AHA launches center for health innovation
Cohen, Jessica. (September 11, 2018). AHA launches center for health innovation. Becker’s Hospital Review.com. Retrieved https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/hospital-management-administration/aha-launches-center-for-health-innovation.html
The American Hospital Association (AHA) introduced a center for health innovation to provide hospitals with resources and support in the changing healthcare environment. Through the center, the AHA will offer hospitals insights into best practices for emerging areas of healthcare, such as new payment, delivery and performance improvement models. The center will also vette ideas that improve outcomes and decrease cost of healthcare services. Initially the focus will be on developing market intelligence, innovation competitions, cybersecurity services and innovation boot camps. "This is a pivotal moment for the field, as hospitals and healthcare systems face unprecedented challenges and opportunities," Rick Pollack, president and CEO of the AHA, said in a news release. "Innovation isn't limited to Silicon Valley. Hospitals and health systems across the country have been incubators of innovation."
Apple Watch's ECG could prompt unneeded medical visits, cardiologists say
Spitzer, J. (September 17, 2018). Becker’s Hospital Review.com. Retrieved https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/healthcare-information-technology/apple-watch-s-ecg-could-prompt-unneeded-medical-visits-cardiologists-say.html
Apple is ramping up its stock in the healthcare industry by adding an electrocardiogram monitor to the Apple Watch Series 4. The change has left many cardiologists concerned about putting the powerful tech around consumers' wrists. Specialists told The Seattle Times they are worried giving patients around-the-clock access to such powerful heart-monitoring tools could lead to unnecessary anxiety and medical visits.
Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease Is Spreading Again
Esposito, L. (September 19, 2018). Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease Is Spreading Again. U.S. News & World Report.com. Retrieved https://health.usnews.com/health-care/patient-advice/articles/2018-09-19/hand-foot-and-mouth-disease-is-spreading-again
With seeping blisters on the palms and soles, and painful mouth sores as trademark symptoms, hand, foot and mouth disease is as it sounds. Viruses easily spread through locker rooms, day care centers, military barracks, college dorms are the culprit. "With hand, foot and mouth disease, the major way you can get it is fecal-oral," says Dr. Robert Flannery, a sports medicine specialist at University Hospitals Sports Medicine Institute in Cleveland and a team physician with the NFL's Cleveland Browns. "So washing your hands after you go to the bathroom is very important." Hand, foot and mouth viruses may lurk on surfaces, as well. Training room tables, wrestling mats and shared towels are all potential sources of contagion, says Flannery. Among athletic organizations, he says, there's been growing awareness and emphasis on improved disinfection and cleaning. "Another way is direct contact with the fluid that can come out of the blisters on the hands or feet," Flannery says. "So if someone does have it, we make sure to tell them they should not be shaking hands. We really try to isolate them as much as possible. We want to make sure there are no open lesions and that anything that is open is covered and treated appropriately”.
University of Akron professor developing opioid detecting glove for first responders
Abraham, A. (September 19, 2018). University of Akron professor developing opioid detecting glove for first responders. WKYC.com. Retrieved https://www.wkyc.com/article/news/local/akron/university-of-akron-professor-developing-opioid-detecting-glove-for-first-responders/95-596373195
A University of Akron professor has been awarded $200,000 to help develop a glove that would detect the presence of an opioid to protect police officers and first responders from harmful exposure. Abraham Joy received the $200,000 prize as part of an Opioid Technology Challenge from the state of Ohio’s Third Frontier Commission. Joy is developing a polymer-fiber mat that can detect traces of opiate residue. The innovation would help alert first responders of the presence of an opioid within 30 seconds of contact. After Joy talked to local detectives, he came across concerns of getting in contact with potentially harmful substances while responding to calls on the field. "We learned that there isn’t something that there isn’t something that easily and quickly tells them that there’s a presence of a controlled substance," said Joy.
41st Annual Report on the Health of the Nation
Center for Disease Control. (September 20, 2018). 41st Annual Report on the Health of the Nation includes data through 2016. Retrieved https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2018/p0920-death-rates-up.html
The CDC just released a sweeping data set on health in the U.S., from vaccination rates to asthma prevalence. A few findings: *Chronic liver disease: Among women ages 25 to 34, death rates for chronic liver disease and cirrhosis climbed by an average of 11 percent each year from 2006 to 2016. Among men in that same age group, rates rose about 8 percent annually. *Life expectancy: Between 2014 and 2015, life expectancy at birth dropped 0.2 years, the first decline since 1993. It fell another 0.1 years the next year. *Health spending: In 2016, personal health spending in the U.S. hit $2.8 trillion, more than a 4 percent jump from 2015.
New Survey Shows Physicians' Top Choices for US Hospitals 2018
(September 19, 2018). Medscape.com. New Survey Shows Physicians' Top Choices for US Hospitals 2018. Retrieved https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/902208
The Cleveland Clinic, the Mayo Clinic, and Massachusetts General Hospital are among the top US hospitals in 2018 for several non-cancer conditions and procedures, according to Medscape's Physicians' Choice survey. Hospitals can vary in the degree of expertise, innovation, and experience that they offer in treating conditions or performing procedures. Physicians, who network and read medical journals, are likely to have more knowledge about standout hospitals where they would go for medical care. Medscape surveyed members and identified 10 clinical conditions or procedures by asking the following, "Suppose you or someone in your family were diagnosed with a complex or difficult case of (condition). Assuming no barriers to treatment at the hospital you prefer, what hospital would you choose for treatment?" A total of 11,549 US physicians responded to the online survey. Physicians felt the most important factor in choosing a hospital (for non-cancer conditions) was having medically respected expertise (physician credentials, published outcomes), followed by a hospital's reputation among their colleagues.
Justice Department approves CVS’s $69 billion merger with insurance giant Aetna
Fung, B. (October 10, 2018). Justice Department approves CVS’s $69 billion merger with insurance giant Aetna. Washington Post.com. Retrieved https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2018/10/10/justice-department-approves-cvss-billion-merger-with-insurance-giant-aetna/?utm_term=.49b3d36696df
Antitrust officials gave CVS the green light to purchase Aetna, the nation’s third-largest health insurance company, in a $69 billion deal that will alter health care and change how Americans receive basic medical services. The Justice Department approved the deal after the companies sell off Aetna’s Medicare Part D prescription drug business. The merger will allow CVS to turn more of its brick-and-mortar locations into front-line clinics for basic medical services and patient monitoring. By deepening its knowledge of and relationships with patients, CVS has said the combination could help Americans stick with medication regimens thus staying out of the hospital. Spearheading this approach to care will be the immense amounts of data generated not only by CVS’s 9,800 retail outlets and 1,100 Minute Clinics, but from Aetna’s 22 million medical members.
