HealthLeaders Media Community and Rural Hospital Weekly

HealthLeaders Media Community and Rural Hospital Weekly - April 29, 2009


What We Don't Yet Know About Swine Flu That's Scary Cheryl Clark, Editor, Community Hospitals Public health officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta to the California Department of Public Health are using terms like "fluid," "evolving," and "rapidly" to describe the pace and path of the swine flu virus while at the same time trying to reassure health providers everywhere to stay calm, that things are under control. But there is considerable nervousness in their voices. [Read More]
		April 29, 2009

Editor's Picks

Build a hospital to keep germs out
A hospital in Dublin, OH, has not had a hospital-acquired infection since it opened more than a year ago. The reason: the hospital's design and physical environment makes it more difficult to cause an infection than to avoid one. [Read More]

Hospitals go on a spending diet
The recession has begun to affect hospitals' bottom lines, according to a new American Hospital Association survey. Nine in 10 hospitals have made cuts to address economic concerns. Nearly half have reduced staff. Eight in 10 have cut administrative services. One in five hospitals have dropped subsidized community services that include behavioral health, post-acute care, patient education, and clinics. [Read More]

Can social media help health providers deal with disaster?
Bloggers and Twitter, perhaps even Facebook and Digg, can help health providers communicate in disasters. What are the success stories? [Read More]

Last Chance: Are You Part of a Top Leadership Team?
HealthLeaders Media is gearing up for its fifth year of the Top Leadership Teams in Healthcare program that recognizes the best in senior leadership teamwork at hospitals, health plans, and medical group practices. This year's winners will be honored during HealthLeaders Media '09: The Hospital of the Future Now, an event planned for October 15-16 at The Palmer House in Chicago. If you and your organization have an outstanding teamwork story to share, go to the Top Leadership Teams site to learn more about the six categories, download an entry form, and submit your entry. But you better hurry: The deadline to submit is April 30. [Learn More]

Leaders Forum

Culture as Competitive Advantage
Many of the same companies appear repeatedly on lists of the best places to work, the best providers of customer service, and the most profitable in their industries. Perhaps it's because their leaders spend so much time and effort developing their culture. And culture is an advantage that competitors find hard to duplicate. [Read More]

This Week's Headlines

Reform Means Leaner Hospitals
Janice Simmons, for HealthLeaders Media ? April 28, 2009

General Hospitals Adapt to Specialty Competition
Cheryl Clark, for HealthLeaders Media ? April 24, 2009

Two senators offer bipartisan healthcare proposal
Los Angeles Times ? April 29, 2009

Hospitals see fewer uninsured patients
The Tennessean ? April 29, 2009

Hospital sweetens offer to Framingham, MA
Boston Globe ? April 27, 2009

Webcasts/Audio Conferences

Service Lines Strategies Workshop: Cardiovascular Physician Alignment (Live)

Marketing Neurosciences: Service Line Strategies for Marketers (Live)

Compensation Packages to Recruit and Retain Physicians in Today's Economy (On Demand)

Service Lines Strategies Workshop 2009: Joint Replacement (On Demand)

From HealthLeaders Magazine

Jump . . . or Get Pushed

The tough decisions you don't want to make now—but may have to. [Read More]

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Service Line Management

Redefining Cardio

The cardiovascular service line remains a dependable revenue generator for many hospitals across the country. But a shifting market full of new options for patients means organizations must find ways to differentiate themselves to keep it that way. [Read More]


	Community Call Discussion Board Is your hospital taking steps to prepare for the possibility of increased patient volume due to a swine flu pandemic?