August 23, 2012 John DeGaspari
As technology becomes more pervasive in healthcare, examples of how it is being used effectively to improve care are cropping up everywhere. I came across one example yesterday, during a conference call regarding the announcement by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services regarding the selection of primary care practices to participate in the agency’s Comprehensive Primary Care Initiative.
July 25, 2012 John DeGaspari
At the Healthcare Financial Management Association ANI annual conference last month in Las Vegas, I heard a presentation by Randall Gehle, D.O., about his involvement with helping his medical group make the transition to the patient-centered medical home (PCMH) model. He described the transition process, some of its challenges, and how it has had an impact on his family medicine practice.
July 11, 2012 John DeGaspari
I recently started to read a book on healthcare reform—appropriately titled “Health Care Will Not Reform Itself”—written by George C. Halvorson, chairman and CEO of Oakland, Calif.-based Kaiser Permanente. The book was handed out to attendees of Halvorson’s presentation at last month’s ANI conference put on by the Healthcare Financial Management Association in Las Vegas. Although it was published in 2009, the book is as relevant today as it was then, especially in light of the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the Accountable Care Act.
July 9, 2012 John DeGaspari
I recently had an opportunity to speak with David Willis, M.D., who is a family practice physician in Ocala, Fla., about his experience with the electronic health record. The timing of our conversation was good: Willis has worked with the EHR (actually an integrated EHR and practice management solution from Greenway Medical Technologies, Inc.) for about two years, making him a relatively new user, but also one with substantial experience.
July 3, 2012 John DeGaspari
At the HFMA conference last week in Las Vegas, Marc Halley, president and CEO of Halley Consulting Group, LLC, Westerville, Ohio, described a perfect storm of unprecedented demand, declining reimbursements, and increasing regulations and costs that will affect healthcare more than anything coming out of Capitol Hill.
June 28, 2012 John DeGaspari
Do lower-cost hospitals mean lower quality? Jamie Cleverley, principal of Cleverley & Associates, Worthington, Ohio, compared the performance of hospitals nationwide, in a Wednesday session of the HFMA ANI conference.
June 27, 2012 John DeGaspari
Provider organizations have the opportunity and responsibility to act today to improve care, according to James G. Lee, executive vice president and chief financial officer of Adventist Healthcare, Rockville, Md. In 2009, the health system started a primary care medical home pilot system for its employees.
June 26, 2012 John DeGaspari
Bethesda Memorial Hospital in Boynton Beach, Fla., has used lean sigma disciplines as a basis of continuous improvement and to ensure sustainable business outcomes.
June 25, 2012 John DeGaspari
This year’s annual conference of the Healthcare Financial Management Association in Las Vegas is an great example of interesting timing, because it may well coincide with the Supreme Court’s expected announcement of its decision on the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act.
June 20, 2012 John DeGaspari
With the expected decision on healthcare reform by the Supreme Court, what will happen to patient safety and quality reforms taking place under the Affordable Care Act? In a recent article in Scientific American, several healthcare experts said that patients will suffer if the law is struck down. Yet a recent article in the New York Times also points out that initiatives that hospitals have already put in place will have a lasting impact, and the economic pressure to provide better care to more people is irreversible.
