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News
Move to Allow Patients to Request ‘Refund’ Appealing and Risky
December 30, 2015
We’ve all seen hundreds of commercials from companies advertising products and services with a money-back guarantee. The Men’s Warehouse, for example, has been promising men across the globe for over a decade, “You’re going to like the way you look.
News
Private Insurers to Reap Bulk of Spending on Hospitalized Patient Care
December 29, 2015
Spending on care of hospitalized patients is expected to pass $1 trillion in 2015, a new high. Thomas Selden, PhD, of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality recently asked where that money is likely to go. The answer: private insurers.
Dr.
News
Changes to Healthcare that Hospitalists Should Expect in 2016
December 24, 2015
On the heels of last year’s repeal of the sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula, 2016 promises to be a year of significant changes for the healthcare system.
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News
Some Readmission Risk Factors Not Captured by Medicare
- Adrienne W. Mann, MD;
- Allison Nitsch, MD;
- Matthew Hoegh, MD Sridharan Raghavan, MD, PhD;
- Mel L. Anderson, MD;
- Michael K. Schlepp, MD
December 14, 2015
Clinical question: Are there patient characteristics not currently measured by the Medicare readmission program that account for differences in hospital readmission rates?
Background: The Medicare Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program (HRRP) financially penalizes hospitals with higher than
News
Unassigned, Undocumented Patients Take a Toll on Healthcare and Hospitalists
December 3, 2015
When a patient must remain in the acute care hospital setting—despite being well enough to transition to a lower level of care, costs continue to mount as the patient receives care at the most expensive level.
“But policymakers must understand that reducing support for essential hospitals might s
News
Unassigned, Undocumented Inpatients Present Challenges; Some Hospitalists Have Solutions
December 1, 2015
[caption id="attachment_12289" align="alignright" width="295"] Image Credit: ILLUSTRATION/PAUL JUESTRICH; PHOTOs shutterstock.com[/caption]
Hospitalists are charged with giving the best of care and treatment, regardless of whether or not a patient is insured or has a PCP to transition to after di
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Healthcare Policies Affecting Hospitalists, Hospitalized Patients Advance in 2015
December 1, 2015
Laws and regulations regularly impact hospitalists and hospitalized patients, which is why SHM’s Advocacy Department and Public Policy Committee (PPC) work on behalf of SHM membership, the hospital medicine movement, and its patients.
This year has seen significant positive movement within severa
News
ICD-10 Flexibility Helps Transition to New Coding Systems, Principles, Payer Policy Requirements
December 1, 2015
Effective October 1, providers submit claims with ICD-10-CM codes. As they adapt to this new system, physicians, clinical staff, and billers should be relying on feedback from each other to achieve a successful transition.
News
Social Isolation, Polypharmacy Predict Medication Noncompliance Post-Discharge in Cardiac Patients
- Anneliese M. Schleyer, MD, MHA, FHM;
- Jessica S. Woan, MD;
- Kay M. Johnson, MD;
- Lindee Strizich, MD, MSc;
- Maralyssa Bann, MD;
- Shobha W. Stack, MD, PhD
December 1, 2015
Clinical question: What are predictors of primary medication nonadherence after discharge?
Background: Primary nonadherence occurs when a patient receives a prescription at hospital discharge but does not fill it.
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News
Quality of Healthcare Systems Depends on People Caring Within
- Danielle Scheurer, MD, MSCR, SFHM
November 30, 2015
The experience I describe here is an acute illness that my family experienced. Aside from the actual illness, most of the story will not sound surprising or unique to most of you.