Top 12 Most-Read HealthLeaders Stories February 2011

Our hot stories in February were about HIPAA-scoffing hospital staff, a major management shakeup at HCA, Medicare fraud busts, the rise of a nurse practioner to medical staff president, and barriers to success with telemedicine systems.

1.       HIPAA Violations Remind Hospitals to Reinforce Privacy Rules
Some healthcare employees just can't help themselves lately, especially when high-profile patients occupy their hospital beds. A spate of high-profile HIPAA violations serves as a reminder that the toughest fight in the battle to keep medical records private may be the one against human curiosity.

2.       Gawande on Checklists: Why Don’t Hospitals Use Them?
When he's not in the operating room removing endocrine tumors, surgeon and author Atul Gawande flies around the country speaking to hospital leaders about how hard it is to get providers to adopt checklists, even with abundant evidence that they improve care and reduce complications.

3.       5 Ways to Reduce Nursing Turnover in Year One

Turnover among first-year nurses remains a huge cost driver and source of frustration for hospital managers. Here are five best practices for engaging and retaining this vital segment of a hospital's workforce.

4.      HCA Announces Management Shakeup, Subsidiary
The nation's largest for-profit hospital chain announces an immediate "internal reorganization" and creation of a new business unit that will provide services to other healthcare companies. The major changes include a new structuring of provider operations and integration of clinical quality performance with physician practice services.