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On March 28, comparison data on patients’ ratings about their experiences at
hospitals nationwide will be released publicly for the first time.
Hospital-specific scores for all prospective payment hospitals and some critical
access hospitals will be part of the report. Patients’ responses to the Hospital
Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems, or HCAHPS, survey will
be posted on Hospital Compare, a federal Web site at
www.hospitalcompare.hhs.gov.
The survey, created by the Hospital Quality Alliance, asks patients 27
questions about their hospital stay. Some of the questions are bundled together
to create composite scores for topics such as:
· communication with doctors;
· communication with nurses;
· responsiveness of hospital staff;
· pain control;
· communication about medicines;
· cleanliness of hospital environment;
· quietness of hospital environment; and
· discharge information.
The public report will also include patients’ overall ratings of the hospital
and their willingness to recommend the hospital to others.
Scores reflect only those patients that gave the highest ranking possible for
each measure. For example, one question asked patients how often nurses treated
them with courtesy and respect. Only the percentage of those who responded
“always” was included in a composite measure about communication with nurses.
Participation in HCAHPS is similar to other Centers for Medicare and Medicaid
Services (CMS) quality initiatives. For prospective payment hospitals,
participation in the survey is tied to a hospitals’ Medicare market basket
update. Critical access hospitals (CAH) can participate voluntarily. For
more information about the release of HCAHPS data, contact Monica Seeland, NHA
vice president of quality initiatives at 402/742-8152 or
mseeland@nhanet.org.
As a family physician, Dr. Joann Schaefer sometimes delivered bad news. Six
weeks ago, she was the recipient. Dr. Joann Schaefer will receive a transplant
of half of Dr. Gary Gorby's liver Monday at the Nebraska Medical Center.
Schaefer, the State of Nebraska's chief medical officer, was told she would need
a liver transplant.
She has a life-threatening liver disease, her doctor says, and is scheduled
to undergo a transplant Monday at the Nebraska Medical Center. Dr. Gary Gorby, a
friend, is donating half of his liver. Schaefer, who was appointed chief medical
officer in 2005, said she hopes her case will raise awareness about organ
donation. April is National Donate Life Month, which is aimed at encouraging
people to become organ and tissue donors.
Nationally, more than 98,000 people await organ transplants. The count in
Nebraska is 459 and in Iowa 472. Schaefer was diagnosed with liver disease 12
years ago. At the time, doctors told her she would need a transplant eventually,
probably within five to seven years. The 40-year-old Schaefer, who is married to
Phil Haines and has two daughters, said healthy eating and exercise helped her
hold off on the transplant longer than doctors had anticipated.
Schaefer said she was in the best shape of her life when she was first
diagnosed. She was training for a marathon, running up to seven miles a day and
farther on weekends.
Read the
full article.
— Michael O'Connor, Omaha World-Herald, March 27, 2008.
In Nebraska, more than 3,000 brain injuries occur each year. Individuals and
their families face challenges at home, school and work after an injury. You can
learn more about brain injury by attending the 2nd Annual Nebraska Brain Injury
Conference, "Rebuilding Lives in Nebraska," will be held April 24-25, 2008 in
Grand Island, Neb.
This event, arranged by the Nebraska Traumatic Brain Injury Advisory Council,
is sponsored by Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital; Nebraska Advocacy Services;
Platte Valley National Bank, Scottsbluff; and Quality Living, Inc. For more
information, or to register online go to www.braininjury.ne.gov. The
registration deadline is April 10.
Leading experts in behavioral, genetic and developmental medicine on April 4
and 5, will address the latest information, research and multidisciplinary
insights on treating children with developmental disabilities. The symposium in
downtown Omaha at the DoubleTree Hotel is sponsored by the Munroe-Meyer
Institute at the University of Nebraska Medical Center.
The conference is targeted towards health professionals, and students in
special education, pediatrics, psychology, occupational therapy and speech
pathology.
The two-day conference will feature lectures and in-depth workshops to help
professionals in all fields develop new skills and strategies for helping kids
with special needs.
Read
more.
The March of Dimes is soliciting nominations for the 2008 Nebraska Excellence
in Nursing awards. Each year outstanding nurses in Nebraska are recognized
for their contributions to nursing. Anyone may nominate a nurse, including
patients, community members, and health care professionals or administrators;
more than one nurse may be nominated. Any nurse who has been employed by a
Nebraska employer for at least one year is eligible to be nominated. Nominations
from all areas of nursing are encouraged. For more, read the
memo. Nomination
forms are available on-line at
http://www.marchofdimes.com/nebraska. All forms
must be completed for each nurse nominated. The deadline for nominations is
Friday, July 11.
.
WASHINGTON (AP) - Trustees for the government's two biggest benefit programs
warned Tuesday that Social Security and Medicare are facing "enormous
challenges" with the threat to Medicare's solvency far more severe.
The trustees, issuing a once-a-year analysis of the government's two biggest
benefit programs, said the resources in the Social Security trust fund will be
depleted by 2041. The reserves in the Medicare trust fund that pays hospital
benefits were projected to be wiped out by 2019.
Both those dates were the same as in last year's report. But the trustees
warned that financial pressures will begin much sooner when the programs begin
paying out more in benefits each year than they collect in payroll taxes. For
Medicare, that threshold is projected to be reached this year and for Social
Security it is projected to occur in 2017.
Read more.
— Associated Press, March 25, 2008.
Widespread flu activity was reported by 32 states the week ended March 15,
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
announced recently. That’s down
from 42 states the previous week and 47 states March 1. The flu season often
peaks in February. The latest flu report indicates widespread activity in
Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii,
Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New
Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio,
Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Vermont,
Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
— AHA News Now, March 24, 2008.
KEARNEY, Neb.—Good Samaritan Hospital and several regional hospitals, in
honor of Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, have joined forces to provide their
communities with free colorectal screening test kits to men and women March 24 –
April 4. Men and women ages 50 or older and those with increased risk are
encouraged to call 800/658-5169 or 308/865-7884 Monday through Friday from 8
a.m. to 5 p.m. to register for a free test kit.
Participants will be mailed a home fecal occult blood test, with directions,
that requires three consecutive stool samples. Good Samaritan Hospital will then
analyze completed tests for microscopic signs of blood and inform participants
and their primary care physicians of the results.
For further information, contact Good Samaritan Hospital or one of these
participating facilities: Avera St. Anthony's Hospital, O'Neill, Neb.; Boone
County Health Center, Albion, Neb.; Callaway District Hospital, Callaway, NE;
Chase County Community Hospital, Imperial, Neb.; Community Hospital, McCook,
Neb.; Cozad Community Hospital, Cozad, Neb.; Dundy County Hospital/Quality Healthcare
Clinic, Benkelman, Neb.; Harlan County Health System, Alma, Neb.; Hoxie Medical
Clinic/Sheridan County Health Complex, Hoxie, Kan.; Kearney County Health
Services; Minden, Neb.; Phelps Memorial Health Center, Holdrege, Neb.; Rock
County Clinic, Bassett, Neb.; Valley County Health System, Ord, Neb.; and West
Holt Memorial Hospital, Atkinson, Neb.
— Good Samaritan Hospital news release, March 24, 2008.
MCCOOK, Neb.—Nearly 130 students from nine area public schools explored the
possibility of health careers at the third annual Career Discovery Days on
Tuesday and Wednesday at Community Hospital.
Students had the opportunity to learn firsthand by meeting and learning from
practicing health care providers and using actual medical equipment. Fourteen
medical career fields were featured at Discovery Days, including surgery
technician, massage therapy, pediatrician, certified registered nurse
anesthetist, occupational therapy, dietitian, laboratory, nursing, information
systems, pharmacy, physical therapy, respiratory therapy, radiology and
physician assistant.
One student expressed, “Having experience in the different fields allows me
to make a decision about my future.”
Read more.
OMAHA— On Wednesday, March 19, the Creighton University Medical Center board
room officially became the Joseph Holthaus, M.D. Board Room. The board room was
dedicated to Dr. Joseph Holthaus in recognition of his significant contributions
to Creighton University Medical Center and Creighton University. Some of the
most important developments in Creighton and the hospital’s history took place
under Dr. Holthaus’ leadership. One of the most notable contributions was his
navigation of a controversial discussion on the construction of a new St. Joseph
Hospital. In the mid-1970’s, as Dean of the School of Medicine, he made the
insightful decision to build the hospital on the Creighton University campus, a
decision that solidified the powerful relationship between the hospital and
Creighton University.
Read the full news release.
OMAHA—Creighton University Medical Center (CUMC) awarded a grant in the
amount of $10,000 to the Charles Drew Health Center, Inc. (CDHC) Omaha Healthy
Start (OHS) program in support of its pregnancy testing and emergency diaper and
formula pantry programs. Linda Ollis, CEO at Creighton University Medical Center
presented a check to the Charles Drew Health Center on March 24, 2008.
“Creighton University Medical Center recognizes the service Charles Drew
Health Center provides to the Omaha community through its Omaha Healthy Start
program. We appreciate Charles Drew Health Center’s commitment to reducing the
number of infant deaths and award this grant to Omaha Healthy Start so they can
continue to help low-income pregnant women receive the care they need,” says
Ollis.
Read more.
OMAHA—Children’s Hospital has opened a new Specialty Pediatric Clinic in
Lincoln. Located at 86th and Pioneers Boulevard, the free-standing, single story
building offers a range of pediatric specialty care. “We’re excited to have this
opportunity to enhance the services offered by Children’s Hospital to families
in the capital city and greater Nebraska,” said Vanessa Walls, vice president of
ambulatory care at Children’s Hospital. “Our pediatric specialists currently
serve more than 1,000 children through outpatient visits in Lincoln. This is a
significant number and we believe our new space will prove even more welcoming
and convenient for families.” While the Children’s Specialty Pediatric Clinic
will focus on providing multidisciplinary care for children of all ages, it is
not the same as a general pediatrician or family physician’s office. Specialty
care, as offered by Children’s, provides expertise in specific areas of
pediatric medicine.
Read the full news
release.
The National Alliance for Health Information Technology seeks final comments
on proposed consensus definitions for five common health information technology
terms. The terms are electronic health record, electronic medical record,
personal health record, health information exchange and regional health
information organization. The definitions seek to explain these common health IT
concepts in language that consumers can readily understand, and provide a
reference point for policy evaluation and standards development activities.
Comments will be accepted through April 9. To view the draft definitions and
submit comments, visit www.definitions.nahit.org. The alliance is conducting the
project for the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information
Technology.
— AHA News Now, March 24, 2008.
A total of 115 senior medical students at the University of Nebraska Medical
Center (UNMC) received their residency assignments on March 20 through the National
Resident Matching Program. A residency is a training program for newly-graduated
physicians in the area of medicine of their choice.
In addition, more than 15,000 U.S. medical school seniors,
friends and family recently held “Match Day” ceremonies to learn where they will spend
residency training following graduation.
National Resident Matching Program is designed to optimize the rank ordered
choices of students in medical programs. Of the 115 Nebraska students who
matched, 36 percent are staying in Nebraska for their training programs.
Thirty-four percent will do residencies at UNMC and The Nebraska Medical Center,
UNMC’s hospital partner.
Read
more.
(INC.com) — Amid a growing competition for talent, employee retention is
overtaking health care costs as the biggest challenge for U.S. employers,
recruiters say. As a result, most employers are redeveloping their rewards and
benefits programs with an eye to keeping good workers on board, according to a
joint survey by Deloitte, a New York-based consulting firm. In a survey of 413
HR professionals, more than half identified talent management as their top
priority, and were planning to improve their rewards and benefits programs. Most
employers cited employee retention among their five toughest challenges, ahead
of health care costs, the survey found. Last year, 80 percent identified health
care costs as their biggest challenge. In a quarterly survey of the nation's
CEOs by Management Action Programs, a Sherman Oaks, Calif.-based consulting
firm, the majority cited open communication ahead of a salary increases as the
most effective way of hanging on to good workers.
— Nebraska Chamber of Commerce Daily Update, March 26, 2008.
Nebraska Hospice and Palliative Care Partnership “Living a Good Life...at the
End of Life” Annual Conference
April 1 - 3, 2008 – Embassy Suites, Lincoln, NE
Memorial Health Care Systems Annual Health Fair, Seward, NE
April 2, 2008
National Healthcare Decisions Day
April 16, 2008
Elderfest '08 sponsored by Providence Medical Center
April 17, 2008 – Wayne City Auditorium, Wayne, NE
Rebuilding
Lives in Nebraska: 2nd Annual Brain Injury Conference
April 24 - 25, 2008 – Midtown Holiday Inn, Grand Island, NE
Nebraska Association of Medical Staff Services
(NeAMSS) 2008 Education Conference
April 25, 2008 – Georgetown Club, Omaha, NE
Click here for a list
of upcoming NHA audioconferences and webinars.
Visit the
Events page on the NHA Web site for more information on any of the events.
If you have an event you would like listed in Newslink or on the NHA Web site,
submit it to Heather Bullock, marketing and events coordinator, at
hbullock@nhanet.org. Send news items to Christy Rasmussen, director of
communications, at crasmussen@nhanet.org.
NHA Newslink is published by the Nebraska
Hospital Association, 3255 Salt Creek Circle, Suite 100, Lincoln, NE 68504-4761.
Phone 402/742-8140, Fax 402/742-8191. Contact Christy Rasmussen, director of
communications, at 402/742-8151, or email,
crasmussen@nhanet.org.
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