News
4 Challenges of Transitioning to a Value-Based Integrated Health System
Because value-based payment forges a new kind of integrated health system based on the interdependence of financial compensation, quality of patient care and provider performance, it presents a whole new set of challenges to the healthcare industry. Ideally, these challenges will be identified and resolved before they occur so unforeseen issues can be addressed asRead the Rest…
EHR Incentives Leave Post-Acute Care Facilities in the Dark Age
Nearly 50% of all post-acute care facilities expect to be acquired by more technologically advanced companies by the year 2015. While this number may just be part of the usual onslaught of fear that circulates in our unstable economy, those fears could be legitimate for single and stand-alone post-acute care facilities, who have been threatenedRead the Rest…
ACOs and Medicare: The Basics
Scoot over, HMO, there’s a new acronym in town. Accountable Care Organizations—better known as ACOs—are one of the most talked about initiatives of the Affordable Care Act. But what exactly are they? Following the long-standing tradition of healthcare affairs that leave both patients and providers baffled, the ACO phenomenon has resisted every attempt that hasRead the Rest…
Is Post-Acute Care Dropping the Ball on Hospital Readmissions?
Research on hospital readmission rates—particularly readmissions involving Medicare patients—is a relatively new demand, having emerged with the Affordable Care Act in 2010 when the federal government began implementing fines and penalties to hospitals with high preventable readmission rates, the goal being an $8 billion reduction of unnecessary government healthcare spending. With the government placing fullRead the Rest…
Better Nursing Staff Handoffs May Lead to Improving Patient Care
National attention on reducing the rate of hospital readmissions has begun to narrow its focus on the role of hospital nursing staff handoffs, whose performance, researchers say, may be key to improving patient care and reducing the Medicare budget. However, more studies show that ensuring quality nursing staff handoffs is not a priority for mostRead the Rest…
Hospital Readmission Rates Predicted with Automatic Tool
A new development in automated communication technology makes it easier for healthcare professionals to prevent hospital readmissions, and may even help prompt hospitals’ slow transition to ACOs. As of December 2013, University of Pennsylvania Health System successfully incorporated an automated prediction tool that recognizes newly admitted patients who are at risk for being readmitted withinRead the Rest…
Steps to Providing Quality Patient Care and Reducing Hospital Readmissions
There’s no doubt about it: In order to reduce hospital readmissions, hospitals have to place a stronger emphasis on quality patient care. But what exactly does this mean? Given that 50% of hospitals report that they fail to follow through on readmission reduction initiatives, it seems that this issue needs further clarification. We recently reportedRead the Rest…
Survey Find Hospitals Slow to Form ACOs
In a recent study conducted by Purdue Healthcare Advisors, 95% of hospital executives reported that they have fully embraced the initiative to implement electronic health records, a critical component of President Barak Obama’s Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. An equally important tenant of the new law is not being adapted by the medical industryRead the Rest…
Improving Patient Care for Elderly With Digital Tools
With 40,000+ healthcare apps in the iTunes app store showing only a limited ability to improve patient care, it’s no wonder that elderly patients are dissatisfied with the integration of digital technology in their patient care. By the end of 2013, 57% of Americans age 65 and older said they wanted more options to takeRead the Rest…
Why Medicare is Rethinking Elderly Post-Hospital Care Spending
After focusing on the reduction of hospital spending for years, the federal government is turning its head to Medicare, hoping to take control of their budget and reduce what they see as excessive amounts of spending on post hospital care for elderly patients. These post hospital expenditures include the conventional patient care provided to olderRead the Rest…