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Medical Malpractice Law In The United States [May 31, 2005] Consumer Driven Health Care: Changing Patient Role [May 27, 2005] Assessment Of The National Patient Safety Initiative [May 26, 2005] Role Of Private Scholarships In Access To Higher Education [May 25, 2005] Implications Of Demographic Changes For The Budget And The Economy [May 24, 2005] African Americans, Southeastern U.S. Residents At Greatest Risk Of Strokes [May 23, 2005] Public Health Information And Data Tutorial Available [May 20, 2005] Prescription Drug Affordability Problem Grows For Americans [May 19, 2005] Telemedicine Activities At The Department Of Health And Human Services [May 18, 2005] Guide To Federal Financial Aid Programs Available [May 17, 2005] Improving Medical Statistics And The Interpretation of Medical Studies [May 16, 2005] Physicians And The Pursuit Of Quality Improvement [May 13, 2005] Health Information Technology Should Be An Urgent Priority [May 12, 2005] Visas Reassigned To Reduce Nurse Shortage [May 11, 2005] House Hearing On New Ways To Manage Transfer Of Credit [May 10, 2005] Advances In Patient Safety: From Research To Implementation [May 9, 2005] New, Updated Information Available About Medicare [May 6, 2005] Quality Of Preventive Health Care For Young Children: Strategies For Improvement [May 5, 2005] Disability Rehabilitation Research Funding Available [May 4, 2005] Health As An Instrument Of Foreign Policy: Challenges For Academic Centers [May 3, 2005] Uninsured Americans With Chronic Health Conditions: Key Findings From The National Health Interview Survey [May 2, 2005] 100 K Lives Campaign To Reduce Unintended Deaths [April 29, 2005] Creating Flexibility In Tenure-Track Faculty Careers [April 28, 2005] Long-Term Care Strains Federal And State Budgets [April 27, 2005] Research Fellowships Available From NIDRR [April 26, 2005] Teens Abusing Rx And OTC Medications Intentionally To Get High [April 25, 2005] Quality Report Cards May Level The Playing Field For Racial Minorities [April 22, 2005] CDC Readies For 21st Century Health Threats [April 21, 2005] New Organization Needed To Mobilize U.S. Health Care Workers, Other Experts State Financial Aid: Policies To Enhance Articulation And Transfer [April 19, 2005] Demonstrating Excellence In Practice-Based Teaching For Public Health [April 18, 2005] Community-Campus Partnerships For Health's Upcoming Conference [April 15, 2005] Trends And Indicators In The Changing Health Care Marketplace [April 14, 2005] Providing Language Services In Small Health Care Provider Settings [April 13, 2005] New Website For Patient Safety Findings And Resources [April 12, 2005] AHRQ's 2004 Healthcare Quality Report On The States [April 11, 2005] Medical Malpractice Law In The United States A new report from the Kaiser Family Foundation provides an overview of the issues surrounding medical malpractice law, including the legal changes that states have made over the past thirty years in response to periodic concerns about rising medical malpractice costs, some newer proposals for changing medical malpractice law, and trend data for malpractice claims. The report may be accessed by clicking Consumer Driven Health Care: Changing Patient Role The National Center for Policy Analysis has issued a report entitled, "Consumer Driven Health Care: The Changing Role of the Patient." This latest trend is occurring because new technologies make it possible, legislative changes facilitate it, and ?nancial pressures all but require it. The report may be accessed by clicking http://www.ncpa.org/pub/st/st276/st276.pdf. Assessment Of The National Patient Safety Initiative The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) entered into a four-year contract with the RAND Corporation to serve as the evaluation center for its national patient safety initiative. The evaluation center is responsible for performing a longitudinal evaluation of the full scope of AHRQ’s patient safety activities and for providing information to support the continuing improvement of this initiative over the four-year project period. The first of four annual reports that RAND will prepare during the course of the formative evaluation for submittal is available. The report may be accessed by clicking http://www.rand.org/pubs/technical_reports/2005/RAND_TR203.pdf. Role Of Private Scholarships In Access To Higher Education Private scholarships, a previously unstudied aspect of college affordability, are the focus of a new national report by the Institute for Higher Education Policy. Private aid complements federal and other aid by making college more affordable for both low- and middle-income students, thereby increasing the choice they have to select an institution. Private scholarships totaled an estimated $3.1 to $3.3 billion in 2003-04, or 7 percent of all grants awarded. While private scholarships seem like a fairly small portion of total aid awarded, they are important because they can be targeted at a local level, the report says. For example, private scholarships are targeted to diverse groups of students ranging from foster children to students with unique academic talents to students who are deeply involved with their communities. The report may be accessed by clicking http://www.ihep.org/Pubs/PDF/privatescholarshipscount.pdf . Implications Of Demographic Changes For The Budget And The Economy Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Director of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) testified recently before the House Ways and Means Committee on the Implications of Demographic Changes for the Budget and the Economy. His testimony may be accessed by clicking http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/63xx/doc6365/05-19-Long-Term.pdf . African Americans, Southeastern U.S. Residents At Greatest Risk Of Strokes African Americans and U.S. residents living in the southeastern part of the nation have higher rates of strokes and stroke-related deaths than other races and those living in other regions, according to two CDC studies in this week's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report , CQ HealthBeat reports. The first study found that the number of years of potential life lost due to stroke before age 75 was double for African Americans compared with other races. In the second study, researchers found new evidence showing that strokes are more prevalent in the Southeast -- particularly among African Americans -- than in other areas of the country. The report can be accessed by clicking http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/mmwr_wk.html Public Health Information And Data Tutorial Available Public Health Information and Data Tutorial provides instruction for members of the public health workforce on issues related to information access and management. The manual's chapters include: Staying Informed About News in Public Health, Finding Information for Others: Health Education Resources, Finding Public Health Statistics and Data Sources, and Supporting Decisions with Best Evidence, by Nancy Allee, University of Michigan. The manual can be accessed by clicking http://phpartners.org/pdf/phmanual.pdf . Prescription Drug Affordability Problem Grows For Americans More Americans—especially those with chronic conditions such as diabetes, asthma and depression-are going without prescription drugs because of cost concerns, according to a new national study by the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC). The study's findings are detailed in a new HSC Issue Brief— An Update on Americans' Access to Prescription Drugs . The issue brief may be accessed by clicking http://www.hschange.org/CONTENT/738/ . Telemedicine Activities At The Department Of Health And Human Services Dr. Carolyn Clancy, the Director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), a component of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), today testified before testified before a congressional subcommittee on the role of telemedicine in improving the health care of America's veterans. Her testimony may be accessed at http://www.ahcpr.gov/news/test51805.htm . Guide To Federal Financial Aid Programs Available The American Council on Education has released a free, downloadable publication detailing the processes and programs involved in the federal financial aid process, What Every Student Should Know About Federal Aid. In 2004, the federal government provided $81 billion to help students and families pay for a postsecondary education. The U.S. Department of Education estimates that in the current year, 10.1 million students will receive federal student aid while attending one of the more than 6,200 colleges, universities, and trade schools that participate in federal student aid programs. This 32-page overview--meant not only for students, but also for parents, college administrators, and anyone interested in the details of federal financial aid--discusses the variety of federal programs designed to help students and families finance a college education. Sections include the goals, eligibility, and application process for federal financial aid; a description of the major aid programs; and the tax benefits available to students and families. The Guide may be accessed by clicking http://www.acenet.edu/bookstore/pdf/2005paying4college.pdf . Improving Medical Statistics And The Interpretation of Medical Studies Considerable variability exists in the information that the public and physicians receive regarding the results of medical trials. One contributing factor is the incorrect application of statistics in the medical literature. A more common source of error is that the conclusions of a study are not always a reasonable reflection of the data presented. Some good examples of the misapplication of statistics and helpful suggestions on how to avoid them may be obtained by clicking http://www.improvingmedicalstatistics.com/index.html . Physicians And The Pursuit Of Quality Improvement Health care purchasers, accrediting organizations, and consumer advocates are among the groups currently using quality improvement (QI) methods to improve patient care, but there is still one key group for whom the pursuit of QI has not become routine: physicians. To date, QI has not permeated the culture of professional medicine, say the authors of "Measure, Learn, and Improve: Physicians' Involvement in Quality Improvement" (Health Affairs, May/June 2005). Drawing upon data from the Commonwealth Fund National Survey of Physicians and Quality of Care, Anne-Marie J. Audet, M.D., and her colleagues found that only one-third of doctors have been involved in any redesign efforts aimed at improving performance. Just a third, moreover, have access to any data about the quality of their own clinical performance, while seven of 10 physicians do not feel the public should have access to quality-of-care data. The survey also revealed surprisingly low use of electronic medical records (EMRs): only about a quarter (27%) of doctors reported using an EMR routinely or occasionally. The report may be accessed by clicking http://www.cmwf.org/usr_doc/824_Audet_MDqualitysurvey_ha_itl.pdf Health Information Technology Should Be An Urgent Priority HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt issued a new report citing investment in information technology (IT) as an essential, high priority for the American health care system and the U.S. economy. The report, “Health Information Technology Leadership Panel: Final Report,” was released at the Business Rountable's Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Health Care Summit where Secretary Leavitt and Treasury Secretary John Snow discussed the burden of rising health care costs on the U.S. economy and global competitiveness and the role of health IT in managing these costs. The meeting was chaired by Michael B. McCallister, CEO of Humana, Chairman of the Roundtable's Health and Retirement Task Force, and leader of the Roundtable's efforts to improve the health care system. The report may be accessed by clicking http://www.hhs.gov/healthit/HITFinalReport.pdf . Visas Reassigned To Reduce Nurse Shortage Today, Congress passed a fiscal year 2005 Defense Department supplemental appropriations bill that reassigns to the Philippines, India, and China 50,000 visas unfilled by other countries in the past four years. The provision will allow U.S. hospitals to resume recruitment of nurses from those countries, which had exceeded their visa quotas and are a primary source of registered nurses for U.S. hospitals struggling with a critical shortage of nurses. The $81.3 billion supplemental appropriations bill is expected to be signed by President Bush. House Hearing On New Ways To Manage Transfer Of Credit A House subcommittee heard testimony last week on “transfer of credit” policies and how to make them more workable for students, in another hearing leading up to the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act (HEA). The discussion at the House Committee on Education and the Workforce Subcommittee on 21st Century Competitiveness hearing focused on innovative programs being tried in several states to manage transfer of credit for their students. The consensus among the witnesses seemed to be that if the federal government participates at all, it should only be to encourage states and institutions to improve their transfer of credit policies. Copies of the testimony may be obtained by clicking: http://edworkforce.house.gov/hearings/109th/21st/creditmobility050505/wl050505.htm . Advances In Patient Safety: From Research To Implementation The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) and the U.S. Department of Defense have released the federal government's first compendium of studies on the successes and challenges of efforts to improve patient safety and reduce medical errors. Advances in Patient Safety: From Research to Implementation is a four-volume set of 140 peer-reviewed articles that represents an overview of patient safety studies by AHRQ-funded researchers and other government-sponsored research. The four volumes contain information on every dimension of the patient safety field, including new research findings on medication safety, technology, investigative approaches to better treatment, process analyses, human factors, and practical tools for preventing medical errors and harm. The compendium features emerging lessons from clinical studies, presents cutting-edge technologies such as simulation tools for surgery training, the effects of change on dynamic systems of care, and national and regulatory issues. Individual articles that comprise the four volumes can be obtained by clicking: www.ahrq.gov/qual/advances . New, Updated Information Available About Medicare The Kaiser Family Foundation has released four new and updated fact sheets with key facts and current statistics about Medicare. The fact sheets provide details about the program, new drug benefit, financing, and private plans' role. The information may be accessed by clicking http://www.kff.org/medicare/ . Quality Of Preventive Health Care For Young Children: Strategies For Improvement According to a new report from The Commonwealth Fund, policymakers increasingly understand the importance of children's early years for promoting health, learning, and school readiness and for identifying and mediating risk that can compromise later functioning. Yet, not all parents receive the services needed to identify developmental and behavioral issues in early childhood. In the National Survey of Early Childhood Health, conducted in 2000, only 57 percent of parents reported their child's development ever being assessed within a pediatric visit. While most parents receive counseling on traditional topics like immunization and nutrition, up to one-third report they did not receive counseling on important developmental and behavioral topics like discipline and toilet training. In a separate survey, pediatricians cited time constraints and inadequate reimbursement as barriers to providing optimal developmental services. The report may be accessed by clicking Disability Rehabilitation Research Funding Available The National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) is inviting applications for new awards for FY 2005. The estimated average size of the awards is $487,500. The purpose is to plan and conduct research, demonstration projects, training, and related activities that help to maximize the full inclusion and integration of individuals with disabilities into society and to improve the effectiveness of services authorized under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended. An announcement appears in the May 5, 2005 issue of the Federal Register, beginning on page 8345. The Federal Register may be accessed by clicking http://www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/index.html Health As An Instrument Of Foreign Policy: Challenges For Academic Centers Proceedings from the 6 th Trilateral Conference on April 3-6, 2004 involving representatives from the U.S., U.K., and Canada are available from the Association of Academic Health Centers (AHC). Entitled, “Health as an Instrument of Foreign Policy: Challenges for Academic Centers,” the document focuses on education, research, and service. The Proceedings may be accessed by clicking http://www.ahcnet.org/pdf/6th_trilateral.pdf . Uninsured Americans With Chronic Health Conditions: Key Findings From The National Health Interview Survey A recent study from the Urban Institute examines how uninsured adults with chronic health problems are faring on several measures that may indicate that access to care is compromised. The analysis is based on the 2003 National Health Interview Survey, relying on self-reports of chronic health conditions. Almost half of uninsured adults with chronic conditions forgo needed medical care or prescription drugs due to cost and they forgo care at much higher rates than their insured counterparts. Serious identifiable gaps in needed medical care were found for every racial, ethnic and chronic illness subgroup that was examined. The study may be obtained by clicking http://www.urban.org/UploadedPDF/411161_uninsured_americans.pdf . 100 K Lives Campaign To Reduce Unintended Deaths In only four months, the 100K Lives Campaign is over three-quarters of the way to its goal of enlisting 1,500 to 2,000 hospitals to reduce the number of unintended deaths by 100,000 over the course of 18 months, ending in June 2006, and maintain this progress each year thereafter. The facilities would accomplish this by implementing some or all of six best practices proven to reduce patient harm and death. These interventions are: Deploying rapid-response teams at the first sign of patient decline; delivering evidence-based care for patients with acute myocardial infarction; implementing medication reconciliation -- listing and evaluating all of a patient's drugs to prevent adverse events; and using science-based methods to prevent central line infections, ventilator-associated pneumonia and surgical site infections. Participating hospitals agree to measure their results with monthly mortality data reported on a quarterly basis. Their findings will be made public in the aggregate. How-To Guides May be downloaded by clicking http://www.ihi.org/IHI/Programs/Campaign/ . Creating Flexibility In Tenure-Track Faculty Careers In An Agenda for Excellence: Creating Flexibility in Tenure-Track Faculty Careers, the American Council on Education ( ACE) and a panel of presidents and chancellors from across the United States outline an ambitious agenda to reform and enhance the academic career path for tenured and tenure-track faculty. Free copies are available from the ACE. Long-Term Care Strains Federal And State Budgets Long-term care relies heavily on financing by public payers, especially Medicaid, and has significant implications for state budgets as well as the federal budget. It includes an array of health, personal care, and supportive services provided to persons with physical or mental disabilities. As the baby boom generation ages, the number of older persons with disabilities will greatly expand the demand for long-term care services and will impose greater burdens on federal and state budgets. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) was asked to discuss the budgetary and other challenges resulting from the anticipated increase in demand for long-term care services. Testimony released today addressed (1) the pressure that entitlement spending for Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security is expected to exert on the federal budget in coming decades; (2) how the aging of the baby boom population will increase the demand for long-term care services; and (3) how these trends will affect the current and future financing of long-term care services, particularly in federal and state budgets. The testimony also highlights several considerations for any possible reforms of long-term care financing. A copy of the testimony may be obtained by clicking http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d05564t.pdf . Research Fellowships Available From NIDRR The National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) is making available Merit Fellowships and Distinguished Fellowships. To be eligible for a Merit Fellowship, an individual must have either advanced professional training or independent study experience in an area that is directly pertinent to disability and rehabilitation. In the most recent competitions, recipients of a Merit Fellowship had research experience at the doctoral level. To be eligible for a Distinguished Fellowship, an individual must have seven or more years of research experience in subject areas, methods, or techniques relevant to rehabilitation research and must have a doctorate, other terminal degree, or comparable academic qualifications. An estimated 10 awards will be made for both categories in the amounts of $45,000 per Merit Fellowship and $50,000 per Distinguished Fellowship. For additional information, click: http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20051800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2005/pdf/05-8228.pdf . Teens Abusing Rx And OTC Medications Intentionally To Get High In its 17th annual national study of teen drug abuse, the Partnership for a Drug-Free America reports that an alarming number of teenagers are abusing a variety of prescription (Rx) and over-the-counter (OTC) medications to get high. Approximately one in five teenagers has abused a prescription painkiller to get high and one in 11 has abused OTC products like cough medicine. Released in Washington, D.C., the 2004 Partnership Attitude Tracking Study (PATS) surveyed more than 7,300 teenagers (margin of error: +/- 1.5 percent). The results of the study may be obtained by clicking: Quality Report Cards May Level The Playing Field For Racial Minorities When selecting physicians, consumers have access to little useful information—apart from name of medical school, years in practice, and office location. By making explicit measures of the quality of physician care easily available, "report cards" can aid in the selection process and lead to more informed choices. A new Commonwealth Fund-supported study finds that quality report cards may have another important benefit—they can help level the playing field for racial minorities by improving their ability to access the best providers. For additional information, click http://www.cmwf.org/usr_doc/817mukamel_qualityreportcards_ITL.pdf . CDC Readies For 21st Century Health Threats The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has taken a landmark step in reorganization by creating four new coordinating centers and two national offices in order to deal more efficiently and effectively with 21st-century health threats. The new entities are: The Coordinating Center for Environmental Health and Injury Prevention The National Center for Public Health Informatics, which applies computer and information sciences to achieve public health outcomes and is vital in translating scientific data into usable information. The National Center for Health Marketing, which will use research and science to develop messages that help Americans make sound health decisions. New Organization Needed To Mobilize U.S. Health Care Workers, Other Experts To Assist Countries Devastated By HIV/AIDS The federal government should create and fund an umbrella organization called the United States Global Health Service (GHS) to mobilize the nation's best health care professionals and other experts to help combat HIV/AIDS in hard-hit African, Caribbean, and Southeast Asian countries, according to a new report from the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies. Full-time, salaried professionals would make up the organization's pivotal "service corps," working side by side with other colleagues already there to provide medical care and drug therapy to affected populations while offering local counterparts training and assistance in clinical, technical, and managerial areas. The proposal's goal is to build the capacity of targeted countries to fight the pandemic over the long run. The dearth of qualified health care workers in many low-income nations is often the biggest roadblock in mounting effective responses to public health needs. The IOM document may be obtained by clicking http://www.nap.edu/books/0309096162/html/ . State Financial Aid: Policies To Enhance Articulation And Transfer Financing and financial aid issues in higher education continue to plague state policymakers and higher education leaders. Every year, they struggle with questions of how to meet growing needs through state allocations, how best to ensure shared and equitable responsibility for paying for higher education, and how best to use subsidies such as financial aid to expand access and promote success, especially when economic futures are uncertain. States continue to search for better solutions to these problems, as well as for better ways of encouraging student access and success. As part of this, articulation and transfer mechanisms have become important in moving students through postsecondary education, beginning with freshman year and continuing through graduation. This report is an examination of how state policies enhance student articulation and transfer and, ultimately, student success. The report may be accessed by clicking http://wiche.edu/Policy/Changing%5FDirection/documents/Financial_Aid_and_Articulation_000.pdf . Demonstrating Excellence In Practice-Based Teaching For Public Health Demonstrating Excellence in Practice-Based Teaching for Public Health is intended to provide a common resource on practice-based teaching for public health including a description and explanation of terms and practices as well as suggestions on methodologies for implementation. No comparable resource currently exists that assists faculty and their practice partners to recognize, appreciate, implement, and promote practice-based teaching. This groundbreaking document: . Concisely explains what is practice-based teaching; The publication may be accessed by clicking http://www.asph.org/UserFiles/ASPH_10_2004.pdf . Community-Campus Partnerships For Health's Upcoming Conference With the expansion of interest and investment in community-campus partnerships, the Community-Campus Partnerships for Health's (CCPH) ninth conference will take a critical look at these partnerships in all of their iterations and ask (and answer) key questions about where we are now, where we are going and where we need to be. Where is the community in community-campus partnerships? How do we fully realize authentic partnerships? What are the barriers and challenges getting in our way? How do we overcome these, individually and collectively? This conference will be held from Tuesday, May 31 through Friday, June 3, 2006 in Minneapolis, MN. Additional information may be obtained by clicking http://www.ccph.info/ . Trends And Indicators In The Changing Health Care Marketplace The Kaiser Family Foundation has updated its online chart book on health insurance, which provides information on enrollment, premiums, benefits and related factors. The updated information highlights national health expenditures, health spending and costs, employer and retiree health coverage, HMO enrollment, hospital, data and the public's views on various topics. The information may be accessed by clicking http://www.kff.org/insurance/7031/index.cfm . Providing Language Services In Small Health Care Provider Settings Today, hundreds of languages are spoken in both urban and rural areas of the United States. These changing demographics, as well as heightened federal and state policies, have increased the need for effective and efficient models of providing language services to individuals who are limited English proficient (LEP). The Institute of Medicine reports that 51 percent of providers surveyed believe patients do not adhere to treatment because of culture or language. At the same time, 56 percent of these providers reported having received no language or cultural competency training. To assess current innovations, the National Health Law Program conducted site visits and phone interviews at small health care provider settings. The results are contained in a new report, which may be accessed by clicking http://www.cmwf.org/usr_doc/810_Youdelman_providing_language_services.pdf .
New Website For Patient Safety Findings And Resources A new website has been created at the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) to serve as a national "one-stop" portal of resources for improving patient safety and preventing medical errors. PSNet is the first comprehensive effort to help health care providers, administrators, and consumers learn about all aspects of patient safety. The site provides a wide variety of information on patient safety resources, tools, conferences, and more. PSNet users can customize the site around their unique interests and needs by creating a "My PSNet" page. For instance, a pharmacist interested in how bar coding can help prevent medication errors will be able to set up the site to automatically collect the latest articles, news, and conferences on this topic. Similarly, anesthesiologists and other physicians, nurses, hospital administrators, and others can customize and search the site to best meet their needs. The site, AHRQ's Patient Safety Network, or PSNet, can be found at http://psnet.ahrq.gov . AHRQ's 2004 Healthcare Quality Report On The States The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality released its second annual report comparing the 50 states and the District of Columbia in 14 categories of health care quality. The report, mandated by Congress, examined 2003 data collected from hospitals, health plans, nursing homes, home health agencies, and other sources. About 100 measures of medical quality were reported in such areas as flu vaccines for state residents, prenatal care, and the percentage of Medicare beneficiaries hospitalized with pneumonia who received antibiotics. Other data measured suicide rates, effectiveness of kidney dialysis, and counseling Medicare beneficiaries with cardiac problems to quit smoking. The report may be accessed by clicking http://www.qualitytools.ahrq.gov/qualityreport/state/
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