Titles: When are we going to cure cancer? Cancer Chemotherapies and the Health of Your Bones. Late Effects After Cancer Therapy
Children who have not been fully immunized have fallen ill in recent whooping cough and chickenpox outbreaks in the state.
Early genetic studies indicated that the gene was located at the end of chromosome 4. But where the gene was and how it became activated was a puzzle.
Starting next year, doctors who refer Medicare and Medicaid patients to in-house imaging machines must disclose in writing that they own the equipment.
Participating hospitals voluntarily report their progress towards implementing these practices. Your hospital’s report is available online.
Experts caution that most doctor-rating systems are still rudimentary, and a four-star rating or other high-performance designation may not reliably reflect a doctor’s abilities.
Anesthesiologist, ophthalmologist, gynecologist, orthopedic surgeon, and hospitalists among the new hires.
A funny thing happens when a computer challenges orders for medical scans that aren’t likely to help: Doctors often drop the test requests.
Doctors who accept speaking fees and other compensation from pharmaceutical or medical device companies will soon see their names and the value of the gifts on the Web.
Most doctors — 63 percent — say they favor giving patients a choice that would include both public and private insurance.
[ September 16, 2009; 7:00 pm; 7:00 pm; ] The Western Washington chapter of Physicians for a National Health Plan, a group that advocates the adoption of a single-payer health system, will hold its monthly meeting next Wednesday, September 16th at the Swedish/Cherry Hill Campus Conference Center Auditorium.
The meeting is free and open to all, physician and non-physician alike.
Map and directions can be found: [...]
Six new physicians have joined Virginia Mason Medical Center.
Cardiology
Sara Weiss, MD, joined Virginia Mason in the Section of Cardiology. Weiss received her medical school training from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York City. She completed her internal medicine residency, cardiology fellowship and heart failure fellowship at the University of Colorado in Denver.
Hematology and Oncology
Nanette Robinson, [...]
Allow Seattle Children’s to expand, says Seattle Times
The Seattle City Council should reverse ruling of a hearing examiner who has rejected Seattle Children’s expansion plans, says Seattle Times argues in an editorial today’s paper.
The hearing examiner found that hospital’s planned expansion, which would add 1.5 million square feet of space on its Lauralhurst campus, was inappropriate [...]
By Phil Galewitz
August 11, 2009
When Congress and the White House began talking about a health care overhaul, the industries that profit from the $2.5 trillion system were understandably nervous.
But as the legislation takes shape, it appears much of the anxiety was misplaced. Most of the major health care players, including hospitals, health insurers and pharmaceutical [...]
The concept of a “medical home”—a clinic where you are followed by a team of primary care providers who know you and can coordinate your care—is getting more attention these days. (See NPR’s story on Swedish Medical Center’s “medical home” program in Ballard below.)
Here Dr. Carolyn Clancy, director of the U.S. Agency for Healthcare [...]
Seattle’s KPLU reporter Keith Seinfeld has a story on NPR this week about Swedish Hospital’s new “medical home” clinic in Ballard.
LocalHealthGuide’s story from March is below.
By Keith Seinfeld, NPR News
August 7, 2009
This story comes from KHN partner NPR
When President Obama and other Democrats talk about changing the health care system, one phrase that comes up [...]
The idea behind the medical-home model is to create a primary-care team that provides continuous, coordinated care to patients at one location.
By Richard Knox, NPR News
This story comes from Kaiser Health News partner NPR
Massachusetts is proud of its landmark 3-year-old health insurance law. It has brought the state’s proportion of uninsured down from around 10 percent in 2005 to only 2.6 percent — the lowest in the nation.
Dr. Richard Lopez is chief physician at Atrius Health [...]
The President’s Council of Economic Advisers predicts strong growth in health-related employment in the U.S. over the coming years.
Health care practitioners and technicians, which include physicians, registered nurses, and other health professionals and technicians, are expected to be in increasing demand. Jobs for medical records and health information technicians are also projected to increase. Investments [...]
By Austin Jenkins, NPR News
This story comes from our partner National Public Radio
Deborah Llavanes is one of a growing number of middle-income Americans who, because of the recession, have lost their jobs and their health coverage. For the first time in her life, Llavanes is turning to a community health clinic for her medical needs.
At [...]
Hospitals, After Agreeing to Cuts, Push Ahead With a Full Agenda
By Eric Pianin and Phil Galewitz – Kaiser Health News
July 08, 2009
With the Obama administration’s help, hospitals are moving aggressively to resolve their biggest objections to legislative proposals to overhaul the health system.
The deal announced today by Vice-President Biden — an agreement with the White [...]
Hot-Button Health Issue: Is Medicaid or Private Insurance Better for the Poor Uninsured?
By Mary Agnes Carey – Kaiser Health News
July 1, 2009
Medicaid’s role in health reform is emerging as a flash point, exposing policy and political rifts not only between the two parties but also among Democrats themselves.
Wise County, Va., located in the mountains of [...]
By Joanne Kenen
June 30, 2009
This story is a collaboration between Kaiser Health News and The Washington Post.
Doctors call them frequent fliers.
They are the patients who leave the hospital, only to boomerang back days or weeks later. They have become a front-burner challenge not only for hospitals and doctors but also for those trying to [...]
President Barack Obama’s Remarks at the American Medical Association Annual Meeting in Chicago
As Released By The White House, June 15, 2009
From the moment I took office as President, the central challenge we have confronted as a nation has been the need to lift ourselves out of the worst recession since World War II. In recent [...]
Creating a “medical home” to help patients cope with chronic and often complicated health problems is really an old idea that is getting a new look as health providers try to find ways to improve the quality of care and reduce medical costs.
In this column, Dr. Carolyn Clancy, director of the U.S. Agency for Health Research [...]
While the U.S. economy lost 539,000 nonfarm payroll jobs last month, employment in the health-care sector rose 17,000, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports.
Still, growth in health-care sector jobs was down from last year when employment grew on average by 30,000 per month.
Since the recession began in December, the economy has shed 5.7 million [...]
“It took 2 years of questions and followup before actress and health advocate Fran Drescher learned she had uterine cancer,” writes Dr. Carolyn Clancy, director of the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality in her new column.
“Today,” she writes, “Ms. Drescher is an 8-year cancer survivor, due in large part to her asking questions [...]
When you’re unhappy with the care you receive from a doctor or hospital, what can you do to be heard?
In this month’s column, Dr. Carolyn Clancy, director of the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, offers tips on where you can go to find help filing a complaint.
How To Complain—And Get Heard
By Carolyn M. [...]
Despite rules limiting the hours doctors-in-training can work, a recent report by the Institute of Medicine found that many of hospital interns and residents continue to work long shifts with far too little sleep.
In this column, Dr. Carolyn Clancy, director of the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. writes about efforts to reduce doctor [...]
Invisible Families: The homeless you don't see
They squeeze in with relatives, couch surf with friends or camp out in cars. More families are quietly becoming homeless, driven to the edge by a lack of jobs and affordable housing. The Seattle Times and its local news partners tackle the topic together. Project home
E-Health Records: Seattle is ahead of the curve
Health News from the Seattle Times
