Week of June 23 - In Case You Missed It...TOMF Medical News Roundup
June 30, 2014
In Case You Missed It...
June 23, 2014
Star Health, Round Two
It looks as though the Arizona Daily Star will publish Your Health, a page in front of the metro section, every Monday. Today features Dr. Oz on statins and diet. Other stories are Medicare basics for hospitalizations, football helmet redesigns to prevent concussions and a look at free colo-rectal exams for the uninsured.
Take a look.
Health Net to Raise Premiums
Health Net, the insurer that won the biggest slice of ObamaCare Marketplace sales with low premium prices, will raise premiums 14 percent for 2015, according the the Arizona Daily Star over the weekend. On average that will be about $31 extra per month for individuals. Health Net also will raise fees to businesses.
To be fair, it is tough for insurers. With barely any patient experience under its belt, it has to predict charges for the following year. As far as consumers are concerned they can go back to the Marketplace starting November 15, compare prices, and purchase policies from other companies if that seems in their best interest.
Polio Worries
Rotary International has been trying to eradicate polio from the world, but certain regions in three countries have used distrust of the west to discourage inoculation. The thinking goes, it we can limit polio to these three regions, we can use time to gain trust.
We never thought those regions would come to us.
Fighting in Pakistan has dislocated 100,000 unvaccinated children into areas where trust was finally being built. Fears of a massive polio outbreak have health officials around the world concerned. Today's Wall Street Journal has details, Page A-7.
In Case You Missed It...
June 24, 2014
New Anti-Smoking Ads
On the heels of the graphic -- and successful -- anti-smoking ads it prepared in 2012, the Centers for Disease Control have a new line-up in the can and they will begin airing July 7.
The CDC credits the 2012 series with convincing hundreds of thousands of smoking Americans to kick the habit.
Sleep Study & You
Too little sleep can cause long-term problems but sleeping too long can also affect your health. The University of Arizona is conducting a multi-site sleep research study for people 60 to 80 years of age who sleep more than six hours each night -- and you can be a paid volunteer to participate in a 14 week study.
Approved by the University of Arizona Institutional Review Board the study is in its third year of a five year project.
If you have patients, or you wish to participate, call 621-5127.
Privacy and Health Monitoring
All over the country physicians are trying to use monitoring technology to see if it can motivate patients to exercise. Preliminary studies show patients who get instant feedback, from meeting calorie intake goals to walking 10,000 steps, are far more likely to stick with regimens -- especially if they know their doctor is looking at the results as well.
But who else is looking?
The Wall Street Journal reports today that consumer wearables fall into a regulatory gray area. Roughly one third of the devices send data to undisclosed (to you) third parties and another third have no privacy policy whatsoever.
VA Again
You are probably experiencing VA fatigue, and are skipping most of the new revelations about the two-month-old scandal. Surprise! You are no different than the VA internal watchdog.
Today's reports, from a variety of sources, show the VA Office the Medical Inspector was not only aware of whistle-blower claims, but -- for the most part -- agreed they were true. The unsettling aspect is that the medical inspector decided the various claims had little to no effect on patient care...
...including the finding of Legionella bacteria in water fountains in Grand Junction, failure to follow sterile technique in Buffalo and saying test results done in years prior are current in Montgomery.
Perhaps they had the same fatigue as you.
In Case You Missed It...
June 25, 2014
Banner is Coming
"Banner Health Poised to Take Over UA Network" was page one news today, give public trumpet to a well-known secret in Tucson. Poised is the keyword. What has actually happened is a draft agreement has been floated, an agreement that must be vetted by the UA, the Board of Regents, the Boards of both the UA Network and Banner. In addition, it must pass public scrutiny.
Phoenix health organizations have long sought a foothold in Tucson. TMC and Good Samaritan flited in the late 1980s. Other local health organizations have had negotiations with groups from the Capitol City since the 1990s.
So who the heck is Banner? It's website shows it is a relatively young health system and is one growing rapidly:
1999 -- Nonprofits Samaritan Health System and Lutheran Health Systems announced their merger to create Banner Health. Lutheran Health Systems was known since 1938 as a respected health care provider in the rural West and Midwest. Samaritan Health System, formed in 1911, was known for clinical excellence provided in communities in California and Arizona, primarily in the Phoenix metro area.
2000 -- Peter S. Fine appointed president and chief executive officer of Banner Health; Banner's 2020 stair-step plan for industry leadership was created.
2005 -- Banner opened its first brand-new hospital, Banner Estrella Medical Center, built with state-of-the-art technology in electronic medical records and Computerized Physician Order Entry (CPOE) system to reduce and eliminate medical errors. Banner Estrella served as the franchise model for all new hospital construction and "paper-light" processes.
2006 -- Banner opened the Banner Alzheimer's Institute, a leading destination in Arizona and the nation for Alzheimer's disease care and treatment through research, and support to patients and families.
2007 -- Banner Gateway Medical Center opened, using the Banner Estrella franchise model.
2008 -- Sun Health transitioned into Banner Health, creating Banner Boswell Medical Center, Banner Del E. Webb Medical Center and Banner Sun Health Research Institute.
2009 -- Cardon Children's Medical Center opened on the campus of Banner Desert Medical Center.
2009 -- Banner Simulation Education Center, the largest "virtual hospital" of its kind, opened at Banner Corporate Center - Mesa.
2009 -- Banner Medical Group named its first CEO and began its expansion campaign. By 2013, BMG had more than 1,000 providers representing 65 specialties.
2010 -- The David Walsh Cancer Center opened on the campus of Sterling Regional MedCenter in Sterling, CO.
2010 -- Banner Ironwood Medical Center in San Tan Valley is opened.
2011 -- Banner Health and the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center opened the Banner MD Anderson Cancer Center on the campus of Banner Gateway Medical Center.
2011 -- Banner Health Network incorporated; contracts signed with seven major insurers. As of July 2014, BHN will serve 300,000 covered lives.
2012 -- Banner Medical Group opened its first Banner Health Center. BMG now operates 10 health centers and more than 150 clinics across six states.
2012 -- Banner received Stage 7 for 21 of its hospitals. Stage 7 is the highest level on a nationally recognized scale used to track EMR progress at hospitals and health systems.
2013 -- Banner Health introduces MyBanner patient portal, enabling patients to access their health information 24 hours per day, seven days a week.
2013 -- Banner named Top 5 of Large Health Systems by Truven Analytics for clinical quality for the third time in four years.
2013 -- Arizona Regional Medical Center in Apache Junction is integrated in Banner, becoming Banner Goldfield Medical Center.
In Case You Missed It...
June 26, 2014
Americans and Drinking
Binge drinking (more than three drinks at one bout) has been an American trait since Colonial times but the Centers for Disease Control took a hard look at data reported from 2006 through 2010 and found a sobering fact: 88,000 deaths a year were caused by drinking.
Men who had 15 drinks a week and women who imbibed 8 per week died much more often and earlier directly from their alcohol consumption. Worse most of these deaths were in working age Americans, meaning they lost 30 years of life expectancy.
Energy Drinks Risky?
Reuters reported earlier today that the Center for Science in the Public Interest has petitioned the US Food and Drug Administration to require death warnings on energy drinks. The Center also wants to lower the caffeine in energy drinks to that allowed for 12 oz colas.
This comes despite the fact the FDA has found no cause and effect for death by energy drink.
Over the last decade 34 people have died after drinking energy drinks. In the last two years 50 people have been hospitalized with high blood pressure and seizures after an energy drink, although, again, no cause and effect was proven.
These numbers do not include energy drinks infused with alcohol which are blamed for several deaths.