A major OB/GYN group in Chicago is splitting up, as three senior partners form a new, all-gynecology practice. Obstetric and Gynecologic Specialists of Northwestern has seven female doctors who currently serve more than 25,000 patients. Its founder, Lauren Streicher, MD, initiated the shift to a gynecology-only practice. The four remaining physicians are forming a new OB/GYN group in a new location.
Surgeons in Massachusetts have operated in the wrong location on patients 38 times since 2006, with botched spine surgeries accounting for more of the mistakes than any other type of operation, according to a review of state documents. New England Baptist accounted for four of the 11 bungled spine surgeries in the state. In three of the cases at the Baptist, surgeons discovered the error in the operating room and performed the correct procedure while the patient's spine was still exposed.
The Nashville-based Frist family, which helped start the for-profit hospital chain HCA Inc., are launching a company to take the U.S. system of managing and operating hospitals to China. China Healthcare Corp. said it has an initial agreement with a city southeast of Shanghai to build and operate a hospital that would replace an existing location. The startup would own a 70% stake in the joint venture, while the government of Ningbo would own the remaining 30%. The agreement requires approval from the Chinese ministries of health and commerce, a process that takes up to nine months on average.
As capital projects are common among healthcare organizations and the economy slows, project managers looking to keep costs down can look to practices that have already been adopted in Asia by some of that region's best capital project managers.
A group of Americans traveled to South Korea recently to take advantage of less expensive high-quality, state-of-the-art healthcare. The two-week trip was part of a medical program developed by the Korea Tourism Organization of Los Angeles and Los Angeles travel agency Aju Tours.
The system of operating and managing hospitals used in the U.S. will soon make its way to China, thanks to Nashville's Frist family. An initial agreement for the joint venture will see China Healthcare Corp. based in Nashville, while a new hospital will be constructed in, Ningbo, a city near Shanghai.