More and more people are opting to put off elective, non-critical medical procedures as they are deciding to live with those non-critical health issues rather than being patients in the hospital. There is a correlation here between this growing trend and hospital stocks going on the decline.

Critics say the current privacy rules do not protect patients. Hospital administrators and insurance companies lean towards keeping the laws as they are. The Obama Administration is working on rewriting those laws in regard to patients being notified of a breach in privacy over patient’s records. The real question is in the language and how does one define the “harm” done in such a breach of privacy with regard to patients and their records?

How are you feeling so far now that we’re five months into this health reform system? Have you embraced the change yet? Well, the White House is asking you and every American physician to embrace this new health reform system. Is that something that you can do? Where do you find yourself in regard to this matter…which side of the fence are you on?

Hospitals are now utilizing technology to keep patients informed of wait times in the ER. MetroWest Medical Center in Boston is now one of the hospitals added to the list of those utilizing text messages to keep patients informed of long wait times in the ER. Obviously, this service is designed to be utilized by patients with urgent complaints, like abdominal pain, serious headaches, broken bones, but not by patients with serious and life threatening injuries.

At Helen Ellis Hospital in Tarpon Springs, Fla, the city commissioners’ vote is allowing hiring to be based upon religion. As this clause barring religious discrimination is removed, other Seventh-day Adventist policies will be implemented into the new policies. State and federal law already protects employees against discrimination of any kind, regardless of this clause, but this matter still did come before the city commissioners for a vote.

Health clinics located in retail stores are less expensive and possibly more convenient for patients than primary care providers; however, are they just as beneficial for patients? Do the patients who frequent the retail clinics utilize these facilities for normal health concerns and not for more excessive health risks and illness? Some argue that retail health clinics can take away business from primary care providers; although on the other side of the fence, some claim that these retail clinics can provide referrals for those primary care providers…so this could be a good cycle of networking, right?

There is another rule coming out with the new health care overhaul. When a physician refers a Medicare and Medicaid patient to one of their “in-house” imaging machine centers, they must disclose to those patients that they own the equipment. In conjunction with that disclosure, they also must provide the patients with a list of 10 alternate centers within the local area (25 miles or less) where they can go to get the imaging done. This rule will take effect next year.

Patients who live in rural areas in the United States are less likely to receive adequate trauma care than those who are living in more urban and suburban areas. Facilities in the rural areas are not as adequate and there is a shortage of surgeons in these rural facilities.

Telehealth networks bridge the gap between patients and specialists and allow healthcare providers to view test results from X-rays and other scans etc. immediately and they will also be able to remotely view procedures from the ER and other surgical centers in real time. Two remote sites have already been launched and 50 more sites will be added shortly.

In this technologically inclined age, more people are utilizing social media such as Twitter and Facebook instead of being put on hold when calling 911. It seems like that’s a crazy idea and how could you get a fast response from paramedics and other emergency personnel, but it is actually working.

Since 2002, there has been a steady decrease of medical malpractice lawsuits filed in Los Angeles; however, health officials are looking to see that patient safety is improved. Even though malpractice cases have decreased in number in recent years, payouts from the county to settle these cases have increased since 2005.

Should medical schools cater to this technologically driven age of medical students and utilize video games to teach current medical treatments and procedures? Would these “online healthcare” simulators work to increase todays’ medical students’ learning levels? There is some debate on the issue, but it could be a good idea to meet the students where they’re at.

The California attorney General just announced that this sham nursing school has been shut down and the owner and operator has been delegated to pay damages in the amount of $500,000. Apparently, this school owner never applied to the nursing board to get his nursing school accredited.

A good deal of money is spent every year on trips to the ER and hospital stays for patients who are not on track with taking their medications properly in the correct dosages and at the right times. Could this expense be eliminated? I’m sure insurance companies and doctors are on board with finding a solution to this issue. There does seem to be one solution on the horizon.

One of the key parts of the new healthcare law is that Americans will be required to carry insurance coverage, even if they do not want to carry such coverage; if they don’t they will be fined. If according to the mandate, they all purchased coverage by 2014; there are definitely not enough physicians to care for all of those new patients. With the new healthcare law and all of the uncertainty regarding the policies, the number of physicians needed do not seem to be going into patient care as much as before.

Is the fate of Medicare grim or should we believe the Obama administration’s glowing report of how the new healthcare law has created a better financial future for this program? Rather, the way the system is going can likely create a shortage of physicians. This is not the type of change that the American people were looking for.

Medicare fraud is a real issue that needs to be dealt with. Tax payer money is being wasted and given out like candy to Medicare fraud perpetrators because the system is broken. Already $835 million has been wasted in this Medicare fraud and only $55 million has been recovered by these hired contractors. Something needs to be done because this is tax payer money that is being wasted.

Should you worry about a lawsuit? A recent AMA survey revealed that 95 out of 100 doctors who practice in the US will be sued at some point in their careers. How comforting is that? As a physician, that shouldn’t be very comforting to you. As a patient, it doesn’t comfort me either. Where do you fit in this spectrum of physicians? Have you been sued? Do you feel that there is a strong possibility in your lifetime that you will be named in a medical malpractice lawsuit?

Doctors are not communicating as well with their patients as they think they are, according to recent studies. Keeping up with the patient load and increased responsibility in the hospital setting is great, but it is vitally important to cultivate that doctor patient relationship, even in the hospital.

The GOP supported a healthcare amendment for the November ballot and this amendment has been shut down by a Florida judge; he claimed that the wording was misleading to the voters. The GOP amendment set out to ban the state so that it could not take part in the aspect of the healthcare law which would call for citizens to purchase insurance or get a penalty if they decide not to carry a health insurance policy.

The right way to have a medical malpractice case reviewed is by another physician who is a neutral party and has only the goal of improved quality medical care and the safety of the patient in mind. This is peer review with a noble cause. Sham peer review is when a physician reviews a medical malpractice case with bad intentions to cause damage to the defendant physician’s character and this peer reviewer does not have improved quality of medical care in mind.

Are you confused by the healthcare reform law? If you are, then you’re not alone. Apparently, many Americans do not even know what is in this law and they are misinformed and uncertain about how this law will affect their futures.

Where does this miscommunication problem stem from? The current Administration is not sending the message out correctly about this healthcare law. People are afraid of change and need to know specifics about what is going on, especially as this affects the healthcare for them and their families.

Consumers are even deciding not to proceed forward with elective medical procedures. If this trend of less used medical care continues, the current policy makers will appreciate this trend. This could force insurance companies to decrease premiums and bring more Americans in to a dependence on Government healthcare.

This seems like a political maneuver from the Obama administration to increase support for the new health care law among senior citizens; however, Medicare advised the AP that the commercial is not political, only informative for seniors.

In response to our blog posting from July 30th, this post continues on that subject of health care reform. At the time of that blog post, the current Administration had not given any response yet to address the needs of the insurance providers regarding their side to the story when it came to implementing the new health care policy and providing coverage for children with pre-existing conditions.