The Medical Quack

Freddie Mac Found to be Betting Against Home Owners Being Able to Refinance - “Attack of the Killer Algorithms” On Consumers Part Nine–Home Mortgage Style

2012-01-31T00:20:00.001-08:00

Ok in the real world today everyone lives off of behavioral analytics so of course they might just have a ton of information to leverage to make their bets, right?

If you look and see how this phenomena is taking place today, it’s not just Facebook, but Hedge Funds, High Frequency Traders and so on. It’s all about those algorithms as Freddie Mac could not have pulled this off without highly sophisticated formulas to hedge their bets.

High Frequency Traders Using Social Networks and Growing Rapidly With Algorithms That Find, Sort and Leverage-Growing At A Rate Faster Than Facebook

Ultimately, market data both on and off the web is skyrocketing and as hedge funds try to digest it as quickly as possible and to make intelligent use of it, they need to make sure they have an efficient storage and retrieval platform, can integrate various data sets and can provide tools to help their traders understand the data and patterns so you can bet old Freddie was right in here. I thought the Attack series would slow down but it doesn’t seem to stop. In case you missed it, here’s part eight as the credit folks and mortgages all go together with complicated formulas to carry out their deeds.

Consumers Lose More Privacy With New CoreLogic Credit Reporting–”Score” Marketed For Insurers and Employers To Gain Information-California Prohibits Potential Employers – From Using As Jan 1 - Killer Algorithms Part 8

Welcome to the world of discrimination by the algorithm….

I say we should license and tax all of those who buy and sell data and Freddie Mac should be right on the list.

The Alternative Millionaire’s Tax–License and Tax Big Corporations Who Mine and Sell Taxpayer Data They Get for Free From the Internet-Phase One to Restore Middle Class With Transparency, Disclosure and Money

If Richard Cordray doesn’t jump in here soon with some algorithmic protection for the middle class there’s no hope in sight. This keeps getting worse every day. CoreLogic is in the real estate information business and mines a ton of data for sale all the time, to the point where the state of North Carolina kicked their license to mine out as they didn’t pay for updates and servers were slowing down to a crawl with all the bots as consumers like you and I can’t get through anymore.

President Appoints Richard Cordray as New Consumer Financial Protection Chief - Hope He Knows And Understands Correcting Flawed Math and Formulas To Battle the “Financial Attack of Killer Algorithms” On Consumers With Banks and Corporate USA

Is this a real slap in the face to where tax payer money bailed them out only to find that they were betting against consumers. If you don’t believe how bad the numbers are skewed and how bad the marketing is to suck up us gullible and naïve consumers, listen in to the video below and you will find out. BD

Context is Everything–More About the Dark Arts of Mathematical Deception–Professor Siefe Lecture Given at Google’s New York Office–Big Healthcare Focus

Several U.S. lawmakers and prominent economists on Monday said Congress and the White House should end a financial conflict of interest at the taxpayer-owned mortgage company Freddie Mac.
Freddie Mac, which has a public mission to help make home ownership affordable, also has placed multibillion-dollar bets against American homeowners being able to refinance to cheaper mortgages. NPR, in partnership with ProPublica, an independent, nonprofit newsroom, first revealed Freddie's bets on NPR during Monday's Morning Edition.

Public documents, checked by NPR and ProPublica, show that in 2010 and 2011, Freddie Mac set out to make gains for its own investment portfolio by using complex mortgage securities that brought in more money for Freddie Mac when homeowners in higher interest-rate loans were unable to qualify for a refinancing.

Freddie's trades came at a time when mortgage rates were falling to record lows.

This is the conflict: Millions of homeowners wish they could refinance, but their lenders tell them they can't qualify for today's low rates because of tight rules. Freddie Mac is one of the gatekeepers with the power to set those rules, and lately, it has been saying no more often to homeowners.

"Freddie Mac prevented households from being able to take advantage of today's mortgage rates — and then bet on it," Alan Boyce told NPR. He is a former bond trader who has been involved in efforts to push for more refinancing of home loans.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2012/01/31/146110055/report-prompts-calls-to-end-freddie-macs-conflict-of-interest

Technorati Tags: Hedge Fund Services,hedge funds,buy-side,data,market data,high frequency trading,algos,micro-blogging,twitter,facebook,social media,privacy,Freddie Mac

State of Virginia Attaches Amendment to Bill Requiring Women to Have an Ultrasound Before an Abortion That Requires Men to Have A Rectal Exam Before Obtaining A Prescription For Erectile Dysfunction Drugs

2012-01-30T21:43:00.001-08:00

Here we are back to the old “default” topic of the digital illiterates, abortions and this is pretty funny as it mocks the ridiculousness of a bill requiring an ultrasound. You know what, there will be more rectal exams going on I bet than abortions:) Sad that the amendment didn’t make it through though as it should have but the GOP barely voted it off. The ultra sound part of the bill is still up for a final vote. BD

Digital Illiteracy Still Plagues Law Makers–Severe Focus on Abortion Rights Proves It–Is This Where Our Lawmaking Knowledge Leaves Off or Even Begins? Scary…

Digital Illiteracy Continues With Lawmakers at State Levels–Insane Laws Proposed And Being Passed-Financial Puppeteers (Video)

To protest a bill that would require women to undergo an ultrasound before having an abortion, Virginia State Sen. Janet Howell (D-Fairfax) on Monday attached an amendment that would require men to have a rectal exam and a cardiac stress test before obtaining a prescription for erectile dysfunction medication.

"We need some gender equity here," she told HuffPost. "The Virginia senate is about to pass a bill that will require a woman to have totally unnecessary medical procedure at their cost and inconvenience. If we're going to do that to women, why not do that to men?"

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/30/mandatory-ultrasound-bill-virginia-anti-abortion_n_1242627.html?ref=tw&ncid=edlinkusaolp00000008

Technorati Tags: Virgina,abortion,ultrasound,erectile dysfunction,bill,politics,rectal exam,prescrptions,digital illiterates

Context is Everything–More About the Dark Arts of Mathematical Deception–Professor Siefe Lecture Given at Google’s New York Office–Big Healthcare Focus

2012-01-30T11:44:00.001-08:00

A great video from Charlie Siefe, Professor at NYU and in his talk at Google. If you read here enough then you know I am a fan because he’s right and breaks this down to what reality is. He may have sold a few books from this blog too come to think of it:)

What do you think of what you read in the news today? Listen up here and you might begin to think a little differently. I have my own interpretation on how some of this comes down the hill for consumers which I have called “The Attack of the Killer Algorithms” to take this from his very scientific information down to how it eventually affects all of us as consumers. Actually I went one step further with my opinion here and talked about our new consumer protection chief and hoping that he too has some understanding of the Dark Arts and again what I call the “attacks” and the link below has some good examples of how we are in fact under attack when deception is involved. These are all public documented stories with my interpretation as questioning the algorithms and their intents of whether we are looking for accurate or desired results. Welcome to the world of discrimination by the algorithm.

President Appoints Richard Cordray as New Consumer Financial Protection Chief - Hope He Knows And Understands Correcting Flawed Math and Formulas To Battle the “Financial Attack of Killer Algorithms” On Consumers With Banks and Corporate USA

The video is about 70% healthcare stats and information so it is well worth the watch. I love the study about apples and bananas eaten together that could cause cancer, very good example of totally random calls and this is just food, but how does it impact you and when you see this often enough, how does it affect what you think? There’s nothing real here. Our “P” values have deceived us. This is a long and lengthy video to view when you have time to absorb it all.

Professor Charlie Siefe at Google, New York

Confirmation bias, he speaks of, listen up here and see what this means. Most published research findings are wrong he states. Even scientists who are doing the best job they can are wrong much more often than they are right. Time helps the results to become more accurate. Politicians play on this heavily.

If you missed it, here’s another broadcast worth listening too and I had a ton of referrals from MIT and other websites on this one with readers.

“Numbers Don’t Lie, But People Do”–Radio Interview from Charles Siefe–Journalists Take Note, He Addresses How Marketing And Bogus Statistics Are Sources of Problems That Mislead the Public & Government

Mathematical nonsense is a danger we live with today and is changing our society in ways that may not always be the best. Stay tuned for the Q and A session as cancer stats are discussed along with quite a few other stats and reports. Diabetes testing is brought up and the fact that there are error bars on the meters, not saying they are not worth using, but be aware of variance. BD

Charles Seife, a journalist with Science magazine, has also written for New Scientist, Scientific American, The Economist, Wired UK, and The Sciences, among many other publications. His previous titles include Alpha & Omega and Zero. He received an MS in Probability Theory and Artificial Intelligence from Yale.

http://chronicle.com/blogs/profhacker/weekend-reading-stop-thief-edition/38171

Technorati Tags: Proofiness,algoirthms,mathmatics,12 step addictions,healthcare,desired results,rogue algorithm,Charles Seife,books,numbers,analytics,journalism,Google,drugs

GE Discontinues Centricity Advance EHR for Small Practices

2012-01-29T23:39:00.001-08:00

Doctors using the current Centricity for small practices will have to upgrade and of course I’m sure that mean money and cost. The GE EHR is probably one of the most expensive products out there for a small practice to purchase. Just a couple months ago software problems created issues for doctors to attest as you can read below, this is the system they are keeping.

GE Centricity EHRs Need To Fix Their Algorithms (Math)-Some Customers May Not Be Able to Attest Until The End of November After the Software Update

June 30th is the D-Day for posting any new data and it becomes a read only from there until the end of the year. The upgraded system according to this article will also be able to handle small practices but at what cost increase? With the purchase of MedPlexus the Advance system was developed to focus on small practices but it looks like they have decided the money is not there so that was a short term target to try and make us of software and algorithms purchased. BD

GE Wanted to Target Small Practices for EHRs – The Answer Go Buy One - MedPlexus

GE Healthcare has announced it will discontinue its Centricity Advance electronic health record (EHR) application for small practices as of June 30.

Centricity is GE's EHR platform used by both physician practices and hospitals. It incorporates medical, pharmaceutical, financial and administrative data.

GE will allow physician practices to upgrade to Centricity Practice Solution, the company's flagship EHR and practice-management software.

The company formerly considered Centricity Practice as software primarily for midsize and large practices.

Consolidating its Centricity software into a joint EHR/practice-management product will allow GE to update its health care offerings faster, said Friguletto.

Although Centricity Practice is a licensed product, resellers will offer a remotely hosted version, and GE will help customers migrate to the combined EHR and practice-management platform. VARs will be able to provide the same remote installation and service small practices received with Centricity Advance, said Friguletto. Doctors can also use an onsite version of Centricity Practice.

http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Health-Care-IT/GE-to-Shutter-Centricity-Advance-EHR-Software-for-Small-Practices-817025/

Technorati Tags: GE,Centricy,medical records,algorithms,integration,EHR,reports,Meaningful Use,attesting,doctors,hospitals,HealthIT

Nurse At Arizona Hospital Has Licensed Threatened And Was Fired for Educating Patient on Hospice Care–If You Are A Nurse or a Patient Be Sure and Read This One

2012-01-29T22:57:00.001-08:00

This is a post from the Nerdy Nurse and really you must read the entire article and see what has happened here. When you read through here and see the story as told with the nurse educating the patient about a hospice choice as I am guessing it was near that time, the doctor was upset that the surgery plans were messed up, in other words he was not going to do the surgery after the patient heard about hospice.

This is kind of what we are all talking about right? Giving the patient their options and allowing dignity here and not putting people through hell as they near the end of life? Again I am guessing that was the situation here as otherwise hospice would not have been mentioned. She is using all areas of media to get her story across and I felt compelled to add it here as well as this does not make sense at all. Is this yet another fall out of economic times with doctors needing the money too? It does make you stop and think in that direction and it sounds like this is nurse we need to have employed and not lost in the world of politics and out of work. I post quite a few stories here about nurses striking and many of them are not about money but rather working conditions and patient safety, example of one last year, about safety and patient care and there were more. BD

Nurses Hold One Day Strike at Kaiser's Sunset Boulevard Medical Center (Los Angeles) To Bring Attention To Patient Safety

My name is Amanda Trujillo. I’m a registered nurse of six years , specializing in cardiology, geriatrics, and end of life/palliative care. Back in April of this year I was caring for a dying patient whom I had discovered had no clue about what they were about to participate in when they agreed to get a major invasive surgery. When I properly educated the patient using the allowed materials by my employer they became upset that the physician never explained details of the surgery or what had to be done after the surgery (complex lifetime daily self care). The patient also had no idea that they had a choice about whether they had to get the surgery or not or that there were other options. They asked about hospice and comfort care and I educated the patient within my nursing license and the nursing code of ethics. The patient requested a case management consult to visit with hospice to explore this option further in order to make a better decision for their course of care. I documented extensively for the doctor to read the next day and I also passed the info on to the next nurse taking over, emphasizing the importance of speaking with the doctor about the gross misunderstanding they had about the surgery. The doctor became enraged, threw a well witnessed tantrum in the nursing station, refused to let the patient visit with hospice, and insisted I be fired and my license taken. He was successful on all counts.

Instead of initiating the hospital policy of consulting with an ethics committee to sort out the situation the hospital fired me instead. The doctor was angry that the patient had changed their mind about the surgery and my nurse manager was angry that I “messed up all the doctors’ hard work and planning for the surgery.” Since then, my career has been destroyed, no one will hire me because of the complaint on my license. Despite almost three nursing degrees after my name, my education and experience–at this time–is considered “null and void.” I’m a single Hispanic mother who fought hard to get off of welfare and to make it through school into a career I love.

I never dreamed a complete stranger could strip our lives away, and under such a circumstance in which I was doing my job and protecting the patient’s rights to full disclosure about the surgery and their right to choose their course of care. Today, we are back on welfare, we can barely keep food in the house, have almost lost our house 4 times, and I cant get health insurance for my daughter who has severe asthma. This situation can happen to any nurse and any patient–and it is happening with more frequency throughout the United States. Nurses are afraid to speak up when they see unsafe or unethical practice taking place with their patients’ lives.

The nurses at the hospital I worked at have told me they don’t teach their patients anything anymore and they don’t report things that concern them for fear of losing their jobs and their lives like I did. There have been similar cases in recent years–most notably in Texas and in Maryland. It boils down to this–without nurses speaking up in dangerous or unethical situations there will be more accidents, more medical mistakes, and more lives lost. Nurses everywhere turn the other direction now because of the threat of retaliation. I’m a strong advocate for patients and families who are at the end of life. The sunset of life is an extremely important developmental milestone in the life of a person and their loved ones. Its a time that should be spent the way the patient and family want it to be spent—and where they want it to be spent. More and more, as I have advanced into nursing, I have seen people lying in hospital beds for weeks on end, suffering debilitating pain, air hunger, bed sores, muscle wasting, and their dignity is not respected–as their family members stood by horrified. No family should have to remember their loved one’s last days and weeks as images of torture.

Nine times out of ten my patients were not even aware that they had the option to go home if they wished–they were just told they “had to keep trying something else.” We as healthcare providers do not have the right to omit that information or option from people and their families, we don’t have the right to refuse a patient the right to visit with hospice to ask questions and learn more, and we certainly don’t have the right to deprive a person of the ability to complete very important developmental tasks at the end of life that involve family. The statistics out there about how many people die in hospitals each year are staggering–and they are dying badly. At this time only 18 states have laws in place to protect patients and nurses. I have been working tirelessly with Senator Nancy Barto here in Arizona to get legislation passed to:

1) Ensure that the rights and choices of patients at the end of life or the end stages of disease are respected and fulfilled without question.

2.) Protect nurses from retaliation for reporting unsafe or unethical practice that could jeopardize the life and safety of patients and their families

3) Specifically define the role of the nurse in end of life teaching/counseling so that ALL physicians understand and honor that part of our job (its our duty and its legal–but every physician has a different opinion and were subject to that when we shouldn't be)

My goal is to get to Capitol Hill. I was making good progress with the Senator until recently when all communication stopped without explanation. I have learned through sources that “politics got involved” and put a stop to my efforts. I was also advised by a rep from the Arizona Nurses Association that they would not support any nurse reported to the board no matter what the cause because it would “damage their image and reputation”. Our profession is well known for not supporting one another. Nurses who once called me their mentor and friend wont have anything to do with me because it will jeopardize their jobs and reputations. So in essence, this fight has been one that I’ve continued on my own. Now that I have learned that “politics” squashed my efforts at protecting people and nurses I am turning to the public to help me get over that wall. I would appreciate any of you out there writing to Arizona’s legislators: Steve Pierce (President Elect of the Senate); Senator Nancy Barto, Representative Cecil Ash, Governor Jan Brewer, Senator John McCain, or Congressman Trent Franks. I will list their emails at the end of my letter. In the meantime, I need your help and support to get this message out there to the public. Pass my story on to your friends and family on Facebook (Im on there campaigning)–tell them to ask more questions, to speak up when they have concerns, to ask if there are other options. This is real, this is happening, and as the healthcare crisis continues to spin out of control and nurses are pressured “to do more with less”—even less attention will be paid to important safety and ethical issues that can endanger lives and basic human rights. I have written to every media outlet in my state but no one will take my story, I’ve written to 20/20, Dateline, Oprah, Dr. Oz, The Joint Commission, The American Nurses Association, The White House, President Obama, and the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

I have attached the legal brief for your review so you have a better understanding of what happened–understandably some information has been blacked out to preserve privacy.

The nurse investigator on my case reviewed everything I did and said that she had never seen documentation and care so thorough and “above and beyond the call of duty.” Despite her recommendation to dismiss my allegations, the letters of praise from Mayo Clinic Physicians I worked with at one time, nurse coworkers, and patients, the allegations were not dismissed as I had expected them to be. This means I have to wait until January 24th-25th 2012 and go before the board to “explain myself.”

I can accept that my short career as a nurse is over—what I cant accept is that the end of my career will mean nothing. If this is the end of my hard work and education I want it to stand for something, I want it to be for good. I want to know that at least no other nurse, their families, or patients and their families will ever have to experience this kind of horror. I took an oath to “First do no harm.” if I walk away without a good fight, then I’ve become part of the problem and I don’t deserve the RN after my name.

Im growing tired of fighting alone so I have reached out to you……….I have to stay the course because its the right thing to do and because I HAVE TO SET THE EXAMPLE for my daughter Anaya to stand up for whats right no matter how difficult the journey….Please, tell my story to your friends, loved ones–and tell them to tell others. There is strength and change in numbers……..

Thank you for your time in reading this long email…..as you can imagine, its been a long year.

Respectfully

Amanda Lucia Trujillo MSN, RN, DNSc-NP(s)

The following blog post is related to an email that was originally sent to @EchoHeronAuthor. It was then posted on Vernon Dutton’s Posterous, Amanda Trujillo case will go before the Arizona State Board of Nursing on January 24th, 2012.

Her story is one of an archaic medical model in which the doctor’s word is supreme and we are all just nurse maids here to do their bidding. This is an indication that there are many who do not wish to continue to advance toward collaborative healthcare in which we work as a team to provide patients with the best care possible. This is also an example of persons who may not be in medicine for the right reasons.

Success in healthcare is not defined by how many treatments and tests you can perform on a patient. Success is defined by the ability to help a patient make informed decisions on their path in health an life. If that path includes surgery, then so be it. If that path does not, and we have informed the patient of all the options and they are capable of making an informed and rational decision, then we have been successful.

I’m really disgusted that a healthcare organization would bow to the tantrum of one very arrogant and immature physician. If there was one example of a surgeon with a God-Complex, this is one.

http://thenerdynurse.com/2012/01/arizona-nurse-has-license-threatened-by-doctor-after-providing-patient-education.html

Technorati Tags: nurse,patient,hospice,doctor,Banner,hospital,end of life,education,politics,Amanda Trujillo,healthcare,medicine

FTC Says No to Omnicare Take Over of PharMerica and Files Lawsuit to Block as The Combined Company Would Control 60% of Drugs Supplied to Nursing Homes

2012-01-28T20:30:00.001-08:00

Omnicare on its own had revenues of over $6 billion and Pharmericas is just under 2 billion so this would be big financially as well. We all know what lack of competition does in the pharma world and this probably would be no exception. Just a few months ago we had Walgreens swap businesses with Omnicare so they got out of the long term care business, so Omnicare picked up business there as well and Walgreens picked up the home infusion business.

Walgreens and Omnicare Swap Businesses–Giving Long Term Pharmacy Care to Omni and They Get Omni’s Home Infusion Business

This is not the first time the eyes of the government have been watching Omnicare as they agreed to pay fine for kickbacks from the pharmaceutical business a couple years ago. Kickbacks in nursing homes are watched a little closer due to the fact that patients can be subjected to over prescribing drugs for patients with Alzheimer's and other aging or mental issues.

Omnicare Agrees to Pay Close to $100 Million To Settle Case with Justice Department – Paying and Receiving Kickbacks From Ivax and Johnson and Johnson

Omnicare Kickbacks Payments to Illinois Nursing Homes – Alleged Violation of Medicare/Medicaid

So in view of the past history with drugs, it’s not a big surprise that such mergers and acquisitions are monitored as along with monitoring for kickbacks, the prices would go higher too. BD

Jan. 28 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. regulators sued Omnicare Inc. to block its $440.8 million takeover of rival drug-supply company PharMerica Corp., a deal they said would increase prices for elderly nursing-home residents covered by Medicare. Omnicare’s acquisition of Louisville, Kentucky-based PharMerica would give it the bargaining leverage to raise medicine prices for those covered by Medicare prescription drug plans, passing those costs on to U.S. taxpayers, the Federal Trade Commission said yesterday in a statement.

Omnicare offered $15 a share in August in an unsolicited bid for PharMerica, which the Covington, Kentucky-based company extended yesterday for a fourth time before the FTC’s announcement. The regulators’ complaint leaves little room for Omnicare to make changes or negotiate further, probably killing the deal, said A.J. Rice, an analyst with Susquehanna Financial Group LLP in New York. That would make PharMerica attractive to private equity firms, he said.

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-01-28/omnicare-sued-by-u-s-regulators-to-block-takeover-of-pharmerica.html

Technorati Tags: FTC,OnmiCare,Pharmerica,lawsuit,Medicare,private equity,competition,drugs,mergers and acquistions,cost,seniors

FDA Approves First and Only Weekly Diabetes 2 Shot Therapy in the US

2012-01-28T18:46:00.001-08:00

Bydureon took three tries to make it through approval with the FDA. The active ingredient comes from a synthetic version of saliva from the Gila Monster. I am originally from Arizona and I know what those are and way back in 2007 the talk was in the exploration of saliva with lizards. Bydureon is not insulin and is not for people with diabetes type 1. Byetta is the non extended version of the drug that has been around for a once a day injection and has been associated with acute pancreatitis, so I would guess the same warnings would apply here as well.

Lizard spit and bongs - Medication Origins and Future

BYDUREON has been approved with a Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) and there are a number of post market requirements to assess the impact of the drug relative to thyroid cancer or heart disease as some rats in the testing phase had those issues.

Jan. 27 (Bloomberg) -- Amylin Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Alkermes Plc succeeded in their third attempt to gain U.S. clearance for Bydureon, a once-weekly version of Amylin’s diabetes shot.

The Food and Drug Administration approved the drug for adults with Type 2 diabetes, the agency said today in a letter posted on their website.

Bydureon is a long-acting form of Byetta, a twice-daily injection that San Diego-based Amylin developed with Eli Lilly & Co. in a partnership that ended last year. Amylin lost almost half its market value on Oct. 20, 2010, after the FDA rejected Bydureon for a second time and sought a study on cardiac effects. The companies refiled for approval last year after the trial didn’t tie the drug to dangerous heart-rhythm changes.

The active ingredient in Byetta and Bydureon, known as exenatide, stimulates pancreas cells to produce insulin when blood sugar is high. It is a synthetic version of a substance found in the saliva of the Gila monster. Bydureon uses technology developed by Alkermes to slowly release exenatide into the bloodstream with one dose a week. The drug won European Commission approval in June.

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-01-28/amylin-alkermes-diabetes-drug-wins-approval-on-third-try.html

Technorati Tags: diabetes,gila monster,drugs,FDA,Amylin,Bydureon,shots,insulin

Aneesh Chopra US Chief Technology Officer Resigns to Possibly Pursue A Political Career

2012-01-27T22:06:00.001-08:00

Well here’s one more and Mr. Chopra was good and got everybody motivated but time to move into the next phase with implementation and perhaps a little different leader is needed to pass the baton. We have had the word “innovation” up to our ears and now it’s time to begin some serious efforts with “collaboration” and perhaps a different personality to move to the next level with government IT. About a year ago I made the post below saying pretty much the same thing. BD

Innovation Without Collaboration Is Fouling Up The US Healthcare IT System–We Need Both As We Can’t Stand on Innovation Alone

Aneesh Chopra, the first White House chief of technology, has resigned after almost three years on the job.
Chopra's resignation was announced in a post on the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy's blog that did not explain why he's leaving the Obama administration. The Washington Post reported that he is rumored to be considering a run for lieutenant governor in Virgina.
"When President Obama came into office in January 2009, the administration found a federal government relying too heavily on 20th century technology," John P. Holdren, director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, said in the blog post. "On his first day on the job, the president created the position of 'chief technology officer.'"
The White House under Obama has used technology -- social media in particular -- much more than previous administrations. This can be attributed to the rise in popularity of social networks such as Facebook and Twitter, but Chopra may have had an influence as well.
Before entering public service, Chopra was managing director with the Advisory Board Company, a publicly-traded healthcare think tank.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/technology/2012/01/aneesh-chopra-white-house-resigns.html

Technorati Tags: Aneesh Chopra,resignation,CTO,politics,technology,Heatlh IT,USA,Obama

Over 100 Cardiac Patients in Pakistan Have Died from Tainted Heart Medicine

2012-01-27T19:42:00.001-08:00

This is sad and scary and makes you appreciate the FDA for sure. I read elsewhere that the chemical content of the drug was ok but now we are left with other compounds, coatings, etc. to be checked as well. The government shut down 3 companies where the drugs are made and by the way they also export drugs to other companies, US not mentioned as one.

Patients all had a sudden drop of white blood cell count and broke out bleeding in some area of their body. This all happened over a 3 week period. The drugs were administered by the government hospital and were free. Samples of the drug have been sent to London and Paris outside the country for additional tests.

Pakistan Drugs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2j2Llf31S4

Technorati Tags: Pakistan,drugs,poison,cardiology,heart medicine,patients

Wellpoint to Begin Paying Family Practice Doctors a “Little” More–Enough to Make A Difference? Pay For Their Full Time Billing Expenses and A Lot of Doctors Would Happy

2012-01-27T19:05:00.001-08:00

Ok so I made my point in the title and this article too dissects the potential demographics of the situation too as if only 10-20% of the patients are covered by Blue Cross, is there enough incentive for the doctors to make a difference? On the other hand if the insurer paid all their insurer overhead, now that would make a huge difference and get attention. Let’s also look at the amount of the investment here since doctors only represent 8% of healthcare expenses.

Physician Salaries Represent 8% of Total US Healthcare Cost

Certainly the clinical information shared is always of value as knowledge helps all the way around. For those doctors going broke as this recent article talked about, and there’s a lot of truth to this in the family practice area for sure, this won’t make a dent and there are doctors in affluent areas like Newport Beach, CA also going broke, so go figure.

Doctors Going Broke–You Can’t Even Give a Practice Away–Only Folks Buying Them Are Hospitals and Insurance Companies As It Relates to Reimbursement and/or Profits

Best I can figure is that some numbers were crunched and some new algorithms were produced to show an effort here and that’s kind of what I see here to make news and show something positive, you think? Speaking of Newport Beach, acquisitions by other insurers are creating problems too so when insurance contracts are not being bounced around maybe this tiny incentive that is built up to be such a big story will help?

United Healthcare Acquisition of Monarch Healthcare HMO Already Causing Confusion and Access Problems for Blue Shield Patients in Orange County

So what does this promise of Wellpoint giving doctors data and staffing entail? Are they going to cover the doctor’s red tape billing expenses? Don’t hold your breath on that one but I guess more will roll out later but the staffing I am guessing will be more in the area of efficiencies for them to “improve” and how that rolls out will remain to be seen too. If all the insurers kicked in to cover all the doctor’s billing expenses that would be a story

The nation's second-largest health insurer is shaking up its approach to paying doctors, putting a major investment behind the idea that spending more for better primary care can save money down the road.

Starting this summer, WellPoint Inc., which insures some 34 million Americans, will offer primary-care doctors a fee increase, typically of around 10%, with the possibility of additional payments that could boost what they get for treating the patients it covers by as much as 50%.

The new approach could pour an additional $1 billion or more into primary care, which WellPoint is betting will pay off in the form of fewer emergency-room visits and hospital stays.

Primary-care doctors, such as pediatricians and family physicians, often make less than half of what top-paid specialists like orthopedic surgeons earn, and the idea of changing how they are paid has been around for years. Insurers and government agencies are experimenting with a variety of approaches. But WellPoint, with its network of about 100,000 primary-care doctors, could have a much broader influence.

The impact could be amplified by another new effort, by health insurer Aetna Inc., which will start paying the 55,000 primary-care doctors across its network an extra fee—of $2 to $3 per patient per month—if their practices are certified as meeting certain standards for providing access for patients and coordinating their care.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203363504577185270518129952.html

Technorati Tags: Wellpoint,health insurance,healthcare,Aetna,billing,primary care,data,staffing,reiumbursement,non profit,payments,doctors,wellness

California Legislature Urging Health Insurance Companies to Cover Chemotherapy–Especially With Breast Cancer Treatments

2012-01-27T16:01:00.001-08:00

The bill in the legislature will force insurance companies to cover oral cancer chemotherapy instead of making patients take a trip to the hospital for each treatment. This is especially important with breast cancer as patients can take the medication in the privacy of their own home. This would allow for patients to spend more time with family.

Patients with good insurance are not covered either as the policies are not covering and they are paying out of pocket. It’s about time to catch up with the times and science and offer quality of life. Bi-partisan support has been given in the Legislature. The costs for oral chemo can add up to $10,000 a month, that is huge. Good more and insurance companies should cover this but the insurers are saying they would rather wait to see the impact of healthcare reform as this would increase premium cost…what? Time for some new forward thinking here instead of better access I think. BD

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (KGO) -- Some cancer patients, even those with good insurance, are paying thousands of dollars a month for treatment because they're taking pills to fight their disease, instead of regular chemo. And some lawmakers in Sacramento say it's time to change that.
The American Cancer Society says cancer is the second-leading cause of death in California. There's a push for better access to treatment, by including oral chemo, in health plans.
Perea says expanding such access would especially benefit women greatly because a number of anti-cancer pills are used for treating breast cancer. In all, more than three dozen medications have FDA approval for different types of cancer. The Central Valley Democrat just wants insurance companies to catch up with science.

Opponents still put up a fight. Without knowing how much the federal health care reform will effect medical costs, critics say they would rather wait.

http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/politics&id=8520940

Technorati Tags: California,chemotherapy,drugs,laws,Cancer,pills,IV,doctors,oncology,patients

Stem Cells Used to Build a Better Reconstructed Rat Penis

2012-01-27T08:05:00.000-08:00

The article states this is clearly for reconstruction and not for growing one from scratch. The next level up is to test with primates and then hopefully lead to where procedures as such will evolve for humans. However, if you go over to Wake Forest they might be ahead of the game as far as building one as they created one from scratch for a rabbit and it worked so there is research on both ends here with repair and building from scratch it appears. BD

Regenerative Medicine News – Fully Functional Rabbit Penis Created That Works

Men in need of penis reconstruction could soon enjoy the benefits of a special ingredient: stem cells. A new study in rats shows that lacing a penis graft with adult stem cells yields better healing and sexual function than using the graft alone. The finding may point the way to improved treatments for a variety of human penile impairments.

Men with penis injuries, deformities, or severe Peyronie's disease—which causes excessive scarring that can curve or shrink the penis—sometimes need surgery to reconstruct their genitalia and restore their sexual function. Many receive a graft made of their own tissue, cadaver tissue, or pig intestines, but the surgery can cause complications, including erectile dysfunction.

"This is an excellent study, with lots of clinical implications," says Trinity Bivalacqua, a urologist at the Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions in Baltimore, Maryland. But he notes that the method applies only to reconstructions, not to cases where a surgeon may need to build a new penis from scratch. And although the technique works well in rats, "this doesn't always translate to humans," Bivalacqua says.

http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2012/01/stem-cells-build-a-better-rat-pe.html

Technorati Tags: Stem cells,rat,penis,healing,reconstruction,regenertative medicine,Johns Hopkins,surgery,injurys,scars

Morgellons Disease Study Comes Up Empty With Finding a Cause–But Still Exists In Patients Minds

2012-01-26T17:47:00.000-08:00

Kaiser Permanente finally finished the study requested by the CDC and there was nothing to indicate a cause. As you can read below the study was not cheap and I have covered a few stories about it and is has been perplexing and mysterious. It is somewhat rare with the feeling of bugs running under your skin and the mysterious “threads” that appear. Below is the backlink with CDC requesting the study from Kaiser. BD

CDC Launching Investigation Of Morgellons Disease - the mysterious illness

(CBS/AP) What if it felt like there were tiny bugs crawling all over your body, causing oozing sores and mysterious fibers sprouting from your skin? That's how many people described their symptoms to government doctors several years ago, with health officials sometimes receiving up to 20 calls a day from sufferers.

Many of these people lived in California, prompting one of that state's U.S. senators, Dianne Feinstein, to ask for a scientific study. In 2008, federal health officials began to study people who said they were affected by this freakish condition called Morgellons disease - named from a 1674 medical paper that described similar symptoms.

The study, published Jan. 25 in the journal PLoS One, cost nearly $600,000. It focused on more than 3 million people who lived in 13 counties in Northern California. After researchers went through Kaiser Permanente patient records, they flagged 115 people who had what sounded like Morgellons. That's the equivalent of roughly 4 out of every 100,000 Kaiser enrollees. "So it's rare," said Mark Eberhard, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention official who was part of the 15-member study team. But when the researchers dug further to find a cause for the disease, they came up empty.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504763_162-57366616-10391704/morgellons-disease-exists-only-in-patients-minds-study-shows/

Technorati Tags: Moregellons,CDC,Kaiser Permanente,skin disease,rash,fibers,symptoms

FDA Approves Picato Topical Skin Gel For Treatment of Actinic Keratosis Which Can Lead to Skin Cancer

2012-01-26T17:17:00.000-08:00

This is great news as it can be used for as little as 2 or 3 days and be effective as you don’t really know which AK will turn into cancer or not. In clinical trials more treated with the gel were cleared from the actinic keratosis than those with a placebo. BD

FDA approved ingenol mebutate (Picato, LEO Pharma) gel (0.015%, 0.05%) for the topical treatment of actinic keratosis (AK). It is the first topical AK therapy that can be used for as few as 2 or 3 consecutive days.

AK is a precancerous condition caused by cumulative sun exposure that has the potential to progress to squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), the second most common type of skin cancer. Picato 0.015% gel is used once daily on the face and scalp for 3 consecutive days; Picato 0.05% gel is used once daily on the trunk and extremities for 2 consecutive days.

“The approval of Picato gel is very exciting as it will give physicians and health plans an effective 2- or 3-day topical solution for actinic keratosis, which can lead to squamous cell carcinoma,” John Koconis, president and CEO of LEO Pharma, told Formulary.

According to the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD), 1 in 5 Americans will develop skin cancer in the course of their lifetime. Studies show that about 65% of SCCs begin as untreated AK, and guidelines from the AAD estimate that 60% of predisposed persons older than age 40 years have at least 1 actinic keratosis.

http://www.modernmedicine.com/modernmedicine/Clinical+News/FDA-approves-first-gel-for-short-term-topical-AK-t/ArticleStandard/Article/detail/757176?contextCategoryId=40153

Technorati Tags: Picato,FDA,skin cancer,sun,dermatology,gel,topical solution,Squamous Cell carcinoma,doctors,patients

Hospital To Pay Garth Brooks $1 Million For Not Building Woman’s Health Center In Honor of His Mother With His $500,000 Donation

2012-01-26T16:52:00.000-08:00

This is a strange case indeed but with half a million dollars and no name anywhere for Mom, I guess this is where the lawsuit came from and the donation goes back to 2005 so there was plenty of time to act on this one. The hospital had suggested an intensive care unit but Mr. Brooks said that did not fit and wanted a Women’s Center. There might be more to come on this one as who knows he could just take the money and donate to another hospital and get the women’s center built elsewhere. BD

CLAREMORE, Oklahoma (AP) – An Oklahoma hospital in Garth Brooks' hometown must pay $1 million to the country singer because it failed to build a women's health center in honor of his late mother, jurors ruled Tuesday evening.

Jurors ruled that the hospital must return a $500,000 donation to Brooks plus pay him $500,000 in punitive damages in Brooks' breach-of-contract lawsuit against IntegrisCanadian Valley Regional Hospital in Yukon. Brooks said he thought he'd reached a deal in 2005 with the hospital's president, James Moore, but sued after learning the hospital wanted to use the money for other construction projects.

http://www.usatoday.com/life/people/story/2012-01-24/garth-brooks-hospital-settlement/52783732/1

Technorati Tags: Garth Brooks,hospital,legal suit,donation,court cases,judge,Colleen Brooks,damages

Bill Gates Speak About Challenges of Global Health - Healthcare Budgets in the US - Video

2012-01-25T18:58:00.001-08:00

The Wall Street Journal caught up with Bill Gates on his way to Davos and talks about quite a few healthcare subject here, including budgets. He says through the foundation he learns a lot about healthcare and urges continuation of funding.

The conversation goes back to the market fall and the impact it had with budgets being immediately squeezed.

He says he’s spending a lot of his money and Buffet’s money that it puts him in a seat that perhaps those in politicians get to see and he hope the attention will continue to benefit. Will the people who need AIDS drugs be able to get and afford them is a big question. He has no problem with financial taxes but says they are difficult as they are political. He says it’s going to be another decade before we see real change. Private philanthropy is a big help but it can’t carry the entire burden by any means. Again Bill Gates make the case for immunization and reflects again on polio where vaccines have a big impact to eradicate the disease. BD

http://online.wsj.com/video/bill-gates-the-challenges-of-global-health/C280B38B-A80F-4AC0-8755-95D4A0E7C4FC.html

Technorati Tags: Bill Gates,Melinda and Bill Gates Foundation,Malaria,Polio,budgets,Microsoft,healthcare,immunization,AIDS

Heart Headed for Transplant Dropped On the Street Along the Way, But Recovered Quickly and Patient Received Her Heart–Video

2012-01-25T17:52:00.001-08:00

Who was here I wonder to capture this video? How did the reporters zero in on this one. This goes to show how resilient the human body is, including transplants. It was wrapped of course so the heart itself did not touch the street. BD

video platform video management video solutions video player

The organ, wrapped in yellow plastic, spilled out and lay briefly on the ground before the medics hastily put the heart back into the cooler and ran inside the hospital.

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/health/2012/01/25/donor-heart-recipient-unaware-it-was-dropped-on-the-street/

Technorati Tags: transplant,heart,Mexico,transport,cooler,medics

Abbott Labs To Lay Off Close to 700–Big Impact At Vascular Stent Manufacturing Plant in Temecula, California

2012-01-25T17:39:00.001-08:00

It was just a few months ago that the company announced they were splitting the device and the drug divisions into 2 separate companies and it looks like this is part of the overall restructuring plan. When the plan was announced, 1900 jobs were the targeted number and thus far as indicated below the diagnostics area has been saved so far. BD

Abbott Labs To Split Drugs and Devices Into Two Separate Companies

NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) – Abbott plans to lay off around 700 employees as part of an ongoing restructuring, and though a couple hundred of those job cuts will come from its diagnostics business its molecular diagnostics operations will be spared, a company spokesman told GenomeWeb Daily News on Wednesday.

News of the layoffs was first reported by the Associated Press following Abbott's release of its fourth-quarter and fiscal-year 2011 financial results. Though Abbott didn't mention the cuts on its conference call Wednesday, its financial statement noted a $332 million pre-tax charge for "restructuring/integration/other."

Most of the layoffs will affect employees that manufacture vascular stents in Temecula, Calif., as well as some employees in the firm's core diagnostics business in Illinois, and pharmaceutical manufacturing, the spokesman said. He added that the cuts in the diagnostics business are a continuation of a restructuring plan begun in 2008.

http://www.genomeweb.com/mdx/abbott-job-cuts-spare-mdx?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+genomeweb%2Fgenomeweb-daily-news+%28GenomeWeb+Daily+News%29

Technorati Tags: FDA,Women's Health,drug safety,Abbott,weight loss,jobs,pharma,stents,California,pharmaceutical,drugs

Jon Stewart Talks Affordable Care Plan And Exchanges With HHS Secretary Sebelius –” It’s Still Not Affordable Yet”

2012-01-24T00:01:00.000-08:00

This is not Jon’s usual rhetoric but is very tame and is more informative. He puts her on the spot about premiums going up. They go over medical loss ratios for insurance companies and the 80/20 plan. The discuss waivers and how folks will get check back if the companies do not meet the ratios.

There are 2 parts so here’s one.

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

In Part 2 a few more politics are mentioned with exchanges and the states. Jon asks how do you balance the lousy states. Tax credits are discussed and the question about the “fine” being less than dropping employees is debated a little. Tell that to these folks as this company doesn't seem to foresee any problems with upcoming fines in the years ahead, that is if they are still in business, another issue today with smaller businesses.

Aviation Safeguards Company-Services Big Airlines With Skycaps, Wheelchair Assistants and Security at LAX Dumping All Healthcare Benefits for Employees February 1st 2012

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

This was nice but not the real world totally as the portion of big business and their crafty algorithms was missed as insurers live off their “algos”.

Sure the insurers feed information in but the data is created by the insurer algorithms….hope our new financial protection czar digs in here with some “real” math as the talk is all great but things change daily it seems.

I think corporate USA will find some holes when they craft some new formulas as they haven’t let us down yet if you read the news on some of this, so with all the money they make selling data, license and tax the insurers with a usage tax as they are seeing record profits right?

I think this kind of stuff every time I have to pay an excise tax to buy a tire for my car. BD

The Alternative Millionaire’s Tax–License and Tax Big Corporations Who Mine and Sell Taxpayer Data They Get for Free From the Internet-Phase One to Restore Middle Class With Transparency, Disclosure and Money

http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/mon-january-23-2012/exclusive---kathleen-sebelius-extended-interview-pt—1

Technorati Tags: Jon Stewart,Daily Show,HHS,health insurance,exchanges,government,consumers,Obamacare,healthcare,health IT,drugs,politics

Aviation Safeguards Company-Services Big Airlines With Skycaps, Wheelchair Assistants and Security at LAX Dumping All Healthcare Benefits for Employees February 1st 2012

2012-01-23T17:21:00.001-08:00

This is not good news for the employees who service major airlines who are seeing big profits so next time you need a skycap or if you need a wheelchair think of these folks if you will. Here’s a a video of one woman who is pregnant and it appears her coverage will be gone. The clients the company services includes Virgin, Continental, Air France, Alaska Airlines and more.

As the article states no layoffs but benefits will be gone and yes one more example of big corporate profits here coming first before benefits for employees. It all comes down to budgets and algorithms for profit.

GoodJobsLA

The big profitable airlines make a ton of money selling personal data they get for free so tax them and give some money back to companies who need to provide healthcare benefits, the alternative millionaire’s tax. BD

The Alternative Millionaire’s Tax–License and Tax Big Corporations Who Mine and Sell Taxpayer Data They Get for Free From the Internet-Phase One to Restore Middle Class With Transparency, Disclosure and Money

Good Jobs LA, a grassroots group that sympathizes with labor unions and the Occupy movement, says that the company's clients at LAX include Virgin Atlantic, United, Continental, Air France and Alaska Airlines.

Those carriers have seen more than $2.5 billion in profits collectively last year, according to the organization.

Aviation Safeguards employs sky caps, wheel chair assistants and security personnel. Mendoza works as a dispatcher who sends wheel chair assistants to travelers who need them.

http://blogs.laweekly.com/informer/2012/01/lax_worker_health_insurance_pregnant_jennifer_mendoza.php

Technorati Tags: LAX,airlines,skycaps,wheelchairs,health insurance,healthcare,politics,medical care,Occupy,goodjobsla.com

Israeli Family Doctors Concerned That Internet Medicine Is Causing a Dramatic Turn for the Worse With Doctor-Patient Relationships Using Expanded HMO Services

2012-01-23T15:48:00.001-08:00

I think we hear the same thing here in the US as this is all pretty new technology and they make some of the same points made by our doctors, what can be done remotely and what should not be. The HMO group has a few months running here with experience and soon patients will be able to see their entire medical records on file…sound familiar with what’s happening here in the US?

What is mentioned…”marketing”…we have that here too and sometimes things get spun today in all areas when marketing goes on steroids. In the end though if you read through here, I think they have the same fears and ideas common all over, leave it up to the doctor as to whether or not a remote visit will suffice. In the meantime though with patient access to all their records, I’m sure there’s many in the US that will be watching the evolve as it does promote the involved and educated patient with healthcare and why should patients be restricted from seeing their own medical records. Last week we had a bizarre situation here which ends in a legal suit of investors being able to see patients records that they themselves are not able to see. BD

Accretive Health Debt Collector Employee Has Laptop Stolen With Non Encrypted Patient Data from 2 Hospitals And Had Access to All the Data Via Revenue Cycling - Patient Information Was Shared With Wall Street Investors – Algorithms For Profit Again?

Turning to journalist Gideon Reicher in a new commercial video clip by the Clalit health maintenance organization, a cartoon character smiles and says, "I didn't rush and I didn't run around." The clip, starring Hamudi, one of the HMO's mascots, presents new digital services offered by Clalit to its insurees - making it possible to use the Internet to renew prescriptions, and to request referrals to specialists, a variety of permits, consultation with experts and personally adapted medical advice. The HMO plans to expand the service so that, in half a year's time, insurees will be able to see their entire personal medical file online, including hospitalization in Clalit hospitals.

The online service has been in operation for more than half a year, but only now, after the commercial, are doctors in the field complaining that it is causing a dramatic change for the worse in doctor-patient relations in the country's largest HMO, which insures 3.9 million people. The Israel Association of Family Physicians has been voicing serious concerns in recent weeks. The family doctors are afraid the service is downgrading their professional status.

“Notice how they're marketing us," a senior family doctor warned recently in correspondence among association members. "You no longer have to go to the doctor - the clerk in the branch will do what you ask via the Internet. Do you feel comfortable with such a method of advertising doctors/clerks? What has happened to the relationship between a doctor and his patient, when we're being marketed this way?"

Another doctor said, "It's true that the service makes it possible to ask patients to come [to the clinic], but isn't it a waste of our time? Isn't it better for us to invest it in treating patients? In consultations? Isn't it a shame to have all the unnecessary 'arguments' with patients that Hamudi promised them?"

Dr. Baruch Itzhak, head of a committee of community health doctors in Clalit, says the committee is working in coordination with the Association of Family Physicians regarding the contents of online medicine. "We support Internet medicine, when it's done in the right dosage and with the proper structure," he says. "It must be restricted to matters that don't require physical contact with the patient, without undermining privacy and the Patients' Rights Law, and there is agreement between us and the Israel Medical Association that the use of online medicine is up to the doctor's judgment."

http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/features/israeli-family-doctors-fear-internet-medicine-is-causing-a-dramatic-change-for-the-worse-1.408732

Technorati Tags: Israel,doctors,conferences,patients,telehealth,hospital,mHealth,family physicians,judgement,privacy

Catholic Healthcare West Ending It’s Affiliation With the Catholic Church–Changing It’s Name

2012-01-22T23:29:00.001-08:00

Back in December of 2010 we had the hospital in Phoenix who “lost their religion” over a procedure that was deemed an abortion and so perhaps this was an event that started the move in this direction?

St. Joseph’s Hospital in Phoenix Ends up Losing It’s Religion

There are quite a few just in Los Angeles county alone. If you read the article it’s all about money and staying in business to merge with other hospitals. In the news of late there’s been quite a bit about a Jewish hospital merging with a Catholic hospital I believe in Tennessee and that has been a little rocky. Is this the future of hospitals to survive to be non affiliated with the church? In case you missed it, 2 big hospitals in Hawaii closed down at Christmas time. BD

Hawaii Medical Center Closes Emergency Rooms As New Buyer for the Facility Fell Through And Facilities Will Be Closed When All Patients Have Been Transferred

Catholic Healthcare West, one of the nation's largest hospital systems, is ending its affiliation with the Catholic Church and changing its name, two steps intended to help the system expand throughout the states in which it operates — California, Arizona and Nevada. The changes, which executives plan to announce today, underscore the challenges facing Catholic hospitals in the marketplace, where there are tremendous financial pressures for hospitals to merge or form alliances with other health care providers to survive and thrive.

The change will have no effect on patients or the medical care provided at the 25 Catholic and 15 secular hospitals in the system. But executives hope it will make it easier to merge or affiliate with other hospitals, doctors' practices and other health care providers.

http://www.stltoday.com/news/national/national-digest/article_160dd704-1ae3-5a32-b6cf-43f503f5c005.html

Technorati Tags: St Joseph's Hospital,abortions,healthcare,Catholic Diocese,Catholic Healthcare West,relition,Arizona,Nevada,California

The Presidential Medical Formula–Self Contained Medical Clinics All Controlled Remotely By Doctors Located in Residences and Ocean Containers

2012-01-22T22:59:00.001-08:00

This is a pretty neat concept and not without cost something of a special feature here at the Medical Quack. How often do we read about the shortage of doctors in the US and it does not seem to be getting any better. I had the opportunity to talk to a company that is doing just that, with a full clinic, some stocked with medications that only a remote switch can open for prescriptions. This concept is also used presently in a small way with planned parenthood clinics that open a drawer after a video conference for one medication, but this is the whole clinic.

So who’s buying these clinics?

Folks who are acutely aware how important health care is to the quality of their life. When you stop and think about folks like Bill Gates for an example and others blessed with the means to have the finer things in life , wouldn’t it make sense to have a clinic in your mansion? A lot of them have already done so. Some are like big hedge fund managers that was privacy and don’t want to venture out into the public for general care and may not want such items publicized.

The President does it and clinics as such are on board jets as well. This company was founded by doctors who cared for the President and thus the name Presidential Medical Formula.

Below is an image of what a bed room would look like. When you look further down you can see how this room changes and all the furniture swaps around and opens up all the medical equipment. When I first saw the video it reminded me of some of the James Bond movies as the furniture swirls around and medical devices come out.

I asked about how expensive are these things? Well they run from starting at less than 100k for the base model all the way up to one individual who installed an entire operating room in his house that can run up in to the 7 figure area and that person does not live in the US so you can guess where it might be located. The company in following with client privacy efforts does not disclose who their clients are and where the clinics are installed, again this part is for those who obviously have big funds to afford them.

Below is a picture that shows a pop up screen with the doctor ready to go to work with consulting the patient. You can see a few of the medical equipment items in the drawers. They are all built with the patient in mind to where the doctor instructs the patient on where to hold and use each on so the information can be relayed to his end.

One of the portable cameras cost around $4000.00 and is small enough to hold in your hand. So any folks reading here that want one of these get in contact with me and I can send you some contact information.

As mentioned above there is one that is a full operating room and this is it, the image below and I was able to watch how this one is completely hidden, as all the clinics are located in houses but this one has an elevator that comes up out of the floor and transforms the room. We did not discuss details on the remote surgical procedures but you have probably read in the news the last couple of years how this is also becoming a possibility and has been practiced in some areas of the world. I believe if I remember correctly this was one of the most expensive installations ranging around $40 million and again it is not in the US.

The next level of expansion is to provide such clinics ready-made in ocean containers. We have all read about telehealth and mHealth and this is the next level up. We have seen some of this already with companies providing a van like Cisco has but it has not been constructed to the full automated level and that is where the company is with the full solution with just the patient and the MD remotely connected.

When you stop and think about it having an automated clinic in rural developing country areas, medical care becomes available in areas where there has been little or no presence. In addition using such contained services in some military operations is in the plan as well. Granted on the front line you are not going to replace emergency units but in other non-war zones this could work. If you have read this far, here’s a video that shows a room transformation.

Presidential Medical Formula

This is pretty neat when you flip a switch and the medical equipment comes out of the cabinets and the doctor is in the mirror for the consultation. In some of the clinics the doctor is imaged right on the wall for a presence that pretty much brings the MD right into the room.

Again if you find this interesting and want additional information use the “contact me” email form at at the top of the Medical Quack and I can put you in touch. BD

Technorati Tags: mHealth,healthcare,clinics,telehealth,Presidental Care,doctors,Health IT,patients,emergencies cardiac arrest,military

What is “Rat LungWorm Disease”? Man Contracts the Disease in Hawaii–Rare But Almost Kills Him

2012-01-20T11:23:00.001-08:00

I have never heard of this either but a parasite picked up from fruits or vegetables that may not have been washed thoroughly enough. Talk about a trip to Hawaii that become a nightmare and a great doctor that diagnosed the condition too.

He is now having to re-train his body as it appears to have a very deadly effect on the body’s nervous system. One more problem associated with rats and do they have any good function at all? I have not been able to find one. BD

WATERTOWN (WCCO) — People travel to Hawaii to relax and get some sun and surf, but a Minnesota man’s trip to paradise turned into a nightmare after he contracted a paralyzing disease.

Eric Reinert is 22 years old and learning to walk all over again.

He’s taking baby steps and it can be hard to keep his balance, but they are a long way from where he was just a month ago.

He was stuck in a wheelchair in a Hawaiian hospital all because of a microscopic parasite.

It’s extremely rare and it’s as nasty as it sounds. The lungworm parasite lives in rats and comes out in their droppings. A slug in Hawaii eats the parasite and that same slug lays its eggs on fruits and vegetables. Eating some produce that wasn’t washed is likely how he got the parasite.

http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2012/01/20/minn-man-contracts-rat-lungworm-disease-in-hawaii-2/

Technorati Tags: Rat Lungworm,Hawaii,Food,Slugs,hospital,healthcare,nervous sytem,parasite,recovery

Blue Button Download of Personal Health Data to be Expanded to Federal Employees and Their Families

2012-01-20T00:08:00.001-08:00

Below is a little history on the Blue Button to include the HealthVault information that Veterans have been able to use as well. To me this is the way to go to get your own information as you know who has access…you…and anyone else you designate.

VA Blue Button Update–If You are a Vet or an MD Seeing a Vet Get the Health Data Available With Patient Ability to Download (Video)

I have posted on this topic a few times but the White House has released a video that gives a quick over view and man Vets have ben able to retrieve their information to keep or choose to share with their doctors. If you are a private practice doctor seeing a Veteran, it’s worth mentioning in case they have not had the chance to download their information.

VA Can Now Use the “Blue Button” to Download Their Data from Their PHR (Personal Health Record)

Also, the information can be sent to Microsoft HealthVault for storage as well to share with doctors outside of the VA with a paperless method instead of printing and I am guessing once in place federal employees will enjoy the same options.

Also worth mentioning is that folks on Medicare can do the same thing and get their data, so if you are not a Vet, check out the link below. BD

Millions of federal employees, retirees and their families will soon be able to use the Blue Button to download their personal health data from the websites of their health plans.

In a Carrier Letter issued on December 19, 2011, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) asked all health insurance carriers in the Federal Employees Health Benefit Program (FEHBP) to add Blue Button functions to personal health record systems (PHRs) on their websites.

Blue Button allows patients to see, download and keep their personal health data by clicking the "Blue Button" on a secure Internet site. Patients can then choose to share their data with their physicians or family members or make it available if emergency treatment is needed. Blue Button downloads are delivered in text files that can be downloaded, read, stored and printed on any computer without special software. Patients can also authorize use of a Blue Button transfer of their medical data from a treating physician to another medical provider. An important innovation that enables patient's easy access to their personal health information, Blue Button has already been adopted by some 500,000 veterans, servicemembers, Center for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) beneficiaries in just 14 months.

http://insurancenewsnet.com/article.aspx?id=326502

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