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• Is it “Macaca” Time in Healthcare?

  August 11th was the 2nd anniversary of the epic implosion of George Allen's presidential campaign, the first defeat at the hands of YouTube. Two recent videos of unattended patients dying in ER waiting rooms leave me wondering whether healthcare has also Read More... Posted Tue, Aug 19 2008 8:00 AM by Bob Wachter | 1 Comments Filed under: Hospital Care, Transparency and Reporting, Information Technology, Patient Safety/Medical Errors, Media/Press Coverage

• Post-Vacation Potpourri: Items Interesting, International, and Ineffably Sad

  Just returning from a work-acation, including a talk in Buenos Aires. Today I’ll briefly cover a few items: Medicare’s final “no pay” list; patient safety in Argentina; a great post on hospital finances; and one of the saddest things I’ve ever experienced. Read More... Posted Thu, Aug 14 2008 3:07 AM by Bob Wachter | 0 Comments Filed under: Quality Improvement, Hospital Care, Transparency and Reporting, Quality Measurement, Patient Safety/Medical Errors, Health Policy, Media/Press Coverage

• Will Knols and Blogs Upend the Cozy World of Medical Publishing?

  Yesterday, Google launched Knol, immediately branded as Google’s answer to Wikipedia. As healthcare advisor to the project, I’ll say a few words about Knol, but focus on how it – and other forms of electronic self-publishing – may signal the end of medical Read More... Posted Fri, Jul 25 2008 6:03 AM by Bob Wachter | 2 Comments Filed under: Medical Education/Academia, Information Technology, Industry/Pharma, Health Policy, Media/Press Coverage

• The Long Awaited Crisis in Primary Care: It’s Heeere!

  I recently heard from a UCSF physician who was flabbergasted when he sought an appointment in our general medicine practice and was told it was “closed.” Turns out we’re not alone: there are also no new PCP slots available at Mass General. The primary Read More... Posted Sun, Jul 20 2008 7:36 PM by Bob Wachter | 8 Comments Filed under: Medical Education/Academia, Ambulatory/Primary Care, Health Policy, Media/Press Coverage

• Another Case of Wrong Site Surgery: Are We Averting Our Eyes From Some of the Root Causes?

  Yet another case of wrong-side surgery, this one at Boston’s Beth-Israel Deaconess Hospital. Though CEO Paul Levy does a nice job discussing the case on his blog, I’ll focus on two aspects Paul neglects: the role of production pressures in errors, and Read More... Posted Wed, Jul 09 2008 7:52 AM by Bob Wachter | 11 Comments Filed under: Hospital Care, Patient Safety/Medical Errors, Media/Press Coverage

• Why Diagnostic Errors Don’t Get Any Respect… And What Can Be Done About It

  I gave a keynote yesterday to the first-ever meeting on “Diagnostic Error in Medicine.” I hope the confab helps put diagnostic errors on the safety map. But, as Ricky Ricardo would say, the experts and advocates in the audience have some ‘splainin’ to Read More... Posted Mon, Jun 02 2008 4:20 AM by Bob Wachter | 4 Comments Filed under: Quality Measurement, Medical Education/Academia, Diagnosis/Clinical Reasoning, Information Technology, Patient Safety/Medical Errors, Industry/Pharma, Health Policy, Media/Press Coverage

• The Funniest Satire on Interoperability You've Ever Seen (Trust Me)

  There is nothing better than a good satire to capture certain (uncomfortable) truths – just ask any of the presidential candidates after an episode of Saturday Night Live. So check out this hilarious spoof on information technology interoperability. As Read More... Posted Thu, May 29 2008 8:54 AM by Bob Wachter | 2 Comments Filed under: Information Technology, Industry/Pharma, Health Policy, Media/Press Coverage

• Google Health: A View From the Inside

  Google Health launched on Monday, which sent the world’s Google-watchers into a tizzy. I serve on Google Health's Advisory Council – which met all day Tuesday – and so here’s a bit of inside dish, along with my impressions of the site and the company. Read More... Posted Thu, May 22 2008 4:24 PM by Bob Wachter | 1 Comments Filed under: Information Technology, Ambulatory/Primary Care, Industry/Pharma, Media/Press Coverage

• The “Technology Hype Cycle”: Why Bad Things Happen to Good Technologies

  Fresh on the heels of my recent bar coding epiphany comes another “unintended consequences” article. It turns out that the whipsawing that accompanies the adoption of new technologies is completely foreseeable, the “why doesn’t this thing work right?” Read More... Posted Tue, May 13 2008 1:50 AM by Bob Wachter | 2 Comments Filed under: Information Technology, Patient Safety/Medical Errors, Industry/Pharma, Media/Press Coverage

• Oprah, Obama, Putin, Springsteen… and Pronovost

  Last week, Time Magazine named the 100 most influential people in the world. Among the luminaries was Dr. Peter Pronovost of Johns Hopkins. I thought it was an inspired choice. The modern patient safety field has been blessed with a number of important Read More... Posted Sun, May 11 2008 7:28 AM by Bob Wachter | 2 Comments Filed under: Quality Measurement, Patient Safety/Medical Errors, Health Policy, Media/Press Coverage

• Should Hospitals Install Bar Coding or CPOE First? Why I’ve Changed My Tune

  This is one of the most commonly asked questions in IT World, and my answer has always been “CPOE first” – largely because that has always been David Bates’s (the world’s leading IT/safety researcher) answer. But I’ve changed my mind. Here’s why. Before Read More... Posted Fri, May 02 2008 9:00 PM by Bob Wachter | 7 Comments Filed under: Hospital Care, Information Technology, Patient Safety/Medical Errors, Industry/Pharma, Nurses/Nursing, Health Policy, Media/Press Coverage

• Snooping At Britney’s Chart: Why Should Docs and Nurses Have Different Rules?

  Should doctors and nurses be subject to different penalties for precisely the same infraction? Of course not. Are they? Sure. Just ask Britney Spears. Britney was hospitalized at UCLA at least twice in the past few years – once when she gave birth to Read More... Posted Sun, Apr 20 2008 8:53 PM by Bob Wachter | 2 Comments Filed under: Hospital Care, Information Technology, Patient Safety/Medical Errors, Nurses/Nursing, Media/Press Coverage, Medical Ethics

• Should Patient Satisfaction Scores Be Adjusted for Where Patients Shop?

  Last week, Medicare added patient satisfaction data to its hospital reporting website. This is progress, but it raises an interesting question: should patient satisfaction scores be case-mix adjusted? The motivation to include patient satisfaction data Read More... Posted Sun, Apr 13 2008 4:03 AM by Bob Wachter | 1 Comments Filed under: Hospital Care, Pay-for-performance, Transparency and Reporting, Quality Measurement, Hospitalists/Hospital Medicine, Information Technology, Health Policy, Media/Press Coverage

• A Quick Thanks for a Very Nice Honor

  Today, Modern Healthcare released its yearly list of the 50 most influential physician-execs in the U.S. I have to believe that you, my readers, are at least partly responsible (along with my parents and their pals in Boca) for my #19 position, the highest Read More... Posted Tue, Apr 08 2008 5:35 AM by Bob Wachter | 5 Comments Filed under: Medical Education/Academia, Health Policy, Media/Press Coverage

• NPR's Morning Edition Story on Physician Blogging and Patient Privacy

  Here's the link, featuring, among others, celebrity blogger Kevin, M.D., as well as yours truly, batting clean-up. Although the privacy concerns raised by the story are real, personally I thought the psychiatrist went a bit overboard when she said, "If Read More... Posted Sun, Mar 16 2008 3:27 PM by Bob Wachter | 1 Comments Filed under: Transparency and Reporting, Information Technology, Media/Press Coverage