quality
Quality of care in CT remains high
AHRQ’s new 2010 Health Care Quality and Disparities reports find that our state is among the best in the overall quality of care we receive, however we lag behind the rest of New England in prevention and acute treatment and behind others for chronic disease management and health outcomes. Nationally, urban – rural disparities in…
Read MoreConsumers getting too many heart tests
A new survey by Consumers Union finds that most 40 to 60 year olds with no symptoms or risk factors who see a doctor are routinely getting unnecessary heart tests including EKGs (50%), exercise stress tests (21%), and ultrasounds of the carotid arteries (7%). Few respondents were aware of the risks and complications that can…
Read MoreUConn Dempsey Hospital’s high use of controversial scans questioned
Patients at UConn’s Dempsey Hospital in Farmington are nearly ten times more likely to receive “combination CT scans” than at other CT or US hospitals; other CT hospitals’ rates are similar to the national average. In 2008 national rates for the higher intensity scans were 5% for chest scans and 19% for abdominal scans; at…
Read MoreSerious quality of care questions in defibrillator implants
A new study on over 100,000 patients found that over one in five who received heart defibrillator implants shouldn’t have, based on best practice guidelines. The implants require surgery, with a risk of complications, and cost about $25,000 each. Not only was the surgery risky and expensive, but the 22% of patients who should not…
Read MoreOnline calculator outlines bottom line business case for quality
I’ve been playing with NCQA’s Quality Dividend Calculator – a cool toy that estimates how much improving health care quality can mean to a company’s bottom line. Visitors input some basic information about a company (I made mine up) such as number of employees, ages/gender, total revenues, overhead percentages, area of the US, industry, how…
Read MoreCourant editorial critical of CT physician oversight
Authorities in CT are too lax in approving physicians to practice here, according to the Hartford Courant’s editorial page. The editorial was based on an article by the CT Health I-Team. The authors highlight numerous cases of disciplined doctors who’ve lost their license in neighboring states who are later approved to practice in CT. Hospital…
Read MoreYNHH surgeries under scrutiny after wrong site operation
The New Haven Independent is reporting that on June 9th a car crash victim had a skeletal traction pin surgically inserted into the wrong leg at Yale-New Haven Hospital. The error was the result of poor communication between surgeons during a “handoff” of the patient and had to be corrected in another surgery. The mistake…
Read MoreCSG/ERC meeting slides online
Health panel slides from last week’s CSG/ERC annual meeting in Maine are online. They include Sen. Richard Moore (MA) and Trish Riley/Karynlee Harrington (ME, Dirigo) on payment reform, Lisa Letourneau (ME Quality Counts) on patient-centered medical homes, and Alan Weil (NASHP) on state roles in national health reform.
Read MoreMore evidence that doctors and patients are not communicating
A new study by Yale and Waterbury Hospital researchers finds that despite the fact that physicians believe that they are completely explaining hospital discharge plans, many patients do not understand very basic information. 90% of patients report that they were never advised about side effects when prescribed new medications; in fact, only 25% report being…
Read MoreNew report on states and quality-based purchasing
Health care consumes 17% of America’s economy and, sometime this year, government’s share of that spending will pass 50%. A consensus is growing that the way we pay for health care is driving costs. The current fee-for-service system encourages utilization and does nothing to improve quality. States have important and unique roles in the health…
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