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There is no question about it: Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) violations for recordkeeping are increasing significantly, and companies are getting hit with heavy fines.
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When a health plan, a physician network, and a hospital teamed up to reverse the trend of Medicare hospital readmissions within 30 days of discharge, readmissions dropped by 30% or more over an eight-month period when compared to the readmission rate in the same hospital the previous year.
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When Washington County Health System (now known as Meritus Health) in Hagerstown, MD, first sought to measure the health status of its employees, the results were startling.
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A week or 10 days before patients have an appointment with a physician at Primary Care of Southbury in Danbury, CT, a nurse or medical assistant calls them to determine if they've been following through on their treatment plan and have everything in place for the appointment.
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UnitedHealthcare's post-acute transition program has reduced the average length of stay in skilled nursing facilities by three to five days, depending on the market, for members in the program.
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When CIGNA members being treated by Piedmont Physicians Group in Atlanta are high-risk or noncompliant, Jennifer Farlow, RN, BSN, clinical care coordinator, contacts them and helps them get back on track for regular visits and recommended tests and procedures.
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Who knew what when? At times, you can be put in a tough position because of what a worker tells you. "We are not safety and we can't discipline, so employees tend to tell us more than they would tell others," says Susan L. Zarzycki, RN,COHN,CM, an occupational health manager at Finch Paper LLC in Glens Falls, NY. Here are some common scenarios and how to deal with each:
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As health care organizations tighten their belts to deal with today's health care environment, case managers report working harder with fewer raises and benefits. But, there is hope on the horizon as new opportunities open up for case managers under health care reform, experts say.
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As talk of reimbursement reform and pay for performance escalates and health care stakeholders look at ways to improve patient access and outcomes while reducing waste and costs, payers and providers are joining together to create accountable care organizations (ACOs), partnerships that agree to be accountable for the quality, costs, and overall care of a patient population.
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Use of alcohol-based hand cleansers significantly reduced several common infections and reduced absenteeism in a study of 129 white-collar workers in 2005 to 2006, according to research from the Institute of Hygiene and Environmental Medicine in Greifswald, Germany.
