Improving Methods for Addressing Patients With Cognitive Decline
Among the key findings, the survey finds that 83% of respondents believe they should be offering formal programs to help care for members with cognitive decline. Health plan leaders are enthusiastic about innovative interventions and support, including reducing social isolation, improving balance and physical health, and nonpharmaceutical treatments.
To Fix Medicare Spending, Prevent Fractures Among Aging Americans
Almost one in six Americans are at increased risk of a fracture due to osteoporosis or low bone mass. Each year, 1.8 million Medicare beneficiaries suffer more than 2 million osteoporotic fractures, which lead to 432,000 hospital admissions and 180,000 nursing home admissions.
How AI Can Leverage EHR for More Efficiency at the Bedside
Sixty percent of Americans live with at least one serious or chronic condition, such as cancer, diabetes, stroke, or heart disease. By expanding the opportunity for earlier diagnoses and offering more personalized interventions, providers have the chance to improve outcomes and quality of life for patients before a condition worsens and becomes more difficult to manage.
How Genetic Testing Execution Can Be Improved Through Lab Stewardship
There are better ways to manage genetic testing. Implementing a lab stewardship program that encompasses the rapidly expanding genetic testing field can provide clarity for providers, improved care for patients, and savings for hospitals.
Addressing Maternal Mortality Through Cardiovascular Care
Addressing cardiovascular disease during pregnancy is crucial to reducing maternal mortality, says Rachel Bond, MD, system director of women’s heart health at CommonSpirit. “Cardiovascular death, which is the leading cause of death during pregnancy, is preventable 80% of the time. A lot of that has to do with us communicating with each other and diagnosing these conditions early.”
Long COVID Patients at Increased Risk for Cardiovascular Conditions, Study Finds
Long COVID, also known as post-COVID-19 condition (PCC), is defined as having new, returning, or ongoing health issues more than four weeks after an initial infection, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Symptoms that lead to a diagnosis of long COVID include fatigue, cough, loss of taste or smell, shortness of breath, neurocognitive difficulties, and depression.
CDC Issues Nationwide Alert for Measles Cases After Exposure at Kentucky Gathering
The CDC issued a Health Alert Network (HAN) health advisory “to notify clinicians and public health officials about a confirmed measles case at a large gathering’ from February 17-18, during the infectious stage. According to the Kentucky Department for Public Health (KDPH), the case involves “an unvaccinated individual with a history of recent international travel.”
Addressing Preventable Deaths in Maternal Care
The report also noted that the leading underlying cause of death varied by race and ethnicity, with cardiac and coronary conditions the leading cause among non-Hispanic Black patients, mental health among Hispanic and non-Hispanic white patients, and hemorrhage among non-Hispanic Asian patients.
‘Tripledemic’ Reveals Critical Need for Better Patient Triage and Transfer Services
During November 2022, hospitals in states such as Maryland, Massachusetts, and North Carolina were forced to set up triaging tents in their parking lots, postpone elective surgeries, or impose visitor restrictions owing to the high numbers of patients showing up in their EDs. In December, patients at one Oregon health system had to wait for more than two days to be transferred to other facilities for higher levels of care. In effect, the situation felt like 2020 again.
Long COVID is Partly to Blame for Workforce Shortages
Some 71% of claimants with long COVID were still receiving treatment and unable to return to work for six months or more, according to data from the New York State Insurance Fund (NYSIF), the largest worker compensation insurance fund in the state. The study analyzed more than 3,000 COVID-19 workers’ compensation claims received by NYSIF between January 1, 2020, and March 31, 2022.