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  • No hand hygiene? It could cost you

    At the first sign of nosocomial spread of Acinetobacter baumannii, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Presbyterian took a bold stance. Hospital employees and physicians would be held accountable for their hand hygiene.
  • UPMC's fines policy on hand hygiene

    Non-physician staff. Anyone found to be (a) noncompliant with infection control measures (does not wear appropriate personal protective equipment, observe hand hygiene practices, or clean equipment such as stethoscopes as expected) after being asked to do so and pertaining to MDR Ab patients, or (b) uncooperative with monitoring personnel will be sent home immediately.
  • There's the rub: The risk of sleepy surgeons

    Just as hospitals are set to comply with new restrictions on medical resident hours to reduce fatigue, a leading sleep expert is questioning the schedules that could lead to sleep deprivation among practicing surgeons.
  • Revamped role to mean fewer denials

    At Valley Health System in Ridgewood, NJ, two major goals are to obtain more authorizations and to do them in advance of the inpatient stay or procedure, says Maura Corvino, MSOL, RN, CEN, assistant vice president for emergency services and patient access.
  • ED collections increase by 75% with new tactics

    No one ever asked me for money before," was a common response when registrars started collecting ED copays at Evanston, IL-based NorthShore University HealthSystem, reports Cindy Geaslin, director of patient registration.
  • Incentives may be unfair for ED copay collection

    Rewarding your overall patient access team for ED collections is a more practical approach than rewarding individual staff members, according to Cindy Geaslin, director of patient registration at NorthShore University HealthSystem in Evanston, IL.
  • Give patients a straight answer on out-of-pocket, or they may leave

    How much will I owe for this procedure?" Your response to this seemingly simple question from a patient could be the deciding factor as to whether he or she chooses your facility, says Marcy Quattrochi, manager of financial counseling at NorthShore University HealthSystem in Evanston, IL.
  • Asking for payment? First, give explanation

    When a patient asks what he or she will owe for a procedure, registrars at St. Joseph's Healthcare System in Paterson, NJ, consider the payer contract, procedure code, procedure amount, and patient benefits, says Sandra N. Rivera, RN, BSN, CHAM, director of patient access.
  • Don't wait — Verify patient's coverage

    Payers are asking for more preauthorizations, even for services that previously didn't require them, reports Connie Campbell, director of patient access of Mercy Medical Center in Oshkosh, WI.
  • No last-minute auths — Most are 20 days out

    At Valley Health System in Ridgewood, NJ, patient access staff perform pre-registration up to 20 business days before most scheduled procedures, reports Maura Corvino, MSOL, RN, CEN, assistant vice president for emergency services and patient access.