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Prescription drug injuries and deaths reach record levels 3M is first to bring automated technology to rapid diagnostic flu test market IHI shares achievements of the 5 million lives campaign Half of doctors routinely prescribe placebos Amerinet plays key role in Utah Hospital construction cost savings Study finds creating unique health ID numbers would improve health care quality, efficiency Hospital rankings: More than meets the eye Prescription drug injuries and deaths reach record levels The
number of deaths and serious injuries associated with prescription drug use
rose to record levels in the first quarter of this year, with 4,825 deaths
and nearly 21,000 injuries, a watchdog group said Wednesday. Those numbers
represent a nearly threefold increase in deaths from the previous quarter
and a 38% increase in injuries from last year's quarterly average, according
to the Horsham, PA based Institute for Safe Medication Practices.
3M is first to bring automated technology to rapid diagnostic flu test market Just in time for a new flu season, in which up to 20 percent of Americans may be affected, 3M is announcing nationwide availability of the 3M Rapid Detection Flu A+B Test, that is the first rapid flu test to provide automated results. The automated technology helps reduce user interpretation errors, which can lead to both false negative or false positive results. The 3M Rapid Detection Flu A+B Test will be able to deliver hospital and physician office laboratories reliable and objective electronic results in 15 minutes. Requiring less than three minutes of prep time, the test detects positive or negative results, and differentiates influenza A and influenza B with results clearly displayed on the 3M Rapid Detection Reader. In addition to providing automated results, the technology also enables labs to export data through laboratory information systems, further reducing the potential for reporting error by eliminating the need for manual recording and transferring of patient results. The test also reads and stores lab results, giving lab technicians more flexibility in time and test management. A
recent study evaluated the 3M Rapid Detection Flu A+B Test against the
leading hospital brand and two conventional methods of diagnosing influenza
A and B, direct fluorescent antibody staining (DFA) (1.5 to 3 hours for
results) and rapid cell culture (R-Mix) (24 to 48 hours for results).
Compared to the leading hospital brand, the 3M flu test demonstrated
superior analytical and clinical sensitivity for the detection of both
influenza A and B. Further, the study concluded that the automated reading
of test results eliminated the potential for user misreading or
misinterpretation of test results.
Read the original article.
IHI shares achievements of the 5 million lives campaign The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) announced the progress of the organizations enrolled in the 5 Million Lives Campaign, a national effort to help U.S. hospitals dramatically reduce incidents of avoidable medical harm. The Campaign asks hospitals to introduce up to 11 evidence-based health care interventions and to engage their trustees in the effort, in order to protect patients across the nation from five million incidents of medical harm over a 24-month period, ending December 9, 2008. While the Campaign will continue for another six weeks and fuller reporting on progress will come after December, many hospitals participating in the effort have already dramatically improved the care patients receive, setting the stage for further progress. To date, 4,030 hospitals across the nation have enrolled in the Campaign – approximately 80% of U.S. hospital beds. Participating hospitals have committed to implementing up to 12 quality improvement changes, including: Preventing Adverse Drug Events ―by implementing medication reconciliation― (3,146 hospitals); Preventing Surgical Site Infections (3,045 hospitals); Deploying Rapid Response Teams (2,844 hospitals); Preventing Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia (2,711 hospitals); Preventing Central-Line Infections (2,679 hospitals); Reducing Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections (2,477 hospitals); and Getting Hospital Boards on Board with Quality Improvement (2,057 hospitals). Eight other countries have launched initiatives inspired by the Campaign, including England, Denmark, Netherlands, Sweden, Canada, Wales, Scotland, and Japan. There will be a “National Network Day” on Monday, October 27th, during which over 4,000 doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals are expected to join in a series of free web-based learning exercises hosted by IHI and featuring exceptional facilities from around the nation. At
its 20th Annual National Forum on Quality Improvement in Health Care
(December 10-11, Nashville, TN), IHI will celebrate the progress of
facilities from across the nation. The Campaign will announce hospitals'
progress in pursuit of a recently-issued "Boards Challenge" (an effort to
get 80% of the nation's hospital boards to adopt the Campaign's governance
intervention) and discuss the future direction of its national learning
network. For a complete list of all interventions, along with a
state-by-state list of hospitals taking part in the 5 Million Lives
Campaign, please visit
www.IHI.org.
Premier healthcare alliance launches MS-DRG reimbursement calculators to help members highlight avoidable financial loss The Premier healthcare alliance has launched a set of reimbursement calculators to help member hospitals compare the individual hospitals’ costs to the reimbursement offered under the Medicare Severity Diagnosis Related Group (MS-DRG) system. Available for cardiovascular, orthopedics and spine implants, the calculators can assist in reducing the number of inaccurate claims that result in lowered Medicare reimbursement without impacting the quality of patient care. The calculators automatically compare national average base reimbursement rates to the payment for a particular MS-DRG. In addition, hospitals can populate their individual reimbursement rates for a more customized report. The calculators also track reimbursement trends by displaying both the percentage and dollar amount changes in reimbursement payments from year to year. DRGs
were developed for Medicare to classify hospital cases into groups expected
to have similar hospital resource use. MS-DRGs were created to more
accurately account for the severity of a patient's condition. The MS-DRG
prospective payment system went into effect in October 2007.
For more information, visit
www.premierinc.com.
Half of doctors routinely prescribe placebos Half of all American doctors responding to a nationwide survey say they regularly prescribe placebos to patients. The results trouble medical ethicists, who say more research is needed to determine whether doctors must deceive patients in order for placebos to work. The study is being published in BMJ, formerly The British Medical Journal. One of the authors, Franklin G. Miller, was among the medical ethicists who said they were troubled by the results. The most common placebos the American doctors reported using were headache pills and vitamins, but a significant number also reported prescribing antibiotics and sedatives. Although these drugs, contrary to the usual definition of placebos, are not inert, doctors reported using them for their effect on patients’ psyches, not their bodies. In most cases, doctors who recommended placebos described them to patients as “a medicine not typically used for your condition but might benefit you,” the survey found. Only 5 percent described the treatment to patients as “a placebo.” Dr. William Schreiber, an internist in Louisville, Ky., at first said in an interview that he did not believe the survey’s results, because, he said, few doctors he knows routinely prescribe placebos. But when asked how he treated fibromyalgia or other conditions that many doctors suspect are largely psychosomatic, Dr. Schreiber changed his mind. “The problem is that most of those people are very difficult patients, and it’s a whole lot easier to give them something like a big dose of Aleve,” he said. “Is that a placebo treatment? Depending on how you define it, I guess it is.” But antibiotics and sedatives are not placebos, he said. The American Medical Association discourages the use of placebos by doctors when represented as helpful.
Controlled clinical trials have hinted that placebos may have powerful
effects. Some 30 percent to 40 percent of depressed patients who are given
placebos get better, a treatment effect that antidepressants barely top.
Placebos have also proved effective against hypertension and pain. (NY
Times)
Read the original article.
Amerinet plays key role in Utah Hospital construction cost savings Amerinet Inc. recently expanded its partnership with a critical access hospital in west-central Utah and, through its Construction Solutions products and services, is playing a key cost savings role in the construction of a new facility there. “Through our Total Spend Management Solutions, we are engaged at the earliest stages of a project, allowing us to anticipate and meet the unique clinical and financial needs of critical access hospitals and rural healthcare providers,” said Mike Reid, senior director, construction, capital and facility services at Amerinet. “Amerinet’s Construction Solutions offer members savings of 12 to 18 percent on construction, renovation and interior design projects.”
Groundbreaking for the new 25-bed Milford Valley Memorial Hospital in
Milford, Utah, occurred in July 2008. The $8 million project is to be
completed in summer 2009 and will replace an existing facility that is one
of the oldest in the state.
Study finds creating unique health ID numbers would improve health care quality, efficiency Creating a unique patient identification number for every person in the United States would facilitate a reduction in medical errors, simplify the use of electronic medical records, increase overall efficiency and help protect patient privacy, according to a new RAND Corporation study. Although creating such an identification system could cost as much as $11 billion, the effort would likely return even more in benefits to the nation's healthcare system, according to researchers from RAND Health. Federal legislation passed over a decade ago supported the creation of a unique patient identifier system, but privacy and security concerns have stalled efforts to put the proposal into use. As adoption of health information technology expands nationally and more patient records are computerized, there have been increasing calls to create a system that would make it easier to retrieve records across varying systems such as those used by doctors and hospitals. The RAND study concluded that one of the primary benefits created by broad adoption of unique patient identifiers would be to eliminate record errors, and help reduce repetitive and unneeded care. In the absence of unique patient identifiers, most health systems use a technique known as statistical matching that retrieves a patient's medical record by searching for attributes such as name, birth date, address, gender, medical record numbers, and all or part of a person's Social Security Number. Reviewing past research studies, RAND researchers estimated that statistical matching returns incomplete medical records about 8 percent of the time and exposes patients to privacy risks because a large amount of personal information is exposed to computer systems during a search. Some
proposals have suggested using patients' Social Security Numbers as a
medical identifier. But the RAND study found Social Security Numbers are a
poor option because they are so widely used and they pose risks of identify
theft. A genuine unique patient identification system would be more secure
because it could include safeguards such as check codes that allow numbers
to be easily screened for input errors. Such check codes are mathematical
combinations of the other digits in the number and are commonly used in
other digital IDs such as those in the product bar codes scanned at checkout
counters.
Hospital rankings: More than meets the eye Medicare's pay-for-performance program ranks and rewards hospitals according to how well they meet certain guidelines for clinical care. But researchers at Duke Clinical Research Institute say the program penalizes hospitals that care for the greatest numbers of the poor and needy by not taking into account their greater clinical burden. Studies show that age, race and severity of disease can influence which patients get certain treatments and how they fare, and these factors vary significantly from hospital to hospital. "That means that hospitals serving large groups of the elderly, women, poor, uninsured or African American patients might have problems competing with institutions whose patients are younger, wealthy, insured, and white," says Dr. Eric Peterson, a cardiologist at Duke and the senior author of the study. "Hospitals are simply not starting out on the same playing field." Under the current pay-for-performance system, hospitals in the top 20 percent of the rankings receive financial reward; those in the middle 60 percent receive nothing, and those at the bottom stand to loose Medicare reimbursement money. Currently, Medicare does not consider demographic variables and patients' existing health problems in figuring hospital rankings. Peterson and colleagues in the American Heart Association's Get With the Guidelines program wanted to find out if those rankings would change if patient mix was included in the calculations. Investigators ranked the hospitals according to crude composite process performance scores and then grouped them according to Medicare's current system. Next, they ranked the same hospitals again, but this time taking into account the patients' demographic variables, their clinical characteristics and eligibility for certain procedures. They found that the hospitals with the lowest crude composite scores tended to be smaller, non-academic institutions that treated a higher percentage of older, sicker and minority patients than those in the top group. While there was general agreement on performance between the two ranking systems, researchers found that when taking into account patient characteristics and treatment opportunity, 16.5 percent, or 74 of the hospitals would fall into a different financial status category. So why doesn't Medicare consider patient mix in tallying rankings? "On the surface, it may well seem to be the right thing to do, but some feel such a move would 'legitimize' less-than-optimal care," says Peterson. "At the same time, not taking these factors into consideration is like comparing apples to oranges."
Peterson says one solution might be to reward hospitals for improvement in
adherence to evidence-based treatment, rather than rewarding a single score
or ranking. Another option might involve separately reporting adherence data
for older patients, women, or minorities. "That would surely draw more
attention to any gaps in care, and might prompt better compliance."
October 23, 2008 Download print version Amerinet announces new agreements with C.R. Bard’s medical division and Bard Urological Food allergies up 18% among U.S. children Researchers downplay MRSA screening as effective infection control intervention The importance of melanoma screening X marks the spot: Sharpies get thumbs-up for marking surgery sites Comprehensive tax reform could play important role in creating healthcare reform Better data management and more inspections are needed to strengthen FDA’s foreign drug inspection program The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recommends that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) improve the data that it uses to manage its foreign inspection program, conduct more inspections of foreign establishments, and ensure more timely inspection of foreign establishments where FDA has identified serious deficiencies. GAO found that FDA databases contain inaccurate information on foreign establishments subject to inspection. FDA uses information from a database of establishments registered to market drugs in the United States and a database of establishments that shipped drugs to the U.S. to compile a list of establishments subject to inspection, but these databases contain divergent estimates—about 3,000 and 6,800, respectively. The accuracy of this information is important in FDA’s identification of foreign establishments subject to inspection. FDA inspects relatively few foreign establishments each year to assess the manufacturing of drugs currently marketed in the U.S. FDA inspected 1,479 foreign drug manufacturing establishments from fiscal years 2002 through 2007. Because FDA does not know the number of establishments subject to inspection, the percentage of those inspected cannot be calculated with certainty. However, using a list FDA developed to prioritize foreign establishments for inspection in fiscal year 2007, GAO estimated that FDA may inspect about 8 percent of foreign establishments in a given year. At this rate, it would take the agency more than 13 years to inspect these establishments once. In contrast, FDA estimates that it inspects domestic establishments about once every 2.7 years. FDA’s identification of serious deficiencies has led foreign establishments to take corrective actions, but inspections to determine continued compliance are not always timely. FDA identified deficiencies during most foreign inspections, but determining how the agency classified the results of a specific inspection is hindered by inconsistencies in its databases, particularly on the classification of inspections with serious deficiencies. HHS
agreed that FDA should conduct more foreign inspections, but noted that
additional inspections are only one component of FDA’s strategy to enhance
oversight and elaborated on other initiatives, such as database
improvements, discussed in this report.
Read the full report.
Amerinet announces new agreements with C.R. Bard’s medical division and Bard Urological Amerinet Inc. announces a new agreement with C.R. Bard’s Medical Division for acute urology products, effective, November 1, 2008, through October 31, 2011. In
addition Amerinet announces a new agreement with C.R. Bard’s Urological
Division for specialty urology products, effective, November 1, 2008,
through October 31, 2011.
Food allergies up 18% among U.S. children The number of American kids with food allergies has soared 18 percent in the last decade, with an estimated 4 percent of children and teens now affected with the condition, a new federal report says. In 2007, approximately 3 million children under the age of 18 were reported to have had a food or digestive allergy in the previous 12 months, compared to slightly more than 2.3 million children (3.3 percent) in 1997, according to the report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The findings are published in a data brief, “Food Allergy Among U.S. Children: Trends in Prevalence and Hospitalizations.” The data are from the National Health Interview Survey and the National Hospital Discharge Survey, both conducted by CDC′s National Center for Health Statistics. Eight types of foods account for 90 percent of all food allergies – milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, shellfish, soy, and wheat. Allergic reactions to these foods can range from a tingling sensation around the mouth and lips, to hives and even death, depending on the severity of the reaction, the report’s authors said. The report also said that children with food allergies are two to four times more likely to have asthma or other allergies, compared to children without food allergies. In 2007, 29 percent of children with food allergies also had reported asthma, compared to 12 percent of children without food allergy. And an estimated 27 percent of children with food allergies had reported eczema or skin allergy, compared to 8 percent of children without food allergies. From
2004 to 2006, there were approximately 9,537 hospital discharges annually
for children from birth to 17 years of age who were diagnosed with a food
allergy. Hospital discharges with a diagnosed food allergy increased
significantly from the period 1998-2000 to 2004-2006. This finding could owe
to increased awareness, reporting, and use of specific medical diagnostic
codes for food allergies. Or it could represent a real increase in children
who are experiencing food-allergic reactions.
Read the full report.
Researchers downplay MRSA screening as effective infection control intervention Three Virginia Commonwealth University epidemiologists are downplaying the value of mandatory universal nasal screening of patients for MRSA, arguing that proven, hospital-wide infection control practices can prevent more of the potentially fatal infections. In a report published in the November issue of Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology, the team, composed of epidemiologists Richard P. Wenzel, M.D., Gonzalo Bearman, M.D., and Michael B. Edmond, M.D., of the VCU School of Medicine, said “hospitals get more bang for their buck with evidence-based infection control prevention.” “The key safety question today, since it is possible to reduce the total risk of hospital infections by half with a broad-based infection control program, is what is the incremental benefit of a component focusing on a single antibiotic-resistant pathogen?” said Wenzel. According to Wenzel, MRSA infections cause only 14 percent of hospital infections, and investing huge resources into their control would be less effective than implementing programs that would reduce the burden of all infections by 50 percent. In their research model, the MRSA screening was inferior to the general infection control programs, preventing fewer infections, fewer deaths and was also less effective in reducing years of life lost from infections. The MRSA screening tests have false positives – leading to the isolation of patients who are non-MRSA carriers – as well as false negatives – missing some true carriers. Further, the cost of nasal swabbing tests for all patients in a screening program was estimated to be two to three times that of adding additional infection control nurses for a broad infection control program. The authors acknowledge that there are some instances in which MRSA screening and topical antibiotic treatment of nares of carriers may add incremental benefit to a hospital wide, evidence-based program. For example, in a patient going for open heart surgery who is a MRSA carrier, a post-operative infection would be devastating.
Wenzel and his colleagues’ broad perspective is that a focused screening
program would have made more sense in the late 1980s and early 1990s since
MRSA was the key in antibiotic-resistant pathogen. However, in the last 15
years hospitals are facing multiple bacteria with broad resistance (Vancomycin-resistant
enterococci, imipenam-resistant pseudomonas, totally drug resistant
Acinetobacter and others).
The importance of melanoma screening When it comes to melanoma, vanity may be a virtue. The most direct method for detecting this deadly skin cancer is to face a mirror, clothes off, and check for suspicious moles from head to toe. Moles at least the size of a pencil eraser are of greatest concern, since smaller spots are rarely cancerous, said Dr. David Polsky, a dermatologist at New York University School of Medicine. “To get hung up on the real small stuff is missing the bigger picture,” he said. But changes to the color, size or shape of any mole may be an early indication of trouble, especially for someone who has a family history of melanoma or lots of unusual moles. And while sun-drenched areas on the head or legs are likely sites for other forms of skin cancer, melanoma can develop anywhere on the body. About 90 percent of melanoma growths are curable if caught early and surgically removed, putting the impetus on people at home to look for cancerous spots. When growths are left unchecked, the chances of surviving the disease for long are worse than for lung or colon cancer. But in the push to make everyone better skin cancer detectives, tough obstacles — and questions — remain. To locate the first signs of danger requires studious attention, and few people seem willing to bother. Nine to 18 percent of Americans regularly examine their own skin for melanoma, surveys show. Dermatologists, typically the first responders for skin cancer, may be quicker to schedule a Botox appointment than to verify a patient’s concern about changing moles, research shows. Furthermore, there is no proof so far that such screening will ultimately help save any of the estimated 8,400 lives lost to melanoma each year in the United States. The
stakes are high. The chance of surviving melanoma turns sharply for the
worse once the tumors have spread beyond their original site on the skin,
making it critical to find changes early. Yet in the rush to get the cancer
out fast, experts say they are noticing a relaxing of standards in
diagnosing melanoma. Doctors these days are more likely to take out any
suspicious mole out of fear of missing a cancerous one, and possibly getting
sued for a missed diagnosis, experts say. (NY Times)
Read the original article.
Patewood Memorial Hospital increases workflow efficiency and charge capture in surgical suites with Omnicell OptiFlex SS Omnicell Inc., a provider of system solutions to acute healthcare facilities, and Patewood Memorial Hospital, a part of the Greenville Hospital System University Medical Center (GHS), announced that Patewood has installed Omnicell OptiFlex SS systems for use in the hospital’s state-of-the-art digital surgical suites. With use of this automated physician preference card and perpetual inventory management system, Patewood Memorial is maximizing workflow efficiency, increasing productivity for both materials management and staff, plus decreasing inventory carrying costs. Patewood Memorial chose to have a hybrid system of open shelving and closed secure cabinets for added flexibility and to bolster the automation process for improved overall inventory accuracy. The hospital uses closed cabinets in the actual OR suites providing additional security of inventory high-dollar items such as consigned implants. Materials management also picks supplies from open shelving in their supply area, giving them quick access to materials. Whether pulling items from open shelves or closed cabinets, OptiFlex SS barcoded preference cards drive the process and accurately track the utilization and charges it to a specific patient case.
Another significant improvement for Patewood Memorial was realized in
knowing exactly what costs were being incurred in each OR case. By recording
supply usage based on each patient case and by interfacing directly with the
billing system, OptiFlex SS enables Patewood Memorial to consistently,
effectively and accurately charge for product usage. Accuracy of this system
is contingent upon a strong and enforced vendor policy, which imposes a
logical, well-defined process that controls vendor access and introduction
of new products.
X marks the spot: Sharpies get thumbs-up for marking surgery sites A bit of good news out of the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry at the University of Alberta for patients undergoing surgery or an invasive procedure, their surgeons and cost-conscious hospital administrators. It’s standard practice for the surgeon or their designate, (in consultation with the patient when possible), to mark the operative/invasive site using a marking pen before an operation, a precaution to ensure surgeons cut the correct spot. But there was concern that germs would be spread from one patient to the next, so it has also become common procedure to throw away the marker each time, costing thousands of dollars a year. Infection control specialists at the U of A, associate professor Dr. Sarah Forgie of the Department of Pediatrics and pediatric infectious diseases resident Dr. Catherine Burton, have shown that the tips of the Sharpies® don’t spread infection since the ink has an alcohol base. This has caught the attention of organizers of a major conference on infectious disease taking place in Washington, D.C., at the end of October. They have invited Burton to share her work with other disease control specialists from around the world. After asking around and finding out that many of the surgical teams in Edmonton liked using Sharpie brand markers, Forgie and Burton decided to put the common, everyday brand to the test along with another brand, the second one a sterile marker specifically intended for single use in operating rooms. In a controlled experiment, marker tips were heavily contaminated with four types of bacteria that can cause surgical site infections; two of the germ types are of particular concern in hospitals since they are antibiotic-resistant, Burton explained. After recapping the markers and letting them sit for 24 hours, Burton and Forgie found that the sterile, one-use marker, which has a non-alcohol-base ink, was still contaminated. But the Sharpies were not. In
collecting an extremely large number of germs on the markers during their
experiment, “we went much further than what would happen in real life,” said
Forgie. She is confident that the marking tip of Sharpies does not pose a
risk of bacterial transmission. As long as the rest of the pen is cleaned
with an alcohol swab between patients (just as is done with stethoscopes),
the Sharpies do not need to be discarded after each use. Safety is the
priority, and in this case it can be done economically, Forgie said.
Read the original article.
Comprehensive tax reform could play important role in creating healthcare reform A proposal to implement a value-added tax for universal health insurance vouchers would also provide for significant decreases in other taxes, according to the authors of a commentary in the October 22/29 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on the Health of the Nation. They add that this plan would create incentives for cost-containment and healthcare quality. Samuel Y. Sessions, M.D., J.D., of the Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, Torrance, CA, presented the commentary at a JAMA media briefing at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. Dr. Sessions and co-author Philip R. Lee, M.D., of the University of California, San Francisco, write that the complex variety of healthcare funding sources has left U.S. healthcare finance in disarray. “It is time to consider a thorough overhaul of this non-system. The goal would be not only to strengthen healthcare finance for its own sake, but also to achieve fundamental reform of healthcare. In other words, along with a small but increasing number of other commentators, we contend that comprehensive tax reform could be a powerful driver of healthcare reform.” “The 60 percent of U.S. healthcare costs financed by taxes equals 10 percent of U.S. gross national product or more than one-third of federal and state tax revenues,” they added. The authors propose, building on the work of Ezekiel J. Emanuel, M.D., Ph.D., and Victor R. Fuchs, Ph.D., a value-added tax (VAT) to finance a system of universal health insurance vouchers. “Insurers would be required to accept any applicant presenting a voucher regardless of health status. Risk adjustment, possibly with a backup reinsurance pool, would protect them against adverse selection. Households could purchase additional insurance, but with after-tax dollars only; the subsidy for employer-provided insurance would be repealed. Medicaid would be phased out under a set schedule. Medicare would also be phased out by not adding new enrollees and by allowing Medicare beneficiaries already enrolled to opt into the new system if they wanted to do so.” Substituting VAT revenues for income taxes now used to pay for healthcare would make it possible both to remove many U.S. households from the income tax entirely and to institute significantly lower tax rates for the remainder. Also, many incomes would increase by the amount of premiums no longer paid by employers or employees.
“Because families and individuals would be able to choose freely among
healthcare insurers, insurers would have to compete to secure and retain
their customer base. This would weaken incentives to focus on cost-shifting
gamesmanship and strengthen incentives to pursue customer satisfaction and
long-term and short-term healthcare quality. It would also require
establishing working relationships motivated by the same goals with
individuals and institutions directly providing healthcare.”
Read more about it.
HPN Blogline: Response to “Tap water versus bottled water” article In response to the Los Angeles Times article “Bottled water versus tap: Which is safer to drink?” reprinted in your Daily Update newsletter, I respectfully ask you consider the following: “Dr. Janssen and the NRDC’s laudable agenda of improving public water systems is ill served by attacking the bottled water industry. The mantra of “tap water is just as good or better” - repeated often - will require return scrutiny of what we actually get out of the 55,000 different municipal systems in our country. Much of what is known is not all that pleasant. I could begin to detail the low standards and lax regulation of tap water by the EPA instead of the more rigorous requirements imposed on bottled water by the FDA...” To
read the complete response and to post your own comments, visit HPN
blogline: http://hpnblogline.blogspot.com
October 22, 2008 Download print version
Walgreen Co. to acquire specialty pharmacy business
from McKesson Corporation
2008
national survey reveals vast majority of healthcare facilities have poor
patient flow Federal safety regulators to issue crib durability standards Failing 125-year-old Lincoln Park Hospital cited for violations, to close Lilly taking $1.4 billion charge over inquiries Some cut back on prescription drugs in sour economy Carraway Hospital closing its doors after 100 years FDA warning on transvaginal placement of surgical mesh
Novation reusable sharps container survey reveals greater
acceptance Walgreen Co. to acquire specialty pharmacy business from McKesson Corporation Walgreen Co. announced a definitive agreement in which Walgreens will acquire McKesson Corporation’s specialty pharmacy, which is a business within McKesson’s Specialty division. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed. The acquisition will further strengthen Walgreens position as the fourth-largest specialty pharmacy in the country. Subject to satisfaction of customary conditions, the parties expect the transaction to close within 60 days. For more information visit here.
2008 national survey reveals vast majority of healthcare facilities have poor patient flow StatCom announced the findings of the 2008 National Survey on Patient Flow Challenges and Technologies, an independent, nationwide survey of more than 200 healthcare executives. According to the findings, the overwhelming majority of U.S. healthcare executives (89 percent) reveal their facility has poor patient flow. While healthcare executives agree there is poor patient flow in their facility, they also reveal the following issues at the root of this problem: Poor communication (67 percent); Ineffective scheduling of activities and resources (36 percent); Lack of beds (36 percent); Lack of staff to help facilitate patient flow (34 percent); Poor centralized knowledge about the location and status of each patient (32 percent) Surprisingly, more healthcare executives reveal in 2008 that they have not implemented a patient flow system at their facility (56 percent) compared to 50 percent in 2007. Regarding the use of technology, it was nearly an even split with 52 percent of healthcare executives saying their facility utilizes bed management technology and 48 percent saying they rely on other methods. The current use of bed management technology shows a 12 percent increase from the previous year. In 2007, 60 percent of healthcare executive respondents said there was no bed management software or technology within their facilities. To help track patient status, U.S. healthcare executives say they are currently considering technologies such as bar-coding (62 percent), patient tracking software (38 percent), tablets or PDAs (33 percent), RFID (29 percent), inpatient scheduling modules (23 percent) and other technologies (12 percent). StatCom’s 2008 National Survey on Patient Challenges and Technologies was designed to capture the thoughts and opinions held by U.S. healthcare executives on issues facing their facilities regarding patient flow and technology. Results of the study can be downloaded at http://www.statcom.com/survey/national-survey-2008.aspx.
Federal safety regulators to issue crib durability standards After two infant deaths triggered the recall of 1.6 million cribs Monday, federal safety regulators are moving to address a longstanding gap in crib safety regulations: durability standards. The Consumer Product Safety Commission plans to issue new regulations that deal with the hardware problems that have been at the center of five recent crib recalls and contributed to the deaths of at least two other children. Hardware can become worn down over time, unbeknownst to parents, who often reuse cribs, sell or pass them on – sometimes without all the parts or instructions. The two deaths, one in May 2007 and the other in July, that led to this week's recall by Delta Enterprise of New York City involved used cribs, CPSC spokeswoman Julie Vallese said. Certain crib parts, such as mattress supports and side rails, are tested to meet durability standards. But the standards need to be more comprehensive and stringent, consumer advocates and federal safety regulators said. CPSC officials did not say how long it would take to issue a crib durability standard. Cribs with drop sides are more likely to have hardware problems, the CPSC said. Drop sides can be moved up and down, usually along a track, to make it easier to get a child in and out of a crib. A CPSC analysis of more than 1,000 reports of potential crib failures over the past year found that in many cases the drop-side corners came off the tracks or hardware that is supposed to stop the side from moving failed to work. And the problems can get worse without parents noticing, as a baby pushes or leans against the crib. For more information on the Delta crib recalls, consumers can go to http://www.cribrecallcenter.com or call 800-816-5304. (Washington Post) Visit here for the complete story.
Chicago - Lincoln Park Hospital has been in violation of state health and safety codes that put patients at risk and threaten the facility's ability to get federal funding in the future, according to state and federal health records and a national hospital accreditor. The 125-year-old North Side hospital, which is closing in the face of financial troubles, has been operating since at least July despite the violations, which include ineffective communication among staff and inadequate monitoring of patients, according to records. In addition, its policies related to "infant abduction security" were flawed, state health officials said. Separately, the Joint Commission made the rare move last week to deny Lincoln Park Hospital its seal of approval, the organization confirmed Tuesday. In August, a preliminary denial of accreditation was issued, something that happens to less than 1 percent of hospitals. Lincoln Park executives said they "corrected immediate clinical deficiencies" and "worked to develop a plan to bring the building up to standard in the next two years," in a statement Tuesday to the Tribune. "It became clear the total cost of reaching compliance would be at least $7 million dollars, which would include extensive facility upgrades for long term accreditation," the statement added. The allegations are serious and would have to be addressed by the new owner should a buyer emerge and want to maintain the hospital as a healthcare facility, the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said. The current owner, Merit Health Systems of Louisville, plans to liquidate the equipment and related healthcare operation, company spokesman Joseph Poulos said. Lincoln Park officials a week ago said it filed a letter of intent with the state to close the facility. The hospital discharged its last patient Thursday night, the state Health Department said, adding that the closure plan was proceeding. Despite its location in the nice Lincoln Park neighborhood on the North Side, the hospital faced many challenges, including having nearby community and teaching hospitals that are better capitalized. The hospital also lost $15 million last year on $163 million in annual revenue, according to the latest data available on the American Hospital Directory's Web site. (Chicago Tribune) Visit here for the complete story.
Lilly taking $1.4 billion charge over inquiries Eli Lilly & Company will record a $1.4 billion charge in the third quarter, related to allegations of improper marketing of its top-selling schizophrenia drug, Zyprexa, and is in advanced talks to resolve the investigations, the company said on Tuesday. The company has faced long-running accusations by various states that it improperly marketed Zyprexa to patients who were not approved users and that it played down side effects like weight gain, which can increase the risk of diabetes. While doctors are free to prescribe drugs in any way they see fit, drug companies may promote them only for uses approved by federal health regulators. The United States attorney’s office in Philadelphia began an investigation into the matter in 2004, and Lilly received a grand jury subpoena for Zyprexa-related documents last November, the company said. If the discussions are successfully concluded, the company said it expected it would settle the Zyprexa-related federal claims as well as the Medicaid-related claims. It said the $1.4 billion charge reflected its “currently estimable exposure” with respect to the claims. (NY Times) Visit here for the complete story.
Some cut back on prescription drugs in sour economy For the first time in at least a decade, the nation’s consumers are trying to get by on fewer prescription drugs. As people around the country respond to financial and economic hard times by juggling the cost of necessities like groceries and housing, drugs are sometimes having to wait. On Tuesday, the drug giant Pfizer, which makes Lipitor, the world’s top-selling prescription medicine, said United States sales of that drug were down 13 percent in the third quarter of this year. Through August of this year, the number of all prescriptions dispensed in the United States was lower than in the first eight months of last year, according to a recent analysis of data from IMS Health, a research firm that tracks prescriptions. Although other forces are also in play, like safety concerns over some previously popular drugs and the transition of some prescription medications to over-the-counter sales, many doctors and other experts say consumer belt-tightening is a big factor in the prescription downturn. The trend, if it continues, could have potentially profound implications. If enough people try to save money by forgoing drugs, controllable conditions could escalate into major medical problems. That could eventually raise the nation’s total healthcare bill and lower the nation’s standard of living. Although the overall decline in prescriptions in the IMS Health data was less than 1 percent, it was the first downturn after more than a decade of steady increases in prescriptions, as new drugs came on the market and the population aged. Overall spending in the United States for prescription drugs is still the highest in the world, an estimated $286.5 billion last year. But that number makes up only about 10 percent of this country’s total health expenditures of $2.26 trillion. Pharmaceutical companies have long been among those arguing that drugs are a cost-effective way to stave off other, higher medical costs. The recent prescription cutbacks come even as the drug industry was already heading toward the “generic cliff,” as it is known — an approaching period when a number of blockbuster drugs are scheduled to lose patent protection. Already, a migration to generic drugs means that 60 percent of prescriptions over all are filled by off-brand versions of drugs. But with money tight, even cheaper generic drugs may not always be affordable drugs. (NY Times) For the complete story visit here. Editor’s Note: For another article on a related topic from The Wall Street Journal, “Patients Seek Financial Aid to Buy Medicine”, visit here.
Carraway Hospital closing its doors after 100 years Birmingham - Physicians Medical Center Carraway is closing after 100 years and filed for bankruptcy protection Monday to liquidate the assets. Hospital leaders told employees and doctors the facility would close by Oct. 31, with most patients discharged or transferred to other hospitals by this Friday. The emergency department closed Monday and new patients were not admitted. This is the second bankruptcy for the hospital. A group of 52 local doctors bought Carraway Methodist Medical Center at a bankruptcy auction in November 2006 and attempted to revive the struggling healthcare institution. But they suffered from too little operating capital and too few patients. Neighborhood leaders bemoaned the impending loss of the anchor in Birmingham's Norwood community. Employees, physicians and doctors-in-training at Physicians Carraway scrambled Monday to figure out their next step. In recent weeks, Kuruvilla George, vice president of operations, bought $9,000 worth of medicine with his personal credit card to stock the hospital because vendors were accepting only cash and the hospital didn't have any. He was repaid Monday morning, before the bankruptcy filing, he said. At the bankruptcy hearing Monday, the judge approved a $3.5 million budget for the hospital to pay employees this Friday and Oct. 31 and fund a third week to allow for final shutdown procedures. The money will come from patient revenues that continue to come in. The hospital employs about 1,000 people but is expected to shrink that number rapidly and keep only those needed to treat the patients who remain. The hospital is licensed for 617 beds but has staffed for about 200 daily hospitalized patients. In recent weeks, however, the number of daily patients has slipped below 100. Patrick Darby, an attorney for Physicians Carraway, told the judge the money was crucial to protect the remaining patients, which he said was the first priority for the hospital's owner and landlord. The hospital had 88 patients Monday morning and was down to 56 by Monday evening. (Birmingham News) Visit here for the complete story.
FDA warning on transvaginal placement of surgical mesh FDA informed healthcare professionals of serious complications associated with transvaginal placement of surgical mesh in repair of pelvic organ prolapse (POP) and stress urinary incontinence (SUI). Over the past three years, FDA has received over 1,000 reports from nine surgical mesh manufacturers of complications that were associated with surgical mesh devices used to repair POP and SUI. The most frequent complications included erosion, infection, pain, urinary problems, and recurrence of prolapse and/or incontinence. There were also reports of bowel, bladder, and blood vessel perforation during insertion. In some cases, vaginal scarring and mesh erosion led to a significant decrease in patient quality of life due to discomfort and pain, including dyspareunia. FDA provided recommended actions for both physicians and patients to reduce the risks. Read the entire 2008 MedWatch Safety Summary here.
Novation reusable sharps container survey reveals greater acceptance of product Recently, Novation conducted a reusable sharps container survey to capture thoughts regarding the containers. Members from VHA Inc. and University HealthSystem Consortium (UHC) participated in the survey, including materials managers, facilities executives, infection control, medical/surgical nurses and risk management officers. The survey revealed a sharp contrast to the results of its 2006 survey. Of the respondents, fully 60 percent reported that they believe the product is safe, compared to only 38 percent in 2006. “Dispelling the ‘ick-Factor’ of reusable sharps containers has been an educational focus of Novation since our last survey in 2006,” said Jay DeLuca, Novation vice president contract and program services, med/surg distribution contracts. Survey highlights include: Only eight percent of respondents feel sharps containers are not safe. In 2006, 23 percent said the same; Cleanliness of the product is the number one reason why respondents do not feel the product is safe; 51 percent of current disposable sharps containers users would consider switching to a reusable product if it was part of the facility’s environmental sustainability initiatives.
Reducing costs is the number one reason for those currently using reusable
containers. Those that do not use reusable containers said environmental
factors would be the number one reason to switch. For more information on
Novation, visit
www.novationco.com.
October
21, 2008
Download print version
Experts predict next epidemic will start in animals
Children’s Hospital first in California to offer private
NICU rooms
Private cleaners barred in war on hospital bugs
Ascent adds reusable ablation cables to approved products
program to help hospitals reduce
environmental impact and save resources
HPN to recognize "Supply Chain-Focused CEOs" in January 2009
edition Amerinet announces agreements with Bioseal and
Falcon Distribution
Experts predict next epidemic will start in
animals
A report by
the non-profit Trust for
America's
Health, to be released next week, asserts that infectious
diseases from the developing world are anything but "a
back-burner concern." The report, "Germs Go Global: Why
Emerging Infectious Diseases Are a Threat to America," cites
National Intelligence Estimates that conclude outbreaks of new
and resurgent infectious diseases, many of which "originate
overseas," kill more than 170,000 people in the U.S. each
year. The death toll would climb much higher in the event of a
new global pandemic or bioterror attack. Infectious diseases,
the report concludes, have become "a matter of national
security." The
leaders of Google.org, Google's philanthropic arm, regard the threat as so
pressing that the organization today gave out $15 million in grants to
epidemic investigators. Google's goal is to exploit technology —
high-resolution satellite imagery, powerful computers and ultra-fast genetic
analysis — to identify "hot spots" where new infectious diseases might
emerge, detect and identify new microbes and establish early-warning
networks in developing countries so that local authorities can stamp out
outbreaks before they go global. Ever
since Surgeon General William Stewart famously declared in the late 1960s
that it was time "to close the book" on infectious disease, new outbreaks
have come in waves, among them: Legionnaire's disease, hantavirus,
West Nile
virus, bird flu, salmonella, drug-resistant tuberculosis and AIDS. One of
the scariest diseases is bird flu, H5N1, which has killed millions of birds
but few people. That's no reason to write it off. Of 387 people infected as
of Sept. 10, WHO reports, 245 have died. How
to avert the next big one? That's one of many questions on the agenda this
month at a joint meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America and
the Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy in
Washington,
D.C. To get
answers, public health experts are expanding research into how outbreaks get
their start. A study in the journal Nature in February offers a
critical clue. Researchers analyzed 335 outbreaks worldwide between 1940 and
2004. More than 60% of epidemics, including HIV and SARS, began when a germ
leapt from wildlife into humans. What
may be most surprising is that germs don't make the leap more often. "There
are 50,000 vertebrate species," says Peter Daszak of
Columbia
University,
an author of the Nature study. "If you assume each one has 20 unknown
viruses, that makes a million unknown viruses in wildlife." Opportunities
for microbes and humans to mingle are growing, he says, thanks to global
warming, deforestation, urban crowding and the encroachment of humans and
animals into one another's habitats. Given the likelihood the next epidemic
will start in animals, human and veterinary infectious disease experts, once
worlds apart, have conceptually merged their approach into what they call
"one health."
Chikungunya may well become the next epidemic to reach the
US.
Carrying an African name that roughly means "bent over," chikungunya is a
mosquito-borne illness that causes severe flu-like symptoms and muscle aches
that may last a lifetime. In the past two years, the disease traveled from
East Africa to French-speaking islands in the
Indian Ocean,
afflicting 266,000 people, swamping hospitals and causing 255 deaths, said
Antoine Flahault of the L'Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Santé Publique in
Paris, who
coordinated the research into the island outbreaks. From
there, the virus leapt to the Indian mainland, infecting more than 1.5
million people and killing up to 90,000, most of them elderly. Today, it is
making its way through Southeast Asia, aided by a genetic mutation that
enabled it to adapt to the tiger mosquito, also found in the
US. In
August, chikungunya turned up in
Ravenna,
Italy, a
city on the same latitude as
Bangor,
Maine,
carried by a South Indian man who was visiting relatives, according to a
report in Lancet. Tiger mosquitoes in
Ravenna
feasted on the visitor and caused a local outbreak, spreading the disease to
more than 250 people.
Researchers from the University of
Marseille reported last year in The New England Journal of Medicine
that chikungunya turned up in more than 1,000 people returning from outbreak
areas to Europe and
the US. "It
clearly has the ability to come to the
U.S.," said
Larry Madoff of ProMed and
Harvard
University.
(USA Today) Visit
here for the complete article. For
a related article, “Plague emerges in
Grand Canyon,
kills biologist” from USA Today, see
THIS LINK.
Questions continue about using beta blockers before
surgery; A
new study adds to doubts about using beta blockers to reduce the risks of
surgery. The death rate for people given beta blockers before non-cardiac
surgery was 10 times higher in the 30 days after an operation than for those
not getting the drugs (2.52 percent vs. 0.25 percent), according to a report
in the October issue of the Archives of Surgery. The incidence of
heart attacks was four times higher (2.94 percent vs. 0.74 percent).
"This is very much in line with the latest publications showing that one has
to be very careful in using them," said study co-author Dr. Kamal Itani,
chief of surgery at the Veterans Affairs Boston Health Care System and a
professor of surgery at Boston University. Beta
blockers are commonly given before surgery to reduce cardiac risk by slowing
the heartbeat. The Boston study found that the risk of problems was
concentrated in those whose heart rates remained high despite beta-blocker
treatment. The
new results differ somewhat from those of a major international study
reported earlier this year. The POISE study of 8,351 people having
non-cardiac surgery found a 27 percent reduction in heart attacks but an
overall 33 percent higher death rate for those getting beta blockers. The
important point is to be sure that the target heartbeat rate is achieved,
Itani said. The American College of
Cardiology recommends 50 beats to 60 beats per minute before surgery, not to
exceed 80 beats per minute, he noted. "Those patients who do not have the
target rate going into surgery will not do as well," Itani said. "Giving the
drugs without achieving the full potential might be dangerous." But
the study indicates that the guidelines "need to be revisited," said Dr.
Jeffrey H. Peters, chief of surgery at the University of Rochester, NY.
"This paper adds to a growing body of evidence suggesting that the routine
use of beta blockers to reduce cardiac morbidity in surgery needs to be
reconsidered," Peters said.
Another paper published in the Oct. 28 issue of the Journal of the
American College of Cardiology raises doubts about the use of beta
blockers to control high blood pressure. Analysis of data from nine
controlled trials found a higher incidence of deaths, heart attacks, strokes
and heart failure for people whose heart rate was lowered by beta-blocker
treatment, said the report from cardiologists at Columbia University College
of Physicians and Surgeons. (HealthDay News)
Children’s Hospital first in California to offer private
NICU rooms
Children’s Hospital Central California debuted its new Neonatal Intensive
Care Unit expansion featuring private rooms, a first in
California. Now
parents of Children’s NICU patients will be able to remain at their
premature baby’s bedside throughout their stay, bonding and participating in
their care. This
expansion of Children’s NICU includes 21 private and 2 semi-private
rooms. The semi-private rooms house two babies and can be used for parents
who have twins. Each room has a private bathroom, a sleeping couch for
parents, and full equipment to care for a premature infant. The rooms
provide parents with privacy and comfort not always found in a standard NICU. The
private rooms with the ability to sleep-in offer a level of comfort that
encourages mothers to stay longer at their child’s bedside. This helps to
develop and support parent/child bonding by providing an environment where
the baby and parents can interact like they would at home. The private rooms
also eliminate some of the interruptions that visiting hours, shift changes,
or proximity to other parents can provide.
Children’s NICU provides 24 hour coverage by board certified neonatologists
with consultations from medical and surgical subspecialists. In addition,
care is provided by NICU nurses that are part of the broader Children’s
Nursing team that has just been re-designated with the distinguished Magnet
Nursing Award. Children’s NICU supports almost 1,000 neonatal cases and
cares for 20,000 patient days annually. For more click
here.
Private cleaners barred in war on hospital bugs Scotland's
hospitals are to be banned from contracting out cleaning and catering
services to private firms as part of a new drive towards cutting the spread
of deadly superbugs in the NHS. In a speech to the SNP conference in Perth,
Scottish
Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon announced that each of Scotland's 14 health
authorities is to be barred from outsourcing cleaning and catering, and will
in future be responsible for such services in-house as part of a bid to
reduce infections such as MRSA and Clostridium difficile. Last
year there were 6,430 cases of C. difficile infections in
Scotland,
of which 597 proved fatal. The problem was highlighted by an outbreak of the
infection earlier this year at the Vale of Leven hospital in Dunbartonshire
which affected 55 people. The infection was identified as either the cause
of, or a contributory factor in, the death of 18 patients. That led to
accusations in the Scottish Parliament that Sturgeon had failed to act
quickly enough to tackle the outbreak.
Although rates of MRSA are falling, she said the
Scottish
government is determined to tackle C. difficile by setting a new target for
health authorities to reduce the rate of infection by at least 30 percent
within three years. In a
bid to help health boards achieve the target, £2m will be paid to the
authorities as part of a proposed £54m package allocated for combating
Healthcare Acquired Infections over the next three years, including the
funding of a national MRSA screening program, prudent prescribing of
antibiotics and greater compliance with hand-washing rules. The new target
will force the health authorities to let contracts with existing suppliers
run out and prevent them from entering into any extensions or new
arrangements.
Sturgeon has already introduced plans to give senior charge nurses the same
responsibility for ward hygiene as matrons used to have. (Guardian) For more
click
here.
Ascent adds reusable ablation cables to approved products
program to help hospitals reduce environmental impact and save resources
Ascent Healthcare Solutions has added reusable ablation cables to its
extensive product offering for the treatment and management of cardiac
arrhythmias. Under a new Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulation,
hospitals are required to run their EtO sterilizers at full capacity except
in medically necessary circumstances. Ascent offers hospitals a
cost-effective sterilization option that eliminates any threat to the ozone
layer from harmful ethylene oxide (EtO) emissions.
Ascent extended its offering to add reusable ablation cables at the request
of hospitals that do not want the added expense and workflow demands of
purchasing, storing and maintaining significantly more expensive original
cables to ensure they have an adequate supply on hand. Many of Ascent's
environmentally responsible hospital partners have already responded to
global environmental concerns about the impact of EtO emissions by moving
away from in-house EtO sterilization and choosing third party
re-sterilization facilities, which also reduces their solid and hazardous
waste. EtO tonnage dropped from 1,000 in 1995 to just 135 in 2005; however,
some medical devices such as ablation cables cannot be sterilized using
alternate methods. Unlike most hospital sterilizers, Ascent's
state-of-the-art, validated EtO sterilizers capture and recycle all EtO
emissions.
Using validated cleaning, testing and packaging procedures, Ascent
re-sterilizes reusable ablation cables according to the original equipment
manufacturer's instructions. The highest quality is ensured through
lead-to-lead continuity testing on 100 percent of the re-sterilized cables.
www.ascenths.com
HPN to recognize "Supply Chain-Focused CEOs" in January
2009 edition Many
industries outside of healthcare recognize and respect the value that
effective and efficient supply chain management contributes to the top and
bottom lines. Among healthcare providers, such recognition and support is
growing, slowly but surely, from the top post in the executive suite.
That’s why Healthcare Purchasing News launched its yearly search for "supply
chain focused CEOs four years ago. We wanted to locate forward-thinking men
and women to share their insights with you, and you’ve helped us do that. In
fact, we’ve profiled of 13 of them already since January 2005.
Well, it’s that time of the year again – time to nominate noteworthy
hospital presidents/CEOs for HPN’s 5th Annual "S.U.R.E. Award for Supply
Chain Focused CEOs" award. We’re looking to recognize chief executives who
support, understand, recognize and empower the materials management
department to do what needs to be done to achieve bottom-line savings and
top-line revenue. We
ask you, our dedicated and loyal readers, to recommend worthy candidates for
recognition in our January 2009 edition by e-mailing us reasons how and why
your CEO deserves the spotlight – no more than a couple of paragraphs are
needed for each of the four S.U.R.E. categories listed above that comprise
the "SURE"
acronym. Please describe how and why he or she supports, how and why he or
she understands, how and why he or she recognizes and how and why he or she
empowers the materials management department and its top executive. For
your nomination to qualify, please be sure to comply with the following
rules: 1.
Any nomination must be original and exclusive to HPN and not have been
submitted – either original or edited – to any other publication or online
media outlet currently or within the previous year. 2.
GPO and distributor support is commendable, but we’re looking for internally
driven details beyond GPO- and distributor-driven contributions, including
outsourcing operations to a GPO or distributor. 3.
Any nominated executive (or nominator) must be willing to share relevant
basic financial details with our readers – specifically annual revenues,
annual expenses and annual purchasing volume. 4.
Only administrators/CEOs are eligible for consideration – not COOs or
executive/senior vice presidents. Help
us share the stories of these remarkable CEOs in our January 2009 edition so
that the industry may learn from them and be inspired. Thanks in advance.
E-mail us your nominations
by Friday, November 7, to
editor@hpnonline.com
Bottled water versus tap: Which is safer to drink?
Both have their risks,
Those ubiquitous plastic water bottles have been increasingly vilified in
recent years. Los Angeles, San Francisco and Santa Barbara, CA, among
others, have banned them from purchase with city funds. A few restaurants,
and even some markets and hotels, have banned them too. The trend has left
many consumers wondering: Isn't bottled safer than tap? Tap
water suppliers are also required by law to publish and circulate an annual
Consumer Confidence Report, which states their sources of water and any
contaminants found. The FDA doesn't require this of bottled-water makers,
and though inspectors can drop in on water-bottling plants, such visits are
assigned low priority, FDA press officer Michael Herndon said. Companies
also aren't required to share any contamination episodes with their
customers.
Amerinet announces agreements with Bioseal and
Falcon Distribution
Amerinet Inc., a national healthcare group purchasing organization,
announces a new agreement with Bioseal Corporation (Bioseal) for specialty
sterilization services for various medical devices and products. Effective,
October 1, 2008, through September 30, 2010, the contract offers access to
Bioseal’s cost-effective customized packaging and sterilization services for
single-use items used in the operating room. Their services can help
eliminate facility labor and replace in-house put ups.
Amerinet also announces a new agreement with Falcon Distribution. Effective,
October 1, 2008, through
September 30, 2009,
the agreement offers Amerinet members in the
Texas
region access to savings on a wide variety of medical surgical products
through Falcon.
October
20, 2008
Download print version
Novation announces appointment of Jody Hatcher as interim president
HHS
preparing to open FDA offices in China, India, Europe, and Latin America
this year
Patient sues after assault in the ER
Medicaid spending projected to rise much faster than the economy
Ex-R.I.
hospital executive wants convictions overturned
British GPs paid not to refer patients to hospital
FDA
safety concerns and labeling changes for psoriasis drug Raptiva
International Infection Prevention Week (IIPW)
Novation announces appointment of Jody
Hatcher as interim president
Novation
announced late Friday that Joellyn Willis, who was serving as
president, has left the company to pursue other interests and
Jody Hatcher is assuming the role of interim president,
effective immediately.
Hatcher is a long-time leader at Novation, with nearly 20 years of
experience working on behalf of VHA and UHC members. Hatcher has served as
senior vice president leading key business areas, including: strategic
sourcing, research, strategic planning, comparative analysis, custom
services, regional contracting services, business development, alliance
linkages, information technology, operational improvement and
marketing. Hatcher also is a highly-visible figure within the larger
healthcare group purchasing sector, working to raise awareness about the
important value GPOs provide hospitals.
HHS
preparing to open FDA offices in China, India, Europe, and Latin America
this year
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will send the first U.S.
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) staff to China, India, Europe, and Latin
America before the end of 2008, HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt announced.
“We’re making steady progress to better safeguard our supply of food and
medicines, though much work remains,” Secretary Leavitt said. “Increasing
our presence overseas will provide greater protections to American consumers
at home and benefit our host countries as well,” he added.
The first overseas office will be in China, its second overseas office in
the Republic of India. In both nations, personnel would work closely with
local authorities as well as industries that ship food and medical products
to the U.S. to improve safety efforts. Their activities will include
providing technical advice, conducting additional inspections, and working
with government agencies and private sector entities interested in
developing certification programs.
HHS/FDA will also be opening overseas offices in Europe and with in the
Middle East. Department officials are also working with Belize, Costa Rica,
the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua
and Panama on product safety. Their collaborations could include
information-sharing on their respective regulatory systems and joint
workshops and training on the safety of food and medical products. The
parties will also make efforts to find opportunities for joint training for
food-borne illnesses and the oversight of food traded internationally.
More information on efforts to improve import safety, including the new
report “Import Safety – Action Plan Update,” is available at
www.importsafety.gov.
A
former Sinai Hospital patient is suing the hospital and a security guard for
$77 million after he says he was assaulted in the emergency room on Labor
Day. Felony assault and attempted-murder charges had been filed against the
guard but the state's attorney's office intends to reduce those charges to
misdemeanors, the patient's attorney said yesterday. The case goes to trial
today.
The security guard, Timothy Hough, filed second-degree assault charges
against the patient, Gerrod Lewis, on Sept. 2. Sinai Hospital spokeswoman
Sandra Crockett said in a statement that it was unfortunate that the
incident occurred, but "Officer Timothy Hough was defending himself against
a violent and out-of-control patient." He remains on staff at the hospital.
According to court documents, Lewis was in an exam room at Baltimore’s Sinai
Hospital on September 1 when an emergency room technician told him to remove
his earring. Lewis said he did not want to, and Hough repeated the
instruction. Lewis alleges in his suit that when the technician left the
room and Lewis turned his head, Hough began to beat him on the head and
body. Lewis suffered injuries to his head and eye, including nasal and
orbital fractures, said the patient's attorney, Quinton M. Herbert.
(Baltimore Sun) Visit
here for the complete story.
Under current law, spending on Medicaid is expected to substantially outpace
the rate of growth in the U.S. economy over the next decade, according to a
new annual report released by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
(CMS). The report projects that Medicaid benefits spending will increase 7.3
percent from 2007 to 2008, reaching $339 billion and will grow at an annual
average rate of 7.9 percent over the next 10 years, reaching $674 billion by
2017. That compares to a projected rate of growth of 4.8 percent in the
general economy.
At this rate, Medicaid growth is projected to slightly exceed growth in
overall healthcare expenditures, which is projected by CMS actuaries and
economists to increase by 6.7 percent per year over the next 10 years, or
over twice the rate of general inflation. Additionally, Medicaid’s share of
the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is projected to reach about three percent
in 2017. The combined share of GDP spending for Medicare and Medicaid is
projected to be 6.9 percent by 2017.
As a partnership program, both states and the federal government pay for
services to Medicaid beneficiaries. The federal government matches state
expenditures based on a formula that yields subsidies ranging from 50
percent to as high as 83 percent. The average federal medical assistance
percentage is 57 percent.
Other findings from the report include: average Medicaid enrollment is
projected to increase 1.8 percent to 50 million people in 2008 and is
projected to reach 55.1 million by 2017; the estimated average cost of a
person covered by Medicaid in 2007 is $6,120; however, per-enrollee spending
for non-disabled children ($2,435) and adults ($3,586) was much lower than
that for aged ($14,058) and disabled beneficiaries ($14,858), reflecting the
differing health status of these groups.
The full report can be viewed
here.
Ex-R.I.
hospital executive wants convictions overturned
PROVIDENCE - A former hospital president found guilty of buying the
influence of a state senator has asked a judge to throw out the convictions,
saying prosecutors presented "innocent evidence in a negative light" and the
case should never have gone to a jury.
Lawyers for Robert Urciuoli said in court papers filed Wednesday that
federal prosecutors didn't present evidence to support his convictions
earlier this month of one count of conspiracy and 35 counts of mail fraud.
They say the government's case was built on speculation and inferences that
"invited the jury to fill in the blanks." A
jury convicted Urciuoli, the former president and chief executive officer of
Roger Williams Medical Center, of hiring former state senator John Celona to
do the hospital's bidding at the State House. Defense attorneys said there
was ample evidence that Celona was hired to do legitimate consulting and
community outreach work for a senior center affiliated with the medical
center. They said they clearly showed that Urciuoli had been assured by
lawyers for the hospital and by the state Ethics Commission that the
relationship was legal. (Boston Globe – Associated Press) Visit
here for the complete story
British GPs paid not to refer patients to hospital A
scheme that pays bonuses to GPs for not referring patients to hospital has
branded "absolutely ridiculous" by a patient group. Oxfordshire Primary Care
Trust (PCT) has introduced a policy which means doctors' surgeries can be
rewarded for reviewing and reducing referral rates. An average sized
practice can earn up to £20,000 extra per year. If doctors hit their
targets, Oxfordshire PCT would pay out £1.2m, but it said that was justified
because increasing hospital referrals were costing the trust £6m.
The number of patients referred to Oxford Radcliffe Hospital NHS Trust and
Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre NHS Trust is up by 8%. The payment is for the
time it takes to do the review and a bonus if they manage to bring the
referral rates down. Surgery practices with 10,000 patients will get £10,000
to review referral procedures, and up to £10,000 more for reducing rates.
Sue Woollacott, chairman of the Nuffield patient support group, said: "I
think it's absolutely ridiculous. It seems to imply that GPs aren't
presently making good judgements and need financial incentives in order to
do that.”
Dr Laurence Buckman, chairman of the British Medical Association's GP
Committee, said: "I don't think that patients' services should be treated as
a commodity which is incentivised if you don't do something.
Shadow Health Secretary Andrew Lansley said: "It is inefficient and
unethical to pay GPs to refer fewer patients to hospital. It would be so
much better if GPs, not bureaucrats, had responsibility for their patients
budgets.” A
spokesman for the Department of Health said parts of the country had
experienced a big increase in referrals to hospital by GPs. (BBC News) Visit
here for the complete story
FDA
safety concerns and labeling changes for psoriasis drug Raptiva
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced labeling changes,
including a boxed warning, to highlight the risks of life-threatening
infections with the use of Raptiva (efalizumab). FDA is also requiring the
drug’s manufacturer to submit a Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS),
which will include a Medication Guide for patients and a timetable for
assessment of the REMS.
Raptiva is a once-weekly injection approved for adults with moderate to
severe plaque psoriasis who are candidates for systemic (whole body) therapy
or phototherapy (treatment with light) to control their psoriasis. It is
manufactured by Genentech Inc. of San Francisco, CA.
FDA has received reports of serious infections leading to hospitalizations,
and deaths in some cases, in people who use Raptiva. The now-required boxed
warning will highlight the risk of bacterial sepsis, viral meningitis,
invasive fungal disease, progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML),
and other infections. PML is a rare but life-threatening disorder that
affects the central nervous system.’’ Visit
here for
more information
International Infection Prevention Week (IIPW)
International Infection
Prevention Week (IIPW) is October 19-25. Throughout the country
and the world, the spotlight is on infection preventionists as they conduct
education, health fairs, and a variety of special activities in their
facilities to emphasize critical infection prevention practices. Annually,
APIC pursues both congressional and state proclamations, conducts media
outreach, and convenes a commemorative event that
is webcast live. Visit
here for more information. |
