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With Its New Hospital, Rural Utah Gets A Fancy EMR (And A Sacred Hogan)

HealthLeaders Media Community and Rural Hospital Weekly - September 30, 2009 View as a Webpage | Subscribe for Free

With Its New Hospital, Rural Utah Gets A Fancy EMR (And A Sacred Hogan)
Cheryl Clark, Editor, Community Hospitals
With a population of only 3,100–5,000 people, Blanding, Utah, is about as rural as it gets. It sits in the corner of large and expansive San Juan County, which boasts only 1.8 people per square mile—about as sparse as can be in the contiguous U.S. It is, frankly, a surprising spot for the development of one of the newest, most modern, technologically savvy small hospitals in the U.S. [Read More]
     
 
September 30, 2009
 
Editor's Picks
Six Hospitals Pay $8.3 Million in Medicare Spine Surgery Whistleblower Case
Another round of federal settlements stings hospitals in Alabama and Indiana due to allegations they schemed with a device manufacturer to keep patients overnight unnecessarily in order to bill Medicare more. The settlements follow ones from May in which three Minnesota hospitals agreed to pay $2.3 million, and last year's settlement with Medtronic, which paid back $75 million. [Read More]
Change of Heart: Online Assessment Reaches Patients Before They Enter ER
Take an online quiz and win a free health exam for your heart. My colleague Cynthia Johnson says 85 hospitals offer HeartAware, a free online tool through their Web sites. And of the 600,000 people who have taken it, 20,000 have been identified as at risk and received a free heart exam. [Read More]
Can Hospitals and Physician Practices Achieve a Win-Win on N95 Respirators?
Fit-tested surgical procedure masks or N95 respirators? Which should it be? The issue has many physicians and the AHA pleading with the CDC for the former. Imagine going to the doctor's office and seeing everyone wearing respirators. Does anyone know which works best? [Read More]
Four Reasons Why Meaningful Health Reform is Unlikely To Pass This Year
My colleague Les Masterson offers some intriguing reasons why he thinks meaningful reform will not become reality this year. Some may disagree in the belief that too many people have now vested too much political capital in change. But they said that during the Clinton Administration as well. [Read More]
 
Leaders Forum
Post-acute Care as a Winning Strategy in Recessionary Times
When acute care hospitals and health systems are developing marketing and growth strategies, which are especially important in this economic downturn, post-acute care opportunities frequently fall to the bottom of the list. However, like the tortoise that is slow and steady yet wins the race, post-acute programs consistently offer a strong return on investment to those providers with the insight to include these programs in their planning efforts. [Read More]
 
This Week's Headlines
Fight over Medicare cuts intensifies
Wall Street Journal – September 30, 2009
In delivering care, more is not always better, experts say
Washington Post – September 29, 2009
Doctors mistakenly fax patients' data to Indiana company
The Tennessean – September 28, 2009
Baucus health bill would let private group write rules
Los Angeles Times – September 28, 2009

Webcasts/Audio Conferences
Service Lines Strategies Workshop 2009: Stroke Care (November 17)
RAC Strategy: Preserve Margin, Prevent Take-backs, Promote Alignment (November 11)
Flexible Medical Staff Models of the Future (October 29)
Marketing to Physicians: Build Relationships to Increase Referrals (October 22)

Sponsored Headline
Saving thousands of hospital jobs: www.workforcerx.org
 
 
From HealthLeaders Magazine
The Patient of the Future
  Physicians suggest. Patients ignore. Technology alone won't bring them together. But a new relationship just might. [Read More]
    
 
Service Line Management
Certifiable Stroke Care
  With a growing emphasis on stroke center certification, hospitals must demonstrate that they have the teams in place to treat stroke patients quickly and effectively, or risk losing patients to a competitor down the road. [Read More]