HealthLeaders Media Community and Rural Hospital Weekly

HealthLeaders Media Community and Rural Hospital Weekly - February 4, 2009


South Carolina Program Puts HAIs in the Crosshairs John Commins, Editor, Community Hospitals Midday today marks the launch of the South Carolina Healthcare Quality Trust, a statewide, voluntary hospital quality collaborative to reduce hospital-acquired infections and their associated costs. [Read More]
		February 4, 2009

Editor's Picks

D'oh! Deadbeat Daschle withdraws HHS nomination
Remember all those dreamy stories in the heady days before Barack Obama took office about how the polished, savvy and experienced HHS Secretary Tom Daschle would be the perfect front man for a major overall of healthcare delivery in the United States? Never mind! Daschle is the latest in a string of Obama administration nominees who just can't seem to get their tax bills straight. Maybe he wasn't the right man for the job, after all. There is concern that the fallout from these nominees-turned-tax-deadbeats could hamper the new president's stimulus package, which is expected to include significant funding for rural healthcare. Of course, it probably didn't help Daschle's case that the Washington Post and the New York Times both ran editorials this week noting that the former Senate Majority Leader got paid $2.1 million in his role as a "special public policy advisor" to a lobbying firm with ties to health insurers and the pharmaceutical industry. Here's a suggestion: President Obama should vet his next nominees with H&R Block. [Read More]

Fur flies as surgeon sues Melbourne, FL hospital
Florida Today reports that the chief medical officer at Holmes Regional Medical Center is suing the Melbourne hospital's board on behalf of the physician staff for violating hospital bylaws and potentially compromising patient care. Holmes officials deny the allegations. Who's right? Who knows! One thing that is clear, from the readers' comments below the story, is that this is a public relations disaster for the hospital, and it's probably not enhancing the reputations of the physicians either. [Read More]

'Disruptive innovation' is the cure for U.S. healthcare woes
I hate to cite the New York Times so much, but they had a neat think piece over the past weekend that calls for a new healthcare business model based on 'disruptive innovation.' Basically, the argument goes, healthcare relies on a business model that is decades old and which has no monetary incentive to keep people healthy. According to the Times piece, advances in medical technology and research could pave the way for better and more effective individualized care without increased costs. [Read More]

Leaders Forum

Where's the Value in Healthcare?
Patients today seek healthcare information and treatment from a variety of sources, and HealthLeaders Media contributor John Morrow offers five strategies that healthcare executives can use to better demonstrate their organization's value to these newly empowered consumers. [Read More]

This Week's Headlines

Inova competitor loses battle to build Virginia hospital
Washington Post ? February 4, 2009

Proposal makes UConn Health Center, Hartford Hospital partners
Hartford Courant ? February 4, 2009

Frankfort, IL, approves Silver Cross Hospital urgent-care site
Chicago Tribune ? February 4, 2009

Layoffs spike as recession rips through U.S.
AP/Yahoo News ? February 4, 2009

UnitedHealthcare signs deal with CT-based medical center
Hartford Courant ? February 4, 2009

Two hospital systems expand networks in tough times
The Tennessean ? February 3, 2009

Tempers flare over New Orleans hospital dispute
New Orleans Times-Picayune ? February 3, 2009

Washington healthcare facilities scrambling to deal with Death with Dignity Act
Seattle Times ? February 3, 2009

Data breaches are more costly than ever
Washington Post ? February 3, 2009

Webcasts/Audio Conferences

Solving Your Nurse Shortage: Long-Term Strategies That Work (Live)

Form 990H: Act Now to Protect Your Reputation (Live)

ED Overhaul 2009: Five Improvements to Make Today (Live)

Incentive-Based Compensation Plans to Enhance Physician Performance (Live)

From HealthLeaders Magazine

Flat-World Healthcare

The Globalization of healthcare is no longer an uncertain trend in the distant future. [Read More]

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Service Line Management

A Spinal Shift

As minimally invasive procedures consume a larger portion of spinal care, provider organizations have many opportunities—and challenges—in an increasingly outpatient service line. [Read More]


	Community Call Discussion Board What impact—if any—will Tom Daschle's withdrawal as the nominee for Secretary of Health and Human Services have on the Obama administration's efforts to reform healthcare?



	Audio Feature Strategies to Improve the ED Shawn Evans, MD, an attending emergency physician at Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla, CA, shares strategies to improve patient throughput and customer service in the ED. [Listen Now]


	Sponsor Community and Rural Hospital Contact Lisa Brown, Director of Integrated Sales, at lbrown@healthleadersmedia.com or call 781.639.1872.

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