Appleton (WI) Medical Center's general medicine unit treats patients with such conditions as heart failure, pneumonia and infections, but is also part of a sweeping attempt to change the way the center cares for patients. The changes include redefining the roles of doctors, nurses and other caregivers. Appleton's parent system, ThedaCare, has been testing and refining the "Collaborative Care" model in the redesigned general medicine unit since February 2007.
Jamaica has launched free healthcare for all adults at most state-run hospitals, and the move immediately reignited a long-standing debate about the nation's shortage of nurses. The problem is being felt throughout the Caribbean as specialized and trained nurses emigrate to other countries for better compensation and opportunities. Statistics show the country loses approximately 400 nurses through migration to developed countries and the cost of training these nurses is estimated at $15-$20 million annually.
In an effort to keep medical costs in check, there has been an increase in state programs that collect unused prescription drugs to give away to the uninsured and poor. Some states allow donations of sealed drugs from individuals, while others only accept pharmaceuticals from institutions. Drugs are typically vetted by pharmacists to cross-check safety, then distributed by hospitals, pharmacies or charitable clinics.
Health experts and community leaders have criticized news that the 184-bed Pacific Hospital of Long Beach, CA, is the prime candidate for the contract to reopen Martin Luther King-Harbor Hospital in Los Angeles. The trend signals possible hurdles to reestablish the hospital for Los Angeles County's most underserved communities. Critics say Pacific is simply too small and untested in the task of running such a complicated institution as a large public hospital, and the attempt is likely to fail.
A UCLA Medical Center worker who sneaked into the confidential medical records of actress Farrah Fawcett also improperly viewed the electronic files of 32 other celebrities, politicians and high-profile patients. The breaches expose UCLA to sanctions by the state of California, and and are a major embarrassment for one of the nation's preeminent medical centers. The UCLA employee allegedly looked up information on noncelebrity patients as well.
More than 2,000 Atlantans who have responded to the Emory Healthcare radio ad touting a $150 CT scan since February, 75 percent of whom made appointments. As competition has become fierce for paying patients to keep nonprofit hospitals afloat, such hospitals are advertising more than ever.