Quality and Safety
The Beth Israel Deaconess Physician Organization will roll out analytics software to help its doctors measure clinical performance. The goal is to reduce variations in care - capabilities essential to the Massachusetts-based organization's plans to operate successfully under anticipated state and national payment reform changes.
According to the the U.S. News Media Group's annual survey, only 18 nursing homes in the nation - out of more than 15,000 - have received four straight quarters of perfect five-star ratings from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius has announced a $750 million investment in disease prevention and public health initiatives.
Two Erie, Pa.-based community health centers have been awarded $500,000 by the GE Foundation, the philanthropic organization of GE, to help increase access to quality healthcare.
Kindred Healthcare has announced plans to acquire the St. Louis-based RehabCare Group, creating what officials say will be the largest post-acute healthcare services company in the nation, with more than $6 billion in annual revenues and operations in 46 states.
Kronos, a global provider of workforce management solutions for several industries, has enhanced its healthcare vertical with the planned acqusition of API Healthcare, a Wisconsin-based developer of software that automates staffing and scheduling, patient classification, human resources, recruiting, payroll and staffing agencies.
The National Quality Forum has endorsed four potentially avoidable complication (PAC) measures created by the Health Care Incentives Improvement Institute. According to HCI3, reduction of PACs can improve care and decrease healthcare costs.
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois and the Illinois Hospital Association have launched Preventing Readmissions through Effective Partnerships, an initiative aimed at reducing hospital readmissions.
At the end of December, the U.S. Census Bureau released its findings on the 2010 Census. Some of the findings included that the nation's population grew to 309 million, up almost 10 percent from 281 million in 2000.
Before embracing an accountable care organization model, academic medical centers need to assess the financial risk, according to the New England Journal of Medicine.