The last few weeks have brought stunning developments and potentially ominous signs for our country. Recent Supreme Court rulings have stripped away protections related to women’s reproductive rights and gun violence. Threats to rights for the LGBTQ+ community and other vulnerable populations also appear to be on the horizon. We are facing an unprecedented rollback of rights for members of our communities.

For many healthcare leaders, implementing new technology feels like a zero-sum game.

Healthcare CFOs have not had an easy year. The cost of care continues to climb while revenue falls. The numbers aren’t pretty: since 2020, staffing costs jumped 26.6% while hospital margins in 2022 have closed in the negative1 for the first 4 months (and have yet to be positive). Operating margins have decreased by 56-78% year-over-year. Claim denials are skyrocketing, up 23% since 20162. The stats just keep coming—and so does the financial pressure. 

Talking to patients about the social determinants of their health is just as, if not more, important as prescribing medication to treat an ailment, according to physicians practicing at organizations that utilize screenings to learn about factors like housing and employment. 

Healthgrades has recognized 399 hospitals as recipients of its 2022 Outstanding Patient Experience Award, the organization said June 21. This represents the top 15 percent of hospitals in the U.S. for patient experience. 

Gone are the days when people waited for their insurance or other sources to tell them where to get healthcare. People today look for healthcare the same way they look for a restaurant — with online reviews. 

In today's healthcare market, patients see themselves as consumers and expect a consumer-like experience.

Daniela Lamas, MD, a pulmonary and critical care physician at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, has noticed a big difference in her hospital and in patient care since the pandemic began: "an erosion of the family presence that we once embraced."

When Marcelle Davis, PhD, joined Richmond, Va.-based VCU Health System in the fall of 2020, a large part of her goal revolved around initiatives to improve inclusivity.

The Connecticut Office of Health Strategy is questioning Covenant Health's potential acquisition of Putnam, Conn.-based Day Kimball Hospital, particularly over reproductive health, CT Insider reported June 9.

The annual face time patients spent with outpatient physicians rose from 40 to 60.4 minutes from 1979 to 2018, according to findings published June 6 in the Journal of General Internal Medicine. 

Seventy-three percent of insured Americans said getting mental healthcare was easy, according to a survey released June 7 by health insurer lobby and trade group America's Health Insurance Plans. 

Adult inpatient volumes will recover to pre-pandemic numbers but grow only 2 percent over the next decade, a new report from Sg2 forecasts.

Finding the exact location of an appointment at a healthcare campus can be stressful for patients, especially if they've never been there. UCHealth added Pointr's digital maps and location to their mobile app, to seamlessly guide patients from their home to their appointments. UCHealth uses a digital mapping application to seamlessly guide patients from their home to their appointment.

Virtually every adult inpatient hospital in America administers the HCAHPS survey to patients. The data from these surveys are publicly reported for all to see, and star ratings are assigned to hospitals based on this patient feedback. In addition, results of these surveys are a driver of the government’s Value-Based Purchasing program, which rewards or penalizes hospitals based on performance. HCAHPS and other CMS-mandated quality measures are ingrained into most hospitals’ goal setting and operations. The stakes on performance are high.

Young patients want their providers to ask about social determinants of health such as housing and food access, according to findings from a recent poll led by researchers at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.

Many hospitals are reserving contrast dye for emergency situations amid a global shortage, leaving some patients waiting weeks or months for CT scans and other imaging procedures. 

The Joint Commission and Association of periOperative Registered Nurses are urging surgical teams to not rush through safety "timeouts" as they tackle a backlog of surgeries postponed amid the pandemic. 

Healthcare competition is fierce.

The Association of American Medical Colleges is planning to roll out new standards aimed at teaching physicians how to treat patients who are overweight in an equitable manner, reported NBC News May 21.