Medical imports from China are raising safety concerns worldwide, with hundreds of deaths being attributed to deaths from Chinese-made drugs. Despite the safety lapses, the Massachusetts' life sciences industry has been forging closer business relationships in China over the past few years.
According to a Wall Street Journal Online/Harris Interactive poll, Americans are split on whether they can count on Democrats to improve U.S. healthcare. Of those surveyed, 45% said they trust Democrats on the issue and 44% saying they do not. By comparison, 63% don't trust Republican to lead health reform, compared with 25% saying they do.
A Colorado House committee has delayed action a bill that would increase the amount juries can award in some medical malpractice suits after doctors warned it could force them to stop practicing and increase healthcare costs. The state's largest medical malpractice insurer and many doctors opposed the bill, and flooded lawmakers with calls and e-mails before the delay was announced.
Both nurse practitioners and physician assistants can be found everywhere in healthcare-related facilities--in medical clinics, doctor's offices, hospitals, and even in operating rooms. Oftentimes, they're performing duties you might be more accustomed to seeing handled by a doctor, such as conducting physical examinations, diagnosing illness, and prescribing drugs. While there are some differences between the nurse practitioner and physician assistant, there are not as many as there used to be.
Based on information from past studies, including an American Medical Association estimate that doctors see only 11 cents of every dollar saved through the use of IT, BlueCross BlueShield of Massachusetts has announced that it has decided not to require physicians to install an EMR to participate in its bonus program. Blue Cross of Massachusets did conduct its own cost-benefit analysis, however, and concluded that computerized physician order entry makes financial sense in the hospital setting and will require health systems to install CPOE by 2012 to participate in the bonus program.
In this San Francisco Chronicle article, Jan Gurley, MD, writes that while many people choose their doctor based on intelligence, medical training or kindness, they should also consider doctor "style." Doctor style is the variability in responses to the same clinical issue among competent physicians, Gurley says, and can mean the difference between life and death.