Opioid manufacturers, drug distributors, and pharmacy chains continue to get hit with lawsuits alleging they fueled the nation’s opioid crisis through deceptive marketing and negligence.
from Axios
It’s not at all clear municipalities will win, but the lawsuits represent something larger — policymakers want more scrutiny and oversight for companies that make and deliver painkillers instead of heaping blame on people who suffer from addiction.
Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.
Advocates will descend upon Washington, D.C. on September 13th and 14th to discuss the economic and health impact of research supported by the NIH.
from Research America
On September 13-14, advocates from across the country will gather in Washington D.C. to connect with policymakers for discussions on the life-saving research funded by federal investments. The Rally for Medical Research was founded in 2013 as a result of budget sequestration, the automatic spending cuts enacted across all federal government agencies, including the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.
For the child with sensory challenges, the classroom can be an overwhelming place—OTs can help ease their struggle with these strategies.
from The OT Toolbox
For the child with sensory challenges, the classroom can be an overwhelming place. All of the sensory systems are touched on in the classroom. When sensory systems are challenged, learning is a struggle. School based OTs are often times consulted when students struggle with physical or sensory issues that result in educational deficits. Previously, The OT Toolbox has shared free ways to incorporate sensory motor experiences into the classroom. You might be looking for more resources that can be used to address many sensory needs in the classroom. Read on for sensory resources for the school based occupational therapist and strategies that can be incorporated into OT in the school.
Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.
Our profession naturally has many different treatment techniques, but at the end of the day, it is our reasoning approach that we should value over the technique itself.
from Evidence in Motion
I am a physical therapist. I am a physical therapist who uses manual therapy. One who uses exercise in many forms. I use pain neuroscience and specific treatments to address persistent pain (PNE, graded motor imagery, graded activity and exposure). I dry needle. I use heat, ice and, hell, sometimes I might use ultrasound. However, the most important clinical “technique” of all: the reasoning on how, when and why I use them.
Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.
4 key principles hospital and health system leaders should follow for success.
from H&HN
The uncertainty that faces health care leaders today is not unlike the uncertainty I’ve experienced in true turnaround situations. Without disclosing the organizations or specific circumstances, I have assumed the CEO role in some pretty severe circumstances. There was at least one time when I didn’t know how we were going to meet payroll the next week. Under such conditions, it is essential to focus on what’s going to right the ship as rapidly and effectively as possible. It’s from this perspective that I share four key turnaround lessons that could make a difference in leading your organization during this demanding period:
Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.
Despite having more financial “skin in the game” than ever, many consumers don’t make any attempt to compare prices for health care services, a newly released study found.
by Michelle Andrews, Kaiser Health News
Despite having more financial “skin in the game” than ever, many consumers don’t make any attempt to compare prices for health care services, a newly released study found.
In a survey of nearly 3,000 adults younger than 65, about half of the roughly 1,900 who said they spent money on medical care in the previous year reported that they knew in advance what their costs would be. Of those who didn’t anticipate how much they would owe before receiving care, only 13 percent said they tried to predict their out-of-pocket expenses. An even smaller proportion, 3 percent, compared prices from multiple providers ahead of time.
It wasn’t that survey respondents were ignorant of price differences or didn’t care about them. More than 90 percent said they believed that prices vary greatly among providers, and 71 percent said that the amount they spent out-of-pocket was important or very important when choosing a doctor. Yet most respondents said they didn’t comparison shop or even ask how much they would owe in copayments or other cost-sharing expenses before they turned up for an appointment.
Researchers conducted the online survey in February and March of 2015, dividing respondents into three groups: uninsured, insured in a plan with an annual deductible higher than $1,250 for single coverage or $2,500 for family coverage, or insured in a plan with a lower deductible or no deductible. The results were published in the August issue of Health Affairs.
Three-quarters of the study participants said they did not know of any resource that would allow them to compare costs, while half said that if a website showing such information were available, they would use it.
“If price shopping is an important policy goal, it will be necessary to increase the availability of information on price and decrease the complexity of accessing the information,” the researchers wrote. They noted that patients trying to figure out pricing information and their share of the cost must often know specific procedures’ billing codes, the difference between professional fees and facility fees, and the details of how their insurance plan is structured.
“Our results emphasize that simply passing price transparency laws or regulations (as over half of states have done) appears insufficient to facilitate price shopping,” they added.
Most respondents said they did not think there was a relationship between lower cost and lower quality.
One reason for the lack of shopping activity may be that consumers value the ongoing relationship they have with an existing doctor and don’t want to disrupt that, said Neeraj Sood, professor of public policy at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles and one of the study’s authors.
Another possible explanation is that despite efforts by states, employers and insurers to make price information readily available, shopping for health care services is nowhere near as user-friendly and intuitive as buying something on Amazon or Expedia.
“Maybe right now these tools are so primitive that even though there is a financial incentive to shop, people aren’t doing it,” Sood said.
People surveyed were most likely to search out prices before going to a retail or urgent care clinic compared with other care facilities. Consumers who received physical therapy or lab and imaging services were more likely than others to comparison shop for providers, the survey found.
Kaiser Health News, a nonprofit health newsroom whose stories appear in news outlets nationwide, is an editorially independent part of the Kaiser Family Foundation.
Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.
Laughter reduces stress, boosts the immune system, and is good for the heart, and using humor to have fun at work builds a sense of community within the team.
from American Nurse Today
When was the last time you heard someone say that he or she didn’t feel good when laughing? Probably never, right? The physical and psychological benefits of laughter are well documented in the literature. A hearty laugh shuts down the release of the stress hormone cortisol and triggers the release of endorphins, reducing stress, anxiety, depression, and pain and improves the immune system and cardiovascular function. When it’s shared, laughter binds people together, increasing happiness and intimacy. And humor can help shift perspective, allowing everyone to view situations in a more realistic, less threatening light that enhances teamwork and diffuses conflict.
Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.
The small things that we do for everybody can actually add up and create a huge effect.
from The Nerdy Nurse
All hearts have the potential to be touched by a nurse. As nurses, we carry the potential to affect many peoples’ lives on a daily basis. The small things that we do for everybody can actually add up and create a huge effect. We could just show up to work every day and mull through our tasks to make our paycheck and punch out at the end of the day. That is entirely possible, and quite a few people do it. I will admit that there have been days and weeks when I just was not into going to work. All I wanted was for the day to end so I could go home. When we show up to work with that mindset, we lose our ability to truly touch those that are hurting and suffering.
Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.
Physicians often strive for “work-life balance,” but how do you define it? Family physician Sara Taylor, MD, shares some tips.
from AMA Wire
Physicians often strive for “work-life balance,” but how do you define it? Getting the time you need may require a different approach. One physician and wellness expert recommends these four self-driven solutions to help you redefine balance and maintain a successful home and work life.
Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.
When 23% of physicians are over 65, and there are physician shortages, what are the guidelines for when a doctor should retire?
from The American Council on Science and Health
When is it time to put the scalpel (or stethoscope) down? In an era of rising life expectancies and changing attitudes towards the when and if of retirement; when 23% of physicians are over 65, and there are physician shortages, are there guidelines for what a doctor can or should do? Much about the current state of the ‘aging’ physician is discussed in an article The Aging Physician and the Medical Profession A Review in JAMA Surgery by Dellinger, Pelligrini, and Gallagher.
Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.
