risk

SPOTLIGHT: Bullying raises suicide risk for perpetrators, too

Anne Zieger — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 01:02:34 -0400

It's not surprising to learn, sadly, that victims of bullying face a higher risk of suicide than those who haven't been bullied. However, a new study suggests that their tormentors suffer, too. In fact, a new study of bullying in 13 countries shows that bullies are also more likely than the general population to have suicidal thoughts. Blog

CA fines 13 hospitals for placing patients at risk

Thu, 22 May 2008 06:59:56 -0400

The California Department of Public Health has disciplined 13 hospitals for placing patients at risk of serious injury or death, fining each $25,000. The agency, which has issued 39 citations since October, won the right to fine facilities for serious violations of patient safety in 2007. Violations included a case in which a car crash victim died at Los Angeles-based public hospital Harbor-UCLA after nurses failed to monitor the patient's failing neurological condition. In another case, Olive View-UCLA was cited when a resident attempted a surgical procedure, handed the patient to another doctor, and failed to communicate that a patient's small intestine may have been perforated in the process.

To learn more about the citations:
- read this Los Angeles Times article

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ALSO NOTED: Bird flu pandemic risk rising; Los Angeles hospitals struggle with excess demand; and much more...

Mon, 12 May 2008 06:59:50 -0400

> Experts are warning that the risk of a bird flu pandemic is rising. FierceBioResearcher

> Los Angeles hospitals are struggling mightily to cope with excess demand created by the closure of King-Harbor Medical Center. While it was going to reopen in February 2009, some now fear that the planned re-opening will be delayed for years. Article

> Kaiser Permanente has put the finishing touches on the outpatient phase of its costly electronic medical records project. FierceHealthIT

> Iowa nurses should get a raise with the state's hospitals getting a 1 percent boost in Medicaid reimbursement. Article

And Finally... This guy performed a tracheotomy on himself without anesthesia--twice. Article

ALSO NOTED: NJ flunks Medicaid security audit; Study says infants aren't getting vaccines on time; and much more...

Mon, 05 May 2008 06:59:50 -0400

> New Jersey's Medicaid program has flunked a state security audit, which found that the program isn't doing enough to monitor who looks at sensitive data. FierceHealthIT

> A new study suggests that growing numbers of infants don't get their vaccinations on time, a trend that could increase the risk of disease among a fragile population. FierceVaccines

> While electronic medical records can be a big investment, sometimes that investment pays off decisively. FierceHealthFinance

> New research suggests that uninsured children in middle class households face similar health risks to those who are poor and uninsured. Article

And Finally... In heaven, there is no beer--but this guy plans to take it as far as he can. Article

Congress passes bill banning genetic discrimination

Fri, 02 May 2008 06:59:57 -0400

In a landmark action, Congress has approved a bill banning genetic discrimination. The bill, the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act, forbids employers and insurance companies from using genetic tests that demonstrate a risk of conditions such as cancer or heart disease to reject their applications or set premiums. Employers also are barred from using such information to hire, fire or determine who gets promotions. President Bush is expected to sign the bill promptly. While 41 states already have enacted similar laws related to health insurance, and 31 rules regarding genetic discrimination at work, there's never been a federal law on this subject. Researchers are applauding the measure's progress, as they're worried that Americans won't participate in genetic studies unless they're confident the data won't be used against them.

To learn more about the bill:
- read this Associated Press piece

Related Articles:
Genetic discrimination ban gains support
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Study: Shorter hospitalizations not always best

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 06:59:54 -0400

A new study has drawn a conclusion that flies in the face of the core assumptions most planners make about healthcare. At least for some patients, shorter hospital stays aren't better, according to the study, which was published in this month's Archives of Internal Medicine. The researchers, who studied 15,531 Pennsylvania patients diagnosed with a pulmonary embolism, found that those who were discharged sooner were at greater risk of death. Specifically, patients discharged after four or fewer dies were much more likely to die than those remaining in the hospital for five or more days.

To learn more about the study:
- read this Philadelphia Inquirer item

Joint Commission issues warning on child med errors

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 06:59:55 -0400

As we reported earlier this week, a new study found that one of 15 hospitalized children is harmed, most often by medication errors. Now, following up on that study, the Commission has released an alert urging hospitals to take children's unique safety needs into account. The new alert asks hospitals to weigh children in kilograms when admitted, given that such weights routinely are used to calculate medication doses for children. Hospitals that weigh children in pounds increase the risk of giving the child a double dose, they noted. The Commission also reminded hospitals to clearly mark products that get repacked from adult formulations for use in children, keep adult meds away from pediatric units, and avoid storing adult and children's meds in the same dispensing machine or cabinet.

To learn more about the Joint Commission's recommendations:
- read this Associated Press article
- read this Joint Commission press release

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Small hospitals may be safe to do angioplasties

Mon, 31 Mar 2008 07:59:56 -0400

Generally speaking, states ban hospitals performing angioplasties in non-emergency situations unless there's a heart surgeon available to step in if things don't go well. However, smaller hospitals without a heart surgeon on call have increasingly been trying the procedure, and according to a new study, may not be putting patients at as much risk as previously thought. The study, which might help to convince state policymakers to change their view of small-hospital angioplasties, could have a significant impact on their bottom line. In the study, researchers looked at 9,029 patients who had angioplasties at hospitals without on-site cardiac surgeons, and compared the results with 299,132 patients at 404 centers that did have heart surgeon backup. As it turned out, complications at the hospitals without surgeons weren't significantly here.

This is good news for the smaller hospitals, which can get a much-needed $15,000 or more for an angioplasty. These hospitals have long argued that current guidelines on safe angioplasties are outdated, given that they don't take into effect the impact of stents, which make angioplasties safer by limiting the number of times the balloon is inflated.

To learn more about angioplasties without surgeons:
- read this Associated Press piece

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Belly fat, dementia linked

Thu, 27 Mar 2008 07:59:54 -0400

As if you needed any more reasons to work out and stay healthy, here's further incentive. According to an article published in the Washington Post, a study conducted by the Kaiser Permanente Division of Research found that people who have larger bellies in their 40s are more prone to developing Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia in their 70s. Kaiser's Rachel A. Whitmer, the lead scientist on the study, noted that more than 6,500 members of Kaiser Permanente of Northern California initially participating in a "broad health study between 1964 and 1973" were tested for such a link. Whitmer and her colleagues found that as the amount of fat in the abdomen increased, so too did the risk for dementia. In fact, when researchers looked at a patient's body mass index (BMI), it was discovered that "people with big bellies were still nearly twice as likely to develop dementia, even if they had BMIs that were considered healthy."

To learn more:
- read the article in the Washington Post (reg. req.)

NV hospital hired clinics accused of lax practices

Fri, 14 Mar 2008 07:59:57 -0400

An area medical center is coming under fire to defend a $1 million contract with a group of clinics now under investigation for potentially widespread infection control failures. The contract has been canceled since the scandal broke, however, University Medical Centers executives, who signed the deal last year with Dr. Dipak Desai, remain under fire because of that deal. Among Desai's clinics are the Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada, where six patients contracted Hepatitis C and another 40,000 patients seem to be at risk. Not only are the unsafe conditions under question, hospital officials are wondering why Desai's group got $1 million to direct the hospital's gastroenterology department, more than four times the $210,000 they got for the same work in 2006. Hospital officials said that they gave Desai the raise, less, actually than the $1.85 million he'd demanded, given that they had only two appropriate candidates. Now, despite shelling out big bucks, the hospital is back where it started, struggling to fill the hole in its program.

To learn more about the deal:
- read this Las Vegas Sun piece

Related Article:
Las Vegas clinic may have infected 40,000 patients. Report