MNA Daily NewsScan: July 6, 2012 - What Happens When the Nurse Needs Looking After? (Page 97)

What is this? The MNA Daily NewsScan rounds up the day’s biggest nursing, health care and organized labor stories.  As news unfolds in real-time, we update the NewsScan with new links and info, so check back often!

Stories we’re scanning:

NURSING

  • The New York Times explores what happens when the nurse needs looking after. The story notes: “Nurses’ work is not easy, particularly in the hospital setting, where they must deal with intense intellectual and significant physical demands over three or more grueling 12-hour shifts each week. Not surprisingly, nursing ranks among the worst occupations in terms of work-related injuries, and studies have shown that in a given year, nearly half of all nurses will have struggled with lower back pain. The obvious question, then, is this: If the nurses are grappling at work with all these injuries, what is happening to patients?”

HEALTHCARE

  • From FierceHealthcare: Monitoring patients within and outside healthcare encounters, whether through telehealth services, home-based programs or transitional care interventions, not only costs healthcare organizations a lot of money but also makes it difficult to keep patients engaged. Hospitals looking to improve patient care and protect their wallets, however, may find solace in “automated hovering,” according to a recent article in the New England Journal of Medicine.
  • “Not-for-profit” hospitals’ CEO pay is skyrocketing despite the recession, according to a recent report out of New Hampshire.
  • From Hospital Impact: Compassion is vital for better outcomes and care delivery.

HEALTH CARE

Hospitals Invest in Moving Patients   Editor’s Note:  Former MNA staffer and worker Health & Safety advocate, Bettye Shogren championed groundbreaking legislation in Minnesota requiring hospitals to provide adequate lifting mechanisms.  Other states like Illinois, as this story demonstrates,  are finding it a great idea as well.

Health Care Reform?  Move On   Fifty-six percent of Americans believe opponents of the law should “stop trying to block its implementation and instead move on to other national problems,” according to the poll by the nonprofit Kaiser Family Foundation.

Debate:  Expand Imperfect Treatments, or Create New Ones   When advocates of attained health survey the landscape, they see an appalling misallocation of resources.
… Read more about: MNA Daily NewsScan, July 5, 2012: Patient lifting rules gain traction; $160M settlement to nurses re: gender bias  »

HEALTH CARE

$22M Project Will Expand Mercy Hospital    The new 120,000 square-foot building will feature the Virginia Piper Cancer Insitute, as well as specialty care, outpatient surgery services and obstetrics/women’s care.  The four-story building will be across the street from Mercy, connected by a skyway.

GlaxoSmityKline Settles $3B Health Care Fraud Case  GSK targeted the antidepressant Paxil to patients under age 18 when it was approved for adults only, and it pushed the drug Wellbutrin for uses it was not approved for, including weight loss and treatment of sexual dysfunction, according to an investigation led by the U.S.
… Read more about: MNA NewsScan, July 3, 2012: Mercy to expand; CA nurses strike; 4th Fun  »

HEALTH CARE

Supreme Court Upholds Health Care Law  Roberts joins majority, says mandate is permissable under Congress’s taxing authority.  The 5-4 ruling  — a major victory for the White House  — will help redefine the power of the national government and affect the health-care choices of millions of Americans.

MNA President Linda Hamilton, RN: We Still Have Much Work To Do   “While we are pleased the Supreme Court upheld the entire Affordable Care Act and that millions of deserving Americans will receive the health care coverage they so desperately need as a result, the job isn’t done,” Hamilton said.
… Read more about: MNA Daily NewsScan, June 28, 2012: ACA Upheld; RNs Know “Medicare for All” is best solution  »

MEDIA AVAILABILITY
Contact: John Nemo, MNA, 651-414-2863 or john.nemo@mnnurses.org

ST. PAUL (June 27, 2012) – Linda Hamilton, RN, BSN, President of the Minnesota Nurses Association, will be available Thursday to comment from an everyday nurse’s perspective on the Supreme Court’s ruling regarding the Affordable Care Act and how it impacts Minnesota patients and families.

“Our concern is that a system of unaffordable, under-insurance will persist. No matter the outcome, millions will effectively be denied regular quality care,” said Hamilton, who is a staff nurse in the Twin Cities-based Children’s Hospitals and Clinics system. “In the past year, nurses have been especially alarmed at what they see as broad declines in health and living standards for substantial segments of the U.S.
… Read more about: Thursday Media Availability: MNA President to Comment on Supreme Court Health Care Ruling  »