Hospital Case Management articles from January 2002

Hospital Case Management archives from January 2002

Tight economy swells demand for case management certification: do you know which credential is right for you?
January 1, 2002... The field of case management has yielded a variety of credentialing opportunities that provide a daunting landscape for case managers seeking certification. Several industry veterans say the increasingly competitive job market makes those...

LOS misleading indicator for hip fracture, some say: LOS `not good indicator of how these patients do'.(length of stay)
January 1, 2002... Discharge of hip fracture patients from the acute care setting to subacute and skilled nursing facilities should be based on the patient achieving specific functional milestones rather than on the desire to shorten length of stay, experts say....

Tracking excessive DRG payments falls on CMs: OIG estimates $52.3 million in overpayments.
January 1, 2002... Hospital case managers responsible for discharging patients to post-acute settings should take note that many of these discharges violate the new transfer rules that went into effect two years ago. In fact, the Health and Human Services Office...

Reform needed to save flagging health system: communication, accountability are the keys.
January 1, 2002... The health care system as we know it could experience significant difficulties over the next few months, says Brian Klepper, PhD, president of Healthcare Performance Inc. in Jacksonville, FL. He cites rising health care premiums and a...

Cover your bases with EMTALA algorithm. (Critical Path Network[TM]).(Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act)
January 1, 2002... Are you curious about how much your staff really knows about the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA)? A survey from the Department of Health and Human Services provided some insights. The Emergency Medical Treatment...

Office CM program draws praise from physicians: program helped decrease inappropriate admissions.
January 1, 2002... A medical office case management program that began in July at Sutter Health Central in Sacramento, CA, is drawing praise from initially reluctant physicians and offering veteran case managers a new and particularly enriching caregiving...

CE questions.(continuing medical education questions)
January 1, 2002... 1. Which of the following credentials is administered by the Healthcare Quality Certification Board in San Gabriel, CA? A. Case Management Administrator, Certified (CMAC) B. Certified Professional in Healthcare Quality (CPHQ) C....

Medicare to increase inpatient payment rates.
January 1, 2002... Medicare increased its payment rates for inpatient hospital care by 2.75% starting Oct. 1, 2001. The increase for fiscal year 2002 affects about 4,800 acute care hospitals that are paid under Medicare's inpatient prospective payment system. The...

Medicare to pay for ED observation.(emergency department)
January 1, 2002... The long-awaited proposed rule on payment for the emergency department (ED) observation services from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has been published, and you probably will be pleasantly surprised at the outcome. "The...

Bio attacks pose new risk challenges.(for hospitals)
January 1, 2002... Treating patients of biological and chemical attacks can pose a different kind of challenge for hospitals from a risk management perspective, Jim Bentley, senior vice president of the Chicago-based American Hospital Association, recently told...

Anthrax outbreak forces closer focus on patient safety: facilities may have to revisit preparedness plans.
January 1, 2002... The recent anthrax bioterror attacks have been a rude awakening for health care professionals across the country; they now know that what they once considered a dim possibility now is a reality. And while the threat seems to have died down,...

HHS commits $50 million to better patient safety.(Health and Human Services)(prevention of medical errors)
January 1, 2002... In an unprecedented move, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has released $50 million to fund 94 new research grants, contracts, and other projects to reduce medical errors and improve patient safety. This initiative, the...

Leapfrog compliance pays off for hospitals.(Leapfrog Group patient safety improvement organization)
January 1, 2002... Hospitals will begin to reap monetary rewards if they implement some specific patient safety initiatives backed by the Washington, DC-based patient safety improvement organization, The Leapfrog Group. A consortium of Fortune 500 companies...

NPSF taps Diamond as interim director.(National Patient Safety Foundation appoints Louis H. Diamond)
January 1, 2002... The National Patient Safety Foundation (NPSF) in Chicago has appointed board member Louis H. Diamond, MB, ChB, FACP, as interim director of programs. Diamond is medical director and vice president at The MEDSTAT Group, providing clinical...

Flu or anthrax? First inhalational cases yield clues for clinicians to make the critical call: use case history, blood work, X-rays, rapid tests. (Bioterrorism Watch: preparing for and responding to biological, chemical and nuclear disasters).
January 1, 2002... There is a postal worker in your emergency department (ED) with flulike symptoms. That once insignificant observation about occupation and illness now triggers a detailed algorithm created by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention...

CDC moving quickly on smallpox front: immunizations, training, vaccine dilution studied. (Bioterrorism Watch: preparing for and responding to biological, chemical and nuclear disasters).
January 1, 2002... Though officially stating it has no knowledge of any impending use of smallpox as a bioweapon, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is scrambling with conspicuous speed to be ready for just such an event. CDC workers from a...