The owner of a Boca Raton, FL-based chain of medical imaging centers has agreed to pay $7 million to settle a federal healthcare fraud lawsuit. Government lawyers accused board certified radiologist Fred Steinberg, MD, of overcharging Medicare for CT scans and billing the federal program for some tests that were not medically necessary. The settlement also resolves allegations that Steinberg illegally paid as many as two dozen doctors to send him patients for imaging tests that cost up to $2,500 apiece.
Shortly after taking over as CEO of Houston-based St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital, David Pate, MD, tasked a vice president at the hospital with researching "lean manufacturing." The concept was an old one in manufacturing, but was new to not-for-profit hospitals. While taking ideas off the assembly line and laying them over patient care was not well received by many doctors and nurses at first, Pate says the concept translates into patient safety.
The Iowa Legislature is dealing with several proposals that pertain to government oversight of healthcare in the state. One of the pieces of legislation surrounds safety data--patient advocates recently questioned a proposal by legislators to have the private Iowa Healthcare Collaborative, rather than a government agency, process data on patient safety. The collaborative was co-founded and is partly funded by the Iowa Hospital Association.
The American Medical Association is calling for more physician training in aging care in response to an Institute of Medicine report saying the current healthcare workforce will not be able to meet the needs of the expanding senior population. "With approximately 7,000 geriatricians currently in the United States, all physicians caring for aging patients need to become proficient in geriatric care to help meet the increasing healthcare needs of seniors," according to an AMA statement. The statement added that the AMA is working with other organizations to increase physician knowledge and skills for medical students and practicing physicians to meet their needs at all stages of their medical careers.
In greater Boston, house calls are coming back, but with a 21st century twist, writes Elizabeth Kass, MD, in this opinion piece for the Boston Globe. Each month, 500 elderly, disabled, and chronically ill persons who are enrolled in a special primary care program receive visits from clinicians, usually a nurse practitioner. The clinicians carry laptop computers that connect the clinician to physicians, hospitals, and an array of support services for these patients.
In November 2004, Paul Farmer, MD, agreed to bring his world-renowned Partners in Health model to Rwanda. With the help of the Rwandan Ministry of Health and the Clinton Foundation, Farmer went into Rwinkwavu with American and Rwandan workers and rebuilt a "hospital" that consisted of derelict buildings. This is just one example of how Farmer and the organization has helped rebuild communities by treating poverty as well as disease. Now 20 years old, Partners in Health has expanded to nine countries.