March 2016 Issue of Becker's Hospital Review

On the Cover

Executive Briefing

The Business of Optimizing Patients Prior to Surgery
Hospitals are constantly looking for new ways to cut costs without compromising care quality.

Population Health

How Hospitals Need to Help Fight Gun Violence: 3 Experts Weigh in on Chicago's Pressing Public Health Problem
Since 1985, only six cities have held the undesirable honor of “murder capital” of the U.S. for the highest number of homicides per 100,000 residents. Click here to continue >>

Most Providers Lag in Implementing Population Health Management: 5 Findings
Most healthcare providers continue to fall behind in progress toward population health and value based models of care despite broad agreement it will be important for future market success, according to a national study by Numerof & Associates. Click here to continue >>

Ads Target Hospitals for Ties to Chickfil-A, Other FastFood Chains
An ongoing ad campaign in 20 U.S. cities is criticizing hospitals for their ties with fast-food restaurants, and urging them to end those ties, according to an International Business Times report. Click here to continue >>

Hawaii No. 1 for Well-Being in US
Residents of Hawaii had the highest well-being of any state in the U.S. in 2015, according to a Gallup and Healthways poll. Click here to continue >>

15 Hospital, Health System Population Health Administrators to Know
As the healthcare landscape changes, so must the leadership teams of provider organizations.

100 Hospital and Health System CMOs to Know

100 Hospital and Health System CMOs to Know | 2016
Becker's Hospital Review has named “100 Hospital and Health System CMOs to Know,” a list comprising physician leaders who have demonstrated a commitment to improving and innovating on patient safety and quality endeavors.

Executive Briefing

The 2-Way Street to Patient Satisfaction
Two people were in need of emergency medical attention. 

Finance

The Man Behind Oscar: 6 Questions With the CEO of a 'Hipster' Health Insurer
Amid the mega-merger frenzy, one health insurer is setting itself apart. Click here to continue >>

673 Rural Hospitals Vulnerable to Closure: 5 Things to Know
More than 60 rural hospitals have closed since 2010 and another 673 rural hospitals across the nation are vulnerable to closure, according to a report from iVantage Health Analytics, a firm that compiles a hospital strength index that is based on data about financial stability, patients and quality indicators. Click here to continue >>

6 Common Characteristics of Hospitals Vulnerable to Closure
There are 673 rural hospitals across the nation that are vulnerable to closure, and these facilities have many similarities beyond their financial troubles, according to a report from iVantage Health Analytics. Click here to continue >>

Baylor Scott & White to Close Facility as Services are Consolidated
Dallas-based Baylor Scott & White Health will decommission its Center for Rehabilitative Medicine in Waco, Texas, this summer, as the healthy system works to streamline services, according to the Tribune-Herald. Click here to continue >>

Federal Appeals Court: Hospitals Can Be 'Rural' and 'Urban' at The Same Time
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit struck down a federal regulation that made it difficult for hospitals to claim they were "rural" for some purposes and "urban" for others, according to Reuters. Click here to continue >>

AHA's Fight Over RAC Backlog Gets New Life From Appeals Court
A federal appeals court revived a lawsuit brought by the American Hospital Association, which centers on the controversial Recovery Audit Contractor program. Click here to continue >>

Duke University Health System Rakes in Record Operating Income in FY 2015
Duke University Health System in Durham, N.C., reported record operating income of $355 million for the 2015 fiscal year, the highest grossed in the health system's history, The Chronicle reported. Click here to continue >>

15 Things for Healthcare Leaders to Know About Obama's 2017 Budget
President Barack Obama shared his $4.1 trillion budget proposal Feb. 9 for the 2017 fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1. Click here to continue >>

 Care Delivery

Fourth UPMC Patient With Mold Infection Dies
Che DuVall, who contracted a fungal infection after undergoing a double lung transplant at Pittsburgh-based UPMC Presbyterian, died Saturday, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Click here to continue >>

Legionnaires Victims Sue McLaren Hospital Amid Flint Water Crisis
Four individuals affected by the Legionnaires' disease outbreak in Flint, Mich., have filed a suit against McLaren Flint hospital and six state workers, arguing the illness could be attributed to the water crisis, according to an NBC News report. Click here to continue >>

Top 10 Sentinel Events in 2015
In 2015, the Joint Commission reviewed 936 sentinel events that occurred in hospitals, ambulatory care settings and other care locations, up dramatically from the 764 events it reviewed in 2014. 

Mythbusting the Modern MD: 4 Findings Fight Outdated Stereotypes of Physicians
Though we often say value-based care, increased pressure on compensation and a new regulatory environment will force physicians to adapt, and we don't always give them credit for changing. Click here to continue >>

Longer Surgical Resident Hours Don't Hinder Patient Care, Study Says
Extending hours for surgical residents doesn't negatively affect patient care, according to a New England Journal of Medicine study. Click here to continue >>

 Health Information Technology

Practice Fusion Lays Off 25% of Workforce
In efforts to become cash flow positive, EHR vendor Practice Fusion has laid off approximately 74 people, a quarter of its workforce, reports TechCrunch. Click here to continue >>

3M Decides to Hold Onto Health IT Division
St. Paul, Minn.-based 3M has decided to keep its Health Information Systems business unit after considering selling it. Click here to continue >>

Computer Glitch Slows Mountain States Health Alliance for 9 Days
A systemwide computer glitch in Mountain States Health Alliance's IT network impacted a number of clinical and IT workflows last week, according to a Kingsport TimesNews report. Click here to continue >>

Jackson Memorial Fires Employees for Inappropriately Accessing NFL Player's Medical Record
The Miami health system where NFL player Jason Pierre-Paul underwent treatment for a finger injury fired two employees who accessed the football player's medical records, reports NJ.com. Click here to continue >>

Patients Push for Transparency: OpenNotes at Northwest Permanente
The patient-physician relationship has long been uni-directional: The clinician determines a diagnosis and treatment plan, and the patient follows along, taking the clinician's word at face value.  Click here to continue >>

Investment in 'Ubers of Healthcare' to Hit $1B By Year's End
The healthcare startup market is a battle ground for new companies wrestling to seize territory in the burgeoning world of on-demand care.
 

Executive Briefing

Essential Elements of Care Redesign and Care Management
Improving care quality and patient outcomes continue to be prominent goals in our healthcare system. However, cost control is also an important goal, catalyzed in part by CMS' announcement that it intends to shift 50 percent of Medicare payments from fee-for-service to fee-for-value models by 2018.
 

Thought Leadership

7 Thoughts on Great Leadership
This article briefly discusses seven different thoughts on what makes a great leader. We find the questions, “What makes a great leader?” and “What does great leadership mean in practice?” to be really interesting. Click here to continue >>

7 Rules for CEOs to Live By, Whether at a Small Start-Up or Global Corporation
As president and CEO of the world's largest independently owned public relations firm, Edelman, Richard Edelman has come to understand that employees want their CEOs to be trustworthy, confident, ethical, transparent and decent. Click here to continue >>

Waiting Hours in the ER Shouldn't Routinely Happen
Everyone's aware that if you go to a hospital emergency room, the meaning of the word "patient" may be put to the test. Click here to continue >>

The Key to Population Health: Know Your Chronic Disease Patients and Coach Them
In my column last month, I talked about the need for a new physician interface that sits on top of the EHR and integrates data from multiple sources. Click here to continue >>

The Corner Office: SSM Health’s Bill Thompson on the Power of Curiosity
Since adolescence and throughout his career, William P. Thompson has relished any opportunity to learn. Click here to continue >>