hospitals

New Hospital Rules Could Save You From Deadly Infections

Posted on 05/30/2013 by | General News | Comments

Bulletin Today | health care | Personal Health | Your LifeBy Lindsey Tanner, Medical Writer, The Associated Press Infections in U.S. hospitals kill tens of thousands of people each year, and many institutions fight back by screening new patients to see if they carry a dangerous germ, and isolating those who do. But a big study suggests a far more effective approach: Decontaminating every patient in intensive care. Washing everyone with antiseptic wipes and giving them antibiotic nose ointment reduced bloodstream infections dramatically in the study at more than 40 …

In a Disaster, Could an Electronic Health Record Save Your Life?

Posted on 05/28/2013 by | Health | Comments

Bulletin Today | health care | Personal Health | TechnologyBy Jenny Gold, Correspondent, Kaiser Health News Everyone expects a hospital to be ready to jump into action when disaster strikes. But what about when the disaster devastates the hospital itself? Turns out, it helps a lot to have an electronic medical record system in place. At least that was the case at Moore Medical Center in Oklahoma, a small hospital right in the path of the tornado that ripped through the suburbs of Oklahoma City on Monday (see photo, right). Three-hundred …

Does Your Doctor Use Electronic Records?

Posted on 05/22/2013 by | General News | Comments

Bulletin Today | Personal Health | TechnologyFrom The Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration says more doctors and hospitals are embracing technology as adoption of computerized medical records reaches a “tipping point” in America. A new report from the Department of Health and Human Services says more than 50 percent of doctors’ offices and 4 in 5 hospitals have transitioned from paper to electronic records, thanks partly to more than $14 billion in government incentive payments. The hope is that electronic records will make …

Study: Health Providers Often Rewarded for Volume Over Value

Posted on 03/26/2013 by | Health | Comments

Bulletin Today | Personal HealthBy Russ Mitchell for Kaiser Health News. This story was produced in collaboration with USA Today For decades, reformers have sought to change how doctors and hospitals are paid to reward quality and efficiency — efforts that accelerated as a result of the health care overhaul. But surprisingly little progress has been made to date, a consortium of large employers reported today. Only 10.9 percent of health care spending last year by employer-sponsored plans was based on “value,” as opposed to …

Facing Penalties, Hospitals Aim to Lower Readmissions

Posted on 11/28/2012 by | Health | Comments

Bulletin Today | Personal HealthBy Jordan Rau, Senior Correspondent, Kaiser Health News This story was produced in collaboration with The New York Times In the past, the only thing a patient was sure to get after a hospital stay was a bill. But as Medicare cracks down on high readmission rates, hospitals are dispatching nurses, transportation, culturally specific diet tips, free medications and even bathroom scales to patients deemed at risk of relapsing. Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick, N.J., has nurses …

Meet the Hospital of the Future (No Double Rooms!)

Posted on 11/26/2012 by | Health | Comments

Bulletin Today | Personal HealthBy Russ Mitchell for Kaiser Health News This story was produced in collaboration with Fast Company. Rarely is nurse Cindy Steckel possessed by fantasies of unspeakable revenge. Toilet design, however, does provoke her fury. Whoever is responsible for the slim-doored, cramped configuration of patient bathrooms in most American hospitals draws her scorn. “I don’t know if there wasn’t such a thing as a walker back then,” she says. “But if I could get my hands on the guy who designed …

« Older Entries