Healthcare Triage: Cars are the enemy on Halloween, not tainted candy
Tag Archives: Emergency Room
Proposal Would Curb California Hospital Emergency Department Closures
Not-for-profit facilities would need the state attorney general’s sign-off in order to shutter their EDs, according to new legislation.
Rural health crisis: ERs turn away women in labor
Despite federal law that requires every emergency room in the U.S. to treat women in labor, some women are still turned away at rural facilities or treated at hospitals that lack an obstetrics specialist.
Federal investigation records show that least 20 rural hospitals were in violation of the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act over the last five years, according to an article from ProPublica and the Louisville Courier-Journal. Some of these facilities also refuse to help women in labor transfer to a different location for treatment.
Experts say the protections in EMTALA haven’t improved rural access to obstetric care. “The availability of OB services in rural areas has steadily declined since the beginning of EMTALA in 1985,” Todd Taylor, M.D., an emergency physician and EMTALA compliance consultant, told the publication.
ProPublica’s dive into federal records was prompted by a recent case at Jewish Hospital Shelbyville, a 42-bed facility under KentuckyOne Health, the state’s largest health system. A young woman came to the emergency department to deliver her baby, but the hospital’s obstetrics department had been closed for close to a decade. Instead, she was turned away, and was taken by ambulance to a different hospital more than 20 miles away to give birth, according to the article.
Representatives at the hospital told the publications that it has the equipment and personnel to provide obstetric care, but that a baby hasn’t been delivered at the hospital since 2014.
Rural healthcare is in dire financial straights, with as many as 13% of rural hospitals vulnerable to closure. Many facilities are struggling to adapt to new technological demands. However, rural facilities are the main providers to certain patient populations, as a fifth of Americans live in rural areas.
Cartoon – Incoming
Hospital Impact: Navigating rapid regulatory change in a post-ACA world
Since the Affordable Care Act was signed into law in 2010, the environment for healthcare has changed dramatically. Now, it could change even more with the possibility of an ACA repeal. But over the past six years, I have learned a few tips on how to navigate difficult times and transitions through experience, education, and collaboration with colleagues and governmental leaders. Here’s a review of some major industry trends and how healthcare organizations can adapt:
Unexpected medical bills can cost American consumers thousands
CT Scans For Minor Injuries On A Rapid Rise In California Emergency Rooms
How Many Doctors Does It Take to Start a Healthcare Revolution? A New Freakonomics Radio Podcast
You’ll also hear about the fascinating research done by Amir Hetsroni, an Israeli professor of communications. He and his students watched numerous episodes of ER, Chicago Hope, andGrey’s Anatomy, keeping detailed coding books on every patient – their race, approximate age, their malady, the treatment, and whether they lived or died. Their resulting paper was called “If You Must Be Hospitalized, Television Is not the Place.” This, like many facts in this episode, may well surprise you — and change the way you think about modern healthcare.
AmSurg offers $7.8 billion to merge with TeamHealth, create huge ambulatory, physician services network
MedPAC suggests alternative models for rural hospitals
Standalone EDs, clinics could work as viable replacements
HENRY KOTULA 