WDIO-TV Reports nurses in Virginia say the hospital won’t retain nurses if their current contract offer stands.
… Read more about: Video: Nurses tell Essentia Virginia hospitals to offer a better contract »
Minnesota nurses are staffing the State Fair again to speak to the same people they care for every day. Patients in Minnesota are at risk, and their safety stands to improve if they’re know how their hospitals are measuring up. Thanks to the work nurses did during the last legislative session, consumers will have more information before deciding where to go for care, and, once they access that, they’ll see the real situation of safety in hospitals.
Nurses are reminding fairgoers that they already have a website where they can check hospital quality for a number of different outcomes.
… Read more about: Minnesota State Fair: Safety on a stick »
Bravo to Theresa Brown, RN, for writing an eye-opening Op-Ed, exposing the dangers faced by patients when not enough nurses are on duty. The New York Times published her opinion on Sun., Aug. 18, which puts this issue front and center, where it should be. Read the OpEd here.
We encourage you to read the entire piece, along with the Comments Section AND participate in the online discussion.
Brown mentions only one piece of legislation being considered by Congress to address the issue of poor staffing levels, but it is important to know that efforts are being led by nursing communities (including National Nurses United) to advance other bills on the federal and state levels as well.
… Read more about: When No One is On Call »
Recently, US News & World Report released its “Best Hospitals” list. What’s interesting is what criteria a national news magazine uses to judge what’s “best.” Link here.
The criteria seems to favor reputation versus results. Note that patient safety only counts five percent toward the total score and ranking. Of course, many hospitals rank themselves based on patient satisfaction scores. The patient survey affect hospital quality ranks, which have many variables including when did the patient fill out the survey or what patients filled out the survey. New parents, for example, are prime targets for a patient survey score.
Kaiser Health News noted the patient satisfaction scores drive hospitals in the story they did about hospital food going gourmet.
… Read more about: What makes a good hospital? Really. »
HEALTH CARE NEWS
How the American Health Care System Killed My Father Nor is he dead because of indifferent nursing—without exception, his nurses were dedicated and compassionate.
Hospital Exposes Patients to Needless Radiation For The Money Cardiologists and the Infirmary Health System in Mobile, Ala., are accused of needlessly exposing patients to radiation in a nine-year-running kickback scheme tainting an estimated $522 million in Medicare, Medicaid and Tricare reimbursements since 2004.
2013 a Banner Year for Minnesota Children’s Mental Health In-reach services were added so that care could be provided when a child leaves the hospital or emergency room to help reduce readmissions and ensure a smooth transition.
… Read more about: MNA NewsScan, July 10, 2013: Hospital scam puts patients at risk; ACA intensifies debate on patient safety standards »
HEALTH CARE NEWS
How Consistent Hospital Error is Having a Deadly Effect on the Health Care System “Medical harm is probably one of the three leading causes of death in the U.S., but the government doesn’t adequately track it as it does deaths from automobiles, plane crashes, and cancer. It’s appalling,” he told the magazine.
The 9 Things You MUST Check Before Choosing a Hospital 7. Check the Nurse-to-Patient Ratio – Ideally, a nurse should have only four to six patients under his or her care at a time (and less if it’s critical or intensive care).
… Read more about: MNA NewsScan, July 8, 2013: Hospital error rate “appalling;” Is 68 the new 65? »
NOTES ON NURSING
More Cancer Specialist Nurses Improve Hospital Care Patients of better staffed trusts were more likely to report that people treating and caring for them worked well together and they received enough emotional support during outpatient treatment.
HEALTH CARE NEWS
Obamacare Postpones Employer Mandate for a Year Employers who don’t provide health insurance will be spared penalties of up to $3,000 per worker until 2015, a one-year delay of a major component of President Barack Obama’s health care reform law.
Kickstart Your Medical Bills The Kennett family of Alexandria is one of thousands turning to the Internet to raise money for medical bills.
… Read more about: MNA NewsScan, July 3, 2013: Nurses, staffing, special skills combine to improve care for cancer patients »
NOTES ON NURSING
Union Army’s Top Nurses Were Nuns This insight honors the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg. The Daughters of Charity at their provincial house in Emmitsburg, Md., could hear the cannons of Pickett’s Charge 10 miles off. They helped their chaplain pack a wagon with medical supplies and, when the cannons were silenced, a dozen sisters rode with him to tend to the wounded.
HEALTH CARE NEWS
Hospitals Reward CEOs for Profit Over Quality Across the nation, boards at nonprofit hospitals such as Valley are often paying bosses much more for boosting volume rather than delivering value, according to interviews with compensation consultants and an examination of CEOs’ employment contracts and bonus packages.
… Read more about: MNA NewsScan, July 1, 2013: Nuns as nurses in Civil War; How bogus are patient satisfaction scores »
NOTES ON NURSING
Nurses Take Activism Beyond the Bedside Nurses and environmental activists from across the U.S. are joining hands this week to step up the message that there is still time to stop the Keystone XL Pipeline before it stops all of us.
St. Louis University Hospital RNs Win First Contract Registered nurses at Saint Louis University Hospital (SLUH) have won their first ever collective bargaining agreement with a new three year contract that provides for significant improvements in patient care protections, compensation, and job protections.
HEALTH CARE
AMA Recognizes Obesity as a Disease Experts in obesity have struggled for years to have obesity recognized as a disease that deserves medical attention and insurance coverage as do other diseases.
… Read more about: MNA NewsScan, June 19, 2013: Nurses march; Jobs gap for Black Americans »
LABOR UPDATES
OSHA To Investigate 2nd Plant Explosion in Louisiana OSHA had cited the company for 14 alleged safety and health violations, 12 of which were described by the agency as serious.
HEALTH CARE
FBI: Chicago Patients Suffer as For-Profit Hospital Frauds Medicare “This complaint alleges the hospital and doctors were performing unnecessary invasive surgery to justify false billing.”
Children’s Hospitals Well-Positioned to Handle Reform Standalone children’s hospitals have the financial fortitude to take reform challenges head on, according to a report from Fitch Ratings.
NOTES ON NURSING
Fewer Nurses, More Assistants in Montreal OR At the end of that presentation, Richard Fahey, MUHC director of public affairs, handed journalists a USB stick containing nearly 600 pages of budget documents that spell out the cuts.
… Read more about: MNA NewsScan, June 17, 2013: Patients suffer as hospital profits; LA plant where workers died was cited previously »