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Experts weigh costs, savings of disease management programs - Related Stories - AHIP Solutions SmartBrief

Experts weigh costs, savings of disease management programs - Related Stories - AHIP Solutions SmartBrief

CMSA's Case Management Model Act of 2009

CMSA is working diligently to make the value of the Nations Case Managers known to law makers. What is your take on how Case Managers should be viewed as part of healthcare reform?

For resources go to: http://www.cmsa.org/PolicyMaker/HealthCareReform/tabid/445/Default.aspx

Nurses should have more influence!

Interesting Survey! Read on......

PRINCETON, N.J., Jan. 20 (UPI) -- A strong majority says nurses should have more influence than they do now on health policy, planning and management, a U.S. survey indicates.

The survey of opinion leaders -- including insurance, corporate, health services, government and industry -- was conducted by Gallup on behalf of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

"Nurses are highly trusted sources of healthcare information, but as we look to reform our health system, our nation is not taking advantage of all that nurses have to offer," Dr. Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, president of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, said in a statement.

"This survey shows that opinion leaders recognize that we are squandering opportunities to learn from nurses and implement their ideas."

Opinion leaders identified the top barriers to nurses' increased influence and leadership as not being perceived as important decision makers -- 69 percent -- or revenue generators -- 68 percent -- compared with doctors; nurses' focus on primary rather than preventive care at 62 percent and nursing not having a single voice in speaking on national issues -- 56 percent.

Ninety percent of opinion leaders say they would like to see nurses have more influence reducing medical errors and improving patient safety, 89 percent say improve quality of care and 86 percent say they should promote wellness and expanding preventive care.

The telephone survey of 1,504 national opinion leaders was conducted Aug. 18-Oct 30. The survey has a margin of error of 3 percentage points.

Report shows strong demand for health care workers in some areas.

SAN FRANCISCO – The HWS Labor Market Pulse Index, a quarterly barometer of local market healthcare workforce fluctuations, reveals broadening demand for healthcare workers across a number of regions, particularly in California and parts of the Midwest and Southwest for the fourth quarter of 2009.

The New York/northern New Jersey area ranked at the bottom of the 30 markets tracked by Health Workforce Solutions, a research and advisory firm focused on workforce issues in healthcare.

The HWS findings for the fourth quarter of 2009 include:

* Near-term demand for healthcare workers is growing fastest in Sacramento, Riverside and San Bernardino, Calif., as well as Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Dallas. The firm says this indicates broadening strength across a number of regions.
* Much of the growth is being fueled by newly announced expansion plans and larger facility openings at organizations including Mercy San Juan Medical Center in Sacramento, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, the Cleveland Clinic and University Hospitals in Cleveland, and Texas Health Resources in Dallas.
* Of the 30 major markets tracked by the HWS Labor Market Pulse Index (LMPI), the slowest area for the quarter, the New York metro/northern New Jersey area, remained relatively flat, dropping 4 percent from the prior quarter.
* The LMPI composite index, a representative basket of the 30 largest markets, posted a 19.5 percent increase in the fourth quarter of 2009 from the third quarter of 2009 and was up 17.3 percent compared to the fourth quarter of 2008.
* For the fourth quarter ended 12/31/09, 21 markets of the 30 tracked by the LMPI showed signs of accelerated demand (vs. 16 in the prior quarter).

“After several slow quarters, we are now seeing notable movement across a number of markets as healthcare employers begin to ramp up again,” said David Cherner, managing partner of Health Workforce Solutions. “With the healthcare reform picture finally becoming clearer, many forward-thinking organizations appear to be refocusing back on their hiring needs at an opportune time before the competition for key clinical and ancillary personnel undoubtedly returns.”

Happy 2010!

Happy 2010! More to come soon!

Hello Case Managers!

I know it has been a while since I have posted. The new year has brought new challenges (and excitement) and a lot of work to do. I am personally excited to have the National CMSA conference being brought to Phoenix!

In my travels, I have found a great forum for Case Managers on the Web and with all the happenings going on right now, I may not be posting as much so wanted to point my readers to that great blog.

Please go to: http://allnurses.com/case-management-nursing/

Let's continue to cause of great Healthcare for all! This is not goodbye, just time out for a while.

Thanks so much, Steve

Happy Holidays!

I want to wish all Case Managers a wonderful Holiday Season and a prosperous 2009!

Be on the lookout for changes to the blog and more promotion in 2009 to drive more activity to the site. We have enjoyed some good readership but now want to make this a more interactive and beneficial tool for all Case Managers.

Have ideas? Submit them to me at az.casemanagement.jobguy@gmail.com or sathornley@gmail.com

Be safe!

Steve

Article: Gap between public, private reimbursement raises coverage costs.

Health Insurers Protest $88.8 Billion ‘Hidden Tax’

Dec. 9 (Bloomberg) -- Employers and private health insurers pay a “hidden tax” of $88.8 billion each year because government programs fail to pay enough to doctors and hospitals, an industry-sponsored study found.
Inadequate reimbursements by programs such as Medicare and Medicaid increase the annual cost of covering a family of four by $1,788, according to the report, issued today by the actuarial consulting firm Milliman Inc. At hospitals, the payment gap between private and public insurance has more than doubled in 10 years, the Seattle-based firm said.

TO VIEW THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE-CLICK HERE:
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601203&sid=aeGBzglj2iyY&refer=insurance

Very applicable article for Arizona's Nurse Shortage and the Economy!

Economy may be tanking, but hospitals still hiring nurses

Amy C. Rippel Special to the Sentinel
November 22, 2008

When Mary Clark decided to relocate from Arkansas to Central Florida, she wasn't worried about the move. It was finding the perfect nursing job that was a concern.With about 13 years of experience as a registered nurse, Clark has had her share of good job-search experiences and bad ones. She applied at four hospitals in Lake County. But when the recruiters at Leesburg Regional Medical Center went all-out during the application process, Clark said she knew it was a perfect fit.During a time when companies are downsizing and cutting costs, some local hospitals are hiring nurses by the dozens.The Villages Regional Hospital and Leesburg Regional, together called Central Florida Health Alliance, recently hired 64 nurses during a two-month span. Florida Hospital Waterman in Tavares has hired about 130 nurses since January.

To read the rest of this article, click here:
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/lake/orl-lnursing2208nov22,0,280756.story

Happy Thanksgiving and Stories Wanted!

Hello Arizona Case Managers! I wanted to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving this week! 2008 has certainly flown by and soon we will be entering a brand new year!

Speaking of Thanksgiving and knowing we are all in the health care field in some fashion, I thought it would be interesting to share some of the interesting, heart warming stories that we would all like to hear around this time of year. Case Managers seem to have some good ones, whether recent or not, we would like to hear about them and share them on this blog. So whether it was a particular situation working with a patient or family member or even a fellow provider or practitioner, please share your stories. Feel free to email them to me at sathornley@gmail.com or just post them as a comment to this post and I will republish the best ones!

Thanks so much and I hope everyone has a safe and happy Holiday!

-Steve

Article: New U.S. Rule Pares Outpatient Medicaid Services

New U.S. Rule Pares Outpatient Medicaid Services

By ROBERT PEAR
Published: November 7, 2008

WASHINGTON — In the first of an expected avalanche of post-election regulations, the Bush administration on Friday narrowed the scope of services that can be provided to poor people under Medicaid’s outpatient hospital benefit.

TO VIEW THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE CLICK HERE:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/08/washington/08regs.html?_r=1&ref=health&oref=slogin

Article: Health Insurers Prime for New Business With Democratic Rule

Health Insurers Prime for New Business With Democratic Rule

Health insurers are priming themselves to gain new business from policy changes likely to be approved with Democrats in control of Washington.

Democrats are expected to expand federal programs that cover low-income children and adults, groups that insurers are increasingly contracted to administer via private Medicaid plans. More funding for those programs could offset further cuts of government reimbursement made to private Medicare plans, for which the industry has been bracing. Other moves to reduce the number of uninsured also could boost the individual insurance market, which insurers also have been expanding into.

TO VIEW THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE, CLICK HERE:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122593755004203961.html?mod=dist_smartbrief

Harvard Study: US Hospitals lag in patient satisfaction.

U.S. Hospitals Lag in Patient Satisfaction10.28.08, 8:00 PM ET

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 29 (HealthDay News) -- Patients in many U.S. hospitals are not satisfied with their care, Harvard researchers report.

In the first national survey of patients' experiences, many hospitals were found wanting in key areas such as pain management and discharge instructions. In fact, almost one-third of patients gave low ratings to pain management, and one-fifth gave low ratings to communication at discharge.

"These data represent a sea change for the health-care system," said study author Dr. Ashish K. Jha, an assistant professor for health policy at the Harvard School of Public Health. "Until now, we have had no high-quality information about how patients perceive the care they receive."
"Even though we spend $2 trillion on health care, you would think that things like always managing patients' pain in the hospital is something we would have gotten right by now," Jha said.

TO VIEW THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE, CLICK HERE:
http://www.forbes.com/forbeslife/health/feeds/hscout/2008/10/29/hscout620778.html

Article: A nurse case manager who puts others first

A Nurse Case Manager who puts others first.
Helping cardiac patients plan how to live, or choose how to die

When Janice Tully began nursing school more than 30 years ago, it was almost by default. Her sister was a nurse, she excelled at science, and she didn't know what other professions to consider. Besides, it seemed like a good fit.

Today, it would be difficult to imagine Tully as anything but a nurse. She's made the rounds as staff nurse at a number of institutions, from Beth Israel to the Visiting Nurse Association, eventually settling into her current position at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), where she is a cardiac case manager, a highly qualified specialist.

TO VIEW THE REST OF THE ARTICLE, CLICK HERE:
http://www.boston.com/jobs/salute/2008/janice_tully/?s_campaign=8315