Healthcare data may be valuable to researchers and companies, but patients' comfort levels about having their data shared may depend on the purpose, a new survey suggests. Using health data and information for research was more appropriate than for marketing regardless of whether they were asked for permission or not, most people felt. "What we found is that consumers care a lot about how their health information is used," said Dr. David Grande, the study's lead researcher from the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine in Philadelphia. "What's surprising is they care more about what it's being used for than whether consent was obtained."
Seven Miami-Dade hospitals fell below national standards for combating infections acquired by patients in hospitals, and patients at one hospital — North Shore Medical Center in Miami — were more likely to develop infections than patients at any other hospital in South Florida, according to data collected by the federal government as part of a national effort to reduce such infections. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tracks how hospitals around the nation perform on preventing six types of frequently occurring infections, including bloodstream and urinary tract infections that result from catheters and surgical site infections that develop after colon and hysterectomy operations.
Declaring climate change to be a public health hazard, the Obama administration issued suggestions Monday to help hospitals and other health care facilities cope with multiple threats of extreme weather. Health care industry leaders are visiting the White House on Monday to endorse the new report — "Primary Protection: Enhancing Health Care Resilience for a Changing Climate" — and to pledge to follow the guidelines that are proposed. The "guide and tool kit" is designed to help health care providers and others assure "the continuity of quality health and human care before, during and after extreme weather events," the report said.
Missouri hospitals provided $1.1 billion in uncompensated care last year, according to a new report. The Missouri Hospital Association report provides a total figure for 122 hospitals across the state. That includes $588 million worth of charity care. The remaining $512 million represents care for which the hospital charged patients but the patients didn't pay. "Hospitals contribute to the physical health and economic strength of communities throughout Missouri," MHA CEO Herb Kuhn said in a statement. "In 2013, hospitals provided more than half a billion dollars' worth of care to individuals in their communities who are without health insurance coverage. Once again, this year's report signals the need for lawmakers to return taxpayers' money from Washington, D.C., to stabilize our state's health care infrastructure and increase access to health coverage."
In a pattern being repeated across the country, the Boothbay, Maine peninsula's hospital has been shuttered, and the communities just lost their bid to even have a 24 hour urgent care on the peninsula. Citing financial need—which has been disputed—Lincoln County Healthcare (LCH), part of MaineHealth, closed St. Andrews Hospital, a critical access hospital (CAH), transferring that valuable designation to Miles Hospital in Damariscotta. This has left the entire county, with the oldest population in Maine, with only 25 beds (down from 63) and limited services, though the population surges to more than 40,000 in tourist season.
The Commonwealth Fund has been publishing surveys comparing health care in industrialized countries since 1998, a continuing report card in which the United States has usually fared poorly because of its high proportion of uninsured people. But its latest report – an early anniversary tribute to Medicare, which turns 50 next year – focuses on those over 65, the one segment of the American population with nearly universal coverage and access to care. So we should look better this time, right? Our seniors' health care will make the honor roll, compared with Australia, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom?