The dramatic increase in the number of Americans undergoing CT scans is fueling concerns about radiation exposure from the prodedure. Some doctors say the exams could cause a small but significant excess of cancers in coming decades, spurring debate about whether the tests are being overused and exposing millions of Americans to needless risk.
Half of all emergency room patients waited 30 minutes or more before being examined by a doctor in 2004, a 36 percent increase from a median wait time of 22 minutes in 1997, according to a study by researchers at Harvard Medical School. The trend is a potentially deadly result of the shrinking number of emergency departments and rising demand for emergency services, researchers said.
About 68 percent of Americans say individuals should be required to have medical insurance, with government help for those who cannot afford it, according to a survey from the Commonwealth Fund. The survey found health insurance mandates were supported by 80 percent of Democrats, 52 percent of Republicans and 68 percent of Independents.
A new system provides approximately 200 patients at the 750-bed Spectrum Health/Butterworth campus in Grand Rapids, MI, the technology to surf the Internet, communicate electronically with healthcare teams, watch patient videos and enjoy movies and games powered by Xbox 360 software. Other features will eventually be added, including interpreters to communicate with foreign-language patients; video-conferencing and messages chaplains can leave for patients they have missed on their rounds. The "Care Console" is a partnership between Cerner Corp. and Microsoft.
Pittsburgh-area hospitals, doctors and many home healthcare providers could see a bump in reimbursement for treating people on Medicare, if an appeal of the formula used in making the payments is successful. The appeal to the Center was made in December 2007 through Highmark Medicare Services. Winning the appeal could boost reimbursement to about 34 hospitals by $13 million starting in October, according to the Hospital Council of Western Pennsylvania.
The opening of the Carolinas Medical Center-East Lincoln Medical Plaza in Denver, NC, has been pushed back from March to November 2008 after revised designs and plans for the facility's surgical center needed approval from the North Carolina Department of Health. When complete, the $10 million facility will feature a surgical center, doctors and staff offices, and other speciality services including family medicine, cardiology and orthopedics.