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With upset, frustrated patients facing high co-pays and deductibles on the one hand, and increasingly complex payer requirements on the other, having happy access staff may seem like an impossible dream.
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A woman presented at the emergency department (ED) complaining of dehydration. She was noticeably confused and had difficulty keeping her balance. The staff determined that she suffered from chronic low sodium. A physician ordered the woman be administered 125 cc sodium every hour. A nurse administered a liter of sodium in less than an hour, causing the woman's serum sodium to increase by 23 mEqs.
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Hospitals are boosting incentives for wellness programs, with the hopes that healthier employees will have lower medical claims and better productivity. That push for greater incentives is likely to continue despite a recent advisory notice cautioning employers not to penalize employees who choose not to participate.
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Mandatory flu shots spark a backlash from health care employees every year, and the publicity over the H1N1 flu virus has prompted more health systems to require vaccination. Nurses in Washington state are resisting, with a union representing 16,000 registered nurses filing a federal lawsuit against MultiCare Health System in Seattle for implementing a mandatory flu vaccination policy.
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Nothing warms the heart of a plaintiff's attorney more than seeing the co-defendants turn on each other.
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Things can get ugly in malpractice litigation, and the antagonism can be ramped up even higher when the hospital and a physician are co-defendants.
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Getting the best premiums in 2010 will require that you showcase your data and market them to potential carriers, says Melinda S. Malecki, JD, a risk manager with the Chicago firm of Lebow Malecki. She serves as risk manager at one Chicago hospital and purchases insurance for two hospitals.
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A woman underwent a laparoscopic-assisted vaginal hysterectomy. Following the procedure, she was administered a painkiller, and her respiration was assisted by an oxygen mask. A couple of hours after the surgery, her blood pressure and pulse rate began to decline. Later, a hospital employee noted that the woman's blood pressure was abnormally low, but that her pulse had increased and her abdomen was distended. However, no action was taken.
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The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is shifting enforcement authority of the HIPAA security rule from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to the HHS Office of Civil Rights. Since 2003, the Office of Civil Rights has overseen enforcement of the HIPAA privacy rule, which protects the confidentiality of patients' health information.
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You'd think that any hospital in the country would be pleased to have its nurses come forward when they notice a physician practicing in a manner that is less than optimal for his or her patients. In fact, a number of states even allow the sharing of protected health information if it's necessary for such whistle-blowers to state their case.
