COVID-wary Patients May Avoid Care

The survey, released Tuesday by Orlando Health Heart & Vascular Institute, also found that 49% of respondents will not reschedule missed in-person medical appointments until COVID-19 concerns are reduced in their area. The same number (49%) fret that their health will suffer because of the appointments.

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Use Screening Protocols to Ensure Civil Unrest Stays Out of Your Hospital

Recently, the Department of Health and Human Services’ Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) updated its Technical Resources, Assistance Center, and Information Exchange (TRACIE) site with a four-page set of lessons learned in Minneapolis during the civil unrest after George Floyd died during a police arrest, an event caught on video and widely shared on social media.

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Telehealth Usage Rises With Increase of COVID-19 Cases

Compared to one year ago, October usage of telehealth increased by 3,060%, comprising 5.61% of all “claim lines” processed by the payers the organization tracks, compared to 0.18% the previous October. In September 2020, telehealth comprised 5.07% of all claim lines. FAIR Health defines claim lines as an individual service or procedure listed on an insurance claim.

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Mindfulness Program Decreases Burnout in Healthcare Workers, Study Finds

Burnout is one of the top challenges facing clinicians and other healthcare workers nationwide. In a report published in September 2020 by The Physicians Foundation, 30% of more than 2,300 physicians surveyed cited feelings of hopelessness or having no purpose due to changes in their practices related to the coronavirus pandemic. Research published in September 2018 indicates that nearly half of physicians across the country were experiencing burnout symptoms.

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Children’s Hospitals Are Partly to Blame as Superbugs Increasingly Attack Kids

A study published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases in January found that 1 in 4 children given antibiotics in U.S. children’s hospitals are prescribed the drugs inappropriately — the wrong types, or for too long, or when they’re not necessary. Dr. Jason Newland, a pediatrics professor at Washington University in St. Louis who co-authored the study, said that’s likely an underestimate because the research involved 32 children’s hospitals already working together on proper antibiotic use. Newland said the nation’s 250-plus children’s hospitals need to do better.

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How to Build a Comprehensive Social Determinants of Health Initiative

SDOH factors such as food security and housing play a pivotal role in the health of individuals and populations. A landmark 2016 study published by the American Journal of Preventive Medicine found that socioeconomic factors, health behaviors, and the physical environment account for determining more than 80% of health outcomes, with clinical care accounting for only 16% of health outcomes.

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