In the age of value-based care, technology can be leveraged to enhance patient care quality. When it comes to digital health tools and resources, however, there is one patient group that is often overlooked—older patients. While digital health tools have been shown to help improve access and engagement, biases are leaving these resources out of the hands of older patients.

Primary care is the front door to the healthcare system — and it's ripe for disruption.

The concept of value-based care sounds simple, reward providers for the quality of care delivered instead of the volume of care - so why is the successful implementation proving to be extremely difficult?

Portland, Ore.-based Doernbecher Children's Hospital, part of Oregon Health & Science University, is adding a new program to its Child Life Therapy Program: video game therapy.

Sparrow Clinton Hospital in St. Johns, Mich., has added wide bore MRI equipment to give patients more room and ease anxiety about undergoing a scan. 

Hospitals have a reputation for bland or unhealthy food, but New Hyde Park, N.Y.-based Northwell Health is flipping the script by hiring chefs from Michelin-star restaurants.

Patients increasingly expect their healthcare experience to be digital, convenient and efficient. While healthcare organizations need to deliver on this expectation for a digital-first experience, they also need to ensure that patients who may not be as comfortable as technology aren't left behind.

Franciscan Health in Indianapolis adopted a new protocol for scheduled cesarean sections to help fight the opioid epidemic while improving the state's maternal mortality rate, WRTV reported.

Care offered by retail healthcare facilities may be of a generally lower quality than that seen at traditional hospitals and healthcare operations, but it is here to stay and has also offered multiple benefits, according to survey results from NEJM Catalyst.

Healthcare providers have a massive amount of data at their fingertips—and access to patient information is only growing as interoperability and collaborative care are increasingly prioritized. With access to all of this data, it can be easy for providers to overlook a significant amount of patient engagement data. However, it’s crucial to make use of this data, as it can be used to align with—and strengthen—value-based care initiatives.

Our organization was founded on the belief that a sustainable model for value-based care is possible along with a deep commitment to achieving the highest quality of care and the best consumer experience while lowering medical spend. This year Essence Healthcare—owned and operated by Lumeris—for the second year in a row achieved the highest Overall Plan Rating of 5 stars for 2023 by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). We are particularly proud to have received a raw score of 5.115 from CMS, bucking the national downward trend in Star ratings and achieving an average of more than 4.5 stars for 13 straight years. 

Vitality is a driver and an outcome of health and work/life engagement. However, according to new research from Bloomfield-Conn.-based Cigna and Washington, D.C.-based Morning Consult, most Americans do not have high vitality.

Americans have made tough trade-offs to deal with inflation, which negatively impacts their health and well-being, according to a new survey conducted by Nationwide Retirement Institute.

Patient discharge processes are often riddled with unnecessary delays, slowing patient throughput, creating bottlenecks, putting pressure on margins and straining much-needed capacity. But hospital leaders are increasingly turning to length-of-stay management in an effort to solve these challenges.

Combs, shampoos and other hair care products have been supplied to inpatients for decades, but many are geared toward people with straight, fine hair, leaving out a number of minority groups, according to an Oct. 19 article on the American Medical Association website.

New research indicates that 48 percent of older adults have purchased at least one at-home medical test, and about 82 percent expressed interest in using them in the future.

ABOUT AUGUSTA UNIVERSITY HEALTH MEDICAL CENTER

With nearly 20 years in the healthcare industry, Dwight McBee, BSN, RN, said he has always been wired to help people. 

RWJ Barnabas Health's Monmouth Medical Center launched a simple patient experience strategy in 2021 that is paying off in big ways, Asbury Park Press reported Oct. 4.