The Commonwealth Fund, the Health Research & Educational Trust and the American Hospital Association issued an analysis of what contributes to a high performance hospital system in terms of patient…
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Price Waterhouse Cooper has published a number of interesting reports on aspects of health care. They are one of the first large service companies to forecast changes to the health…
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The new national health law poses a number of challenges for employers in regard to the health benefits they offer to their employees. A poll published in Business of Insurance…
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Another thrilling collection of health care tidbits; including patient safety, malpractice claims, physician discipline, hospital costs and charges, venture financings, employer health costs and who makes good liars.
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Another item that falls in the "shocking, just shocking" category. Research reveals that physicians who have an ownership interest in ambulatory surgical centers tend to do more surgeries at that…
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EMRs are posited to provide enormous benefits to the health system. The Veteran's Administration has one of the most comprehensive large EMR installations. An article in Health Affairs provides a…
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The new health law greatly expands Medicaid and government spending. Figuring out how to keep that spending from breaking state budgets will be difficult. A large national health plan company…
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Electronic medical records are touted as the solution to many health system problems, including improving information sharing. A Center for Studying Health System Change Issue Brief discusses potential benefits and…
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One theory of the consumer-directed health movement has been that educated and motivated patients will make better value-based decisions regarding their health care, helping to reduce overall costs. A recent…
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More exotic gleamings from the world of health care, including self-directed care, telemedicine, point-of-care diagnostics, HCA, doctor-patient interactions and socio-economic factors in health outcomes.
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MetLife publishes its annual Study of Employee Benefits Trends, revealing that employers are concerned with cost control and employee retention and workers value their benefits and are particularly concerned about…
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There is an ongoing line of research around regional differences in utilization of and spending on health care. A study published in Circulation surveyed physicians on their practice styles and…
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JAMA reports on a study of trends in back surgery for older patients. Rates for a complex form of this surgery have grown very rapidly, along with complications and costs;…
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A JAMA article reports on a study of whether obese persons receive worse medical care, due to stigmatization of their condition or for other reasons. Despite negative perceptions, it appears…
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A commentary in the New England Journal of Medicine reminds us that health care has been a major contributor to the federal deficit and consequently the national debt and that…
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About this Blog
The Healthy Skeptic is a website about the health care system, and is written by Kevin Roche, who has many years of experience working in the health industry. Mr. Roche is available to assist health care companies through consulting arrangements through Roche Consulting, LLC and may be reached at khroche@healthy-skeptic.com.