Morning Headlines 7/17/13
A study funded by the Massachusetts eHealth Collaborative and published in the Annals of Internal Medicine finds that EHR adoption does not lead to cost savings. However, using ambulatory EHRs in community practices did modestly slow cost growth.
Pioneer Accountable Care Organizations succeed in improving care, lowering costs
CMS has released quality and cost performance data on the Pioneer ACO program which, it says saw quality improvements across the board and cost reductions at a majority of participating organizations. Still, seven organizations have announced that they will switch to the Medicare Shared Savings ACO program and an additional two sites have confirmed that they will leave the ACO model altogether.
U.S. News names its ‘Best Hospitals’ list
Johns Hopkins Hospital reclaims the top spot on the Best Hospitals list after its 21-year streak at number one was broken last year by Massachusetts General Hospital.
Electronic Medical Records: Friend or Foe?
A union nurse working at McLaren Macomb Hospital (MI) criticizes the usability of EHRs, McKesson’s Paragon in particular. She says the value of EHR systems is clear to the union, but hospital administration has a responsibility to provide an EHR sophisticated enough to handle both the legal compliance needs and the needs of the clinicians and patients.
You know what will radically improve patient lives? Universal healthcare, access to housing, paid childcare, better public transport. Improve a…