Healthcare Risk Management – November 1, 2008
November 1, 2008
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Hospital agrees to pay $89 million in False Claims Act settlement
A False Claims Act (FCA) settlement totaling $89 million is ringing alarm bells in health care institutions across the country, reminding risk managers that improper billing and coding or even carelessness that gives the impression of fraud can result in a huge monetary loss when all is revealed to the feds. -
Widow, doctor blew whistle on SIUH
The $89 million settlement by Staten Island University Hospital (SIUH) was prompted when two people one the widow of a cancer patient and the other a doctor who saw improper billing sounded the alarm through lawsuits filed under the False Claims Act (FCA). -
Disruptive doctors must know they can get help
Dealing with disruptive physicians is no easy task, even if you recognize the importance of preventing their bullying, abusive behavior. Creating a culture in which such interaction is not tolerated is a good step, but you also must be willing to get physicians help when they need it. -
Manage time with tips that some swear by
The first key to better time management is to realize that the term actually is misleading, says Barry Izsak, a productivity expert in Austin, TX. You can't manage time, but you can manage yourself. -
Safety team cuts birth trauma rates 93%
Any risk manager with hopes of reducing birth trauma rates should look to The Seton Family of Hospitals, based in Austin, TX, for lessons in what can yield dramatic results. -
'Never events' tied to one of six med-mal claims
Four recognized categories of hospital-acquired conditions, "never events" that have received more attention in recent years, make up 12.2% of total medical professional liability costs, according to the 2008 Hospital Professional Liability and Physician Liability Benchmark Analysis released recently by risk management services provider Aon Corp. and the American Society for Healthcare Risk Management (ASHRM), both in Chicago. -
Legal Review & Commentary: Mishandling of fatal lung infection leads to $1.29M settlement in New York
News: A woman presented to the hospital complaining of left shoulder pain, chest pain, vomiting, and nausea. She was diagnosed with pneumonia and treated with IV antibiotics for two weeks, after which she was discharged. -
HIPAA Regulatory Alert: Threat modeling to protect patient information
A health care organization might have in place the best information technology (IT) protections available, but complacency can be a dangerous thing considering the gold mine of personal information stored by a hospital. -
HIPAA Regulatory Alert: HHS fines health system for breach of privacy
On July 15, 2008, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) entered into an agreement with Seattle-based Providence Health & Services to settle potential violations of HIPAA privacy rules. -
HIPAA Regulatory Alert: HHS guidance emphasizes what can be divulged
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has issued new guidance for providers on talking about patients' health information with and in the presence of other parties with an emphasis on what can be discussed. -
HIPAA Regulatory Alert: Privacy hindered by not-so-private hospital rooms
Despite increasing demand for privacy surrounding health information, North American hospitals lag behind European counterparts when it comes to one of the most visible impediments to privacy multibed hospital rooms. -
HIPAA Regulatory Alert: HHS lacking in approach to health info privacy
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) may have given rise to and oversees HIPAA privacy regulations, but according to a report by the General Accounting Office (GAO), the agency's approach to ensuring the privacy of health information still needs some work. -
HIPAA Regulatory Alert: New rule would update rules for etransmissions
On Aug. 22, 2008, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published a proposed rule that would adopt updated versions of the standards for electronic transactions under HIPAA.