The independence of the Board of Nursing to regulate the profession is under question as state investigators probe whether strong-arm tactics by lawmakers caused the board to rescind disciplinary actions. At least two lawmakers, Rep. Tony Shipley and Rep. Dale Ford, pressed for the board to reconsider the suspension of three nurse practitioners accused of over-prescribing narcotics. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has launched a probe into these actions, which occurred when the Board of Nursing's right to exist as a regulatory body was up for renewal by the legislature. Sharon Adkins, executive director of the Tennessee Nurses Association, said the profession is closely watching the case. "It is absolutely unacceptable for special interests to put undue pressure on the board to reverse their judgments," Adkins said.
In June 2011, CareSpark's board of directors voted unanimously to terminate the nonprofit regional health information organization, which serves 17 counties in eastern Tennessee and southwestern Virginia. "It was very devastating," said Jerry Miller, MD, founder and president of Holston Medical Group and board chairman of CareSpark, of the decision, which was announced last week. The RHIO was burdened with legacy debt and ultimately, he said, "We did not have a sustainable plan." The RHIO was unable to transition from a grant- and contract-based business model to a subscription-based model. CareSpark's message of health information exchange contributing to better outcomes and a healthier population, and reduced errors, duplicative tests and overall cost resonated with the community, but Miller rhetorically asked: "Where does the money come from to do this?" Timing, state and national politics, and the complexities of the broken healthcare system contributed to CareSpark's demise, according to Miller.
Last Wednesday started like many mornings for the "Stories of the Sharp Experience" film crew. At 7 a.m., the crew members were told that the 8:30 cataract surgery they planned to film had to be rescheduled. So they headed to the emergency room at Sharp Chula Vista Medical Center. "We don't know what we may see here," director Arnie Lerner said as his eyes scanned the room. Soon, paramedics rolled in with a young man suffering abdominal pain. He agreed to be filmed, and camera operator Kelly Parker unobtrusively began documenting his care. Each year since 2001, Sharp HealthCare has produced a 30-minute program that tells five stories, in the style of a medical reality show that aims to portray the five-hospital system as a place that cares for its patients both medically and personally. Sharp buys time on local network affiliates to air the film and also uses footage for 30- and 90-second commercials.
Nearly half of Medicare recipients have incomes at or below 200% of poverty -- $21,780 for an individual, $29,420 for a couple. At a time of growing concern about federal deficits and the national debt, few dispute the need to take on Medicare. The health insurance program for seniors and others with certain disabilities already accounts for 15% of the federal budget -- behind only Social Security and defense spending. And that share is expected to rise as healthcare costs continue their upward spiral and more baby boomers retire, threatening the long-run solvency of Medicare. Yet several of the most prominent solutions under discussion largely derive their savings by shifting a greater share of the cost onto beneficiaries.
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center is notifying more than 2,000 patients that some of their personal information may have been stolen from a hospital computer. The hospital said yesterday that an unnamed computer service vendor had failed to restore proper security settings on a computer after performing maintenance on it. The machine was later found to be infected with a virus, which transmitted data files to an unknown location. The computer contained medical record numbers, names, genders, and birthdates of 2,021 patients, as well as the names and dates of radiology procedures they had undergone. But the computer did not contain the patients' financial data or their Social Security numbers.
Houston pediatric doctors have begun treating difficult epilepsy cases with laser surgery, a safer, less invasive alternative to opening the skull and cutting out brain lesions that cause the disease. Neurosurgeons at Texas Children's Hospital on Monday described their use of MRI-guided laser technology to destroy lesions in hard-to-access regions of the brain in six patients, all seizure-free since. They said Texas Children's is the world's first hospital to employ the technique for epilepsy. "This should open a door to curative, complication-free epilepsy surgery for both children and adults," said Daniel Curry, MD, the Texas Children's neurosurgeon who performed the surgeries. "The reduced risk and invasiveness while providing instant therapeutic effect should tip the balance in favor of laser surgery." Curry said laser surgery, already used in brain cancer patients, ultimately could become a treatment of choice for many of the nearly 1 million epileptics in the U.S. who continue to have seizures despite use of medication.