Articles Tagged With:
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Staphylococcal Prosthetic Valve Endocarditis: Drop the Rifampin? And the Gentamicin?
In a retrospective study, the investigators failed to find evidence of benefit of adjunctive rifampin therapy in patients with staphylococcal prosthetic valve endocarditis. -
Bacteremic Urinary Tract Infection in the Elderly — Sometimes It’s a Guessing Game
In elderly patients with bacteremic urinary tract infection (UTI), symptoms of UTI were present in only one-third of patients, only four-fifths had fever, and just three-fifths had an early diagnosis of UTI. -
Extensive Loss of Health at Six Months in Survivors of COVID-19
A cohort study from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs found many survivors of COVID-19 had significant loss of health six months after their acute illness, with greater risk associated with severity of the acute infection. -
Does Combined Obesity and Depression Treatment Result in Better Quality of Life and Psychosocial Functioning?
This study tracked measures of quality of life and psychosocial functioning in patients participating in a randomized clinical trial with the goal of reducing symptoms of obesity and depression. The authors found that both quality of life and psychosocial functioning significantly increased at six months compared to patients with “care as usual,” but not at 12 months.
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The Safety and Efficacy of Common Herbal and Dietary Supplements in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: Part 1
With an increasing number of diabetes cases, clinicians also are encountering more patients who are turning to complementary and alternative medicine to help control their glucose levels. In a 2015 National Consumer Survey on the Medication Experience and Pharmacist Roles, 35% of 26,157 respondents in the study reported the use of at least one herbal medicine. In all, 3,050 respondents had diabetes, and 41.2% of the respondents reported the use of a dietary supplement.3 The data revealed that respondents with diabetes were associated with higher herbal medicine use when compared to respondents without chronic diseases (41% vs. 34%, P < 0.001). The results also showed that herbal medicine use increased as age increased among the respondents.
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Whistleblower Exception Allows Reporting HIPAA Violations with PHI
Healthcare professionals can find themselves in a quandary when they want to report fraud or other concerns within their organizations because doing so could require disclosure of protected health information. That could seem like a HIPAA violation; fortunately, there is a whistleblower exception that covers this scenario. -
Busy Year for Right of Access Settlements in 2021
The Office for Civil Rights announced its 18th settlement of an enforcement action in its HIPAA Right of Access Initiative on March 26. -
Right of Access Settlements Yield Lessons, Insight on OCR Approach
With nearly 20 settlements so far, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is showing its determination to protect patients’ rights to obtain their medical records from healthcare entities. OCR announced its Right of Access Initiative in 2019 and vowed to “vigorously enforce” patients’ right to access their medical records. OCR continues investigating allegations of improper delays that potentially violated the HIPAA Privacy Rule’s right of access requirements (45 C.F.R. § 164.524). -
Verdict Upheld in Medical Malpractice Trial Despite Juror Bias
This case provides two meaningful lessons about medical malpractice jury trials and related expert witness testimony. -
Damages Award Increased to Reflect Pain and Suffering from Feeding Tube
While it always is necessary to consult with local counsel (as damages analyses can vary by state), this case suggests an expansion of the traditional concept of how courts and experts calculate pain and suffering.