improve quality. This also includes setting and maintaining care quality initiatives, such as the requirements set by the Joint Commission.

Best and worst states for nurses 2024
Comparing all 50 states on 20 metrics of job satisfaction for nurses, WalletHub has landed on a familiar favorite for the top spot.
Hospital pays $32.5M to family of baby who suffered brain damage during birth
The incident happened in 2018 when clinicians at Reading Hospital failed to recognize fetal distress and respond accordingly.
Measles is on the march from airports to places near us
The U.S. eradicated measles in 2000. Today it’s making a comeback. What explains the unhappy revival?
Active surveillance of cancer won’t expose docs to malpractice
A new study from researchers at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center should put minds at ease that the conservative management approach will not result in litigation when guidelines are followed.
HBO’s John Oliver skewers state medical boards over ‘oopsies!’
"[S]ome states, including—until recently—Texas, even employ an honor-system approach, which relies on physicians to self-report. But guess what? The bad doctors tend not to do that, because they’re bad doctors."

Price transparency tools can lower costs

A small study in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that price transparency tools can put a significant dent in medical costs, reports The Washington Post. 

October 25, 2014

Texas health worker diagnosed with Ebola

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed that a Texas nurse who treated an Ebola-stricken Liberian man has tested positive for Ebola, according to the Washington Post.

October 13, 2014

Value-based healthcare is rising, but is it making a difference?

Research shows that value-oriented payment systems are on the rise, with 40 cents of every healthcare dollar now tied in some way to value—up from only 11 cents one year ago, according to Forbes.

October 1, 2014

NYT Well Blog: Can Physicians Really Be Taught to Be Better Communicators?

Timothy Gilligan, M.D., co-director of the Center for Excellence in Healthcare Communication at the Cleveland Clinic, and Mikkael Sekeres, M.D., director of the leukemia program at the Cleveland Clinic, provide a well timed caution on the physician communication training trend.

February 27, 2014

Around the web

AI in Healthcare

Biden Administration itemizes AI accomplishments to date

Half a year after President Biden officially directed federal agencies in the executive branch’s bailiwick to “seize the promise and manage the risks” of AI, the White House has posted a status report.

Cardiovascular Business

‘Concerning’ data connect industry payments to cardiologists with medical device use

U.S. physicians often receive payments from medical device manufacturers and pharmaceutical companies. New research in JAMA found a connection between receiving such payments and using specific devices—should the industry be concerned?

Cardiovascular Business

Cardiology groups share key update: ABMS seeking feedback on proposed Board of Cardiovascular Medicine

Five of the largest U.S. medical societies focused on cardiovascular health are one step closer to seeing their paradigm-shifting proposal become a reality.

Quality

Best and worst states for nurses 2024

Hospital pays $32.5M to family of baby who suffered brain damage during birth

Measles is on the march from airports to places near us

Active surveillance of cancer won’t expose docs to malpractice

HBO’s John Oliver skewers state medical boards over ‘oopsies!’

Around the web