As CEO of Community Hospital in Munster, Ind., Donald Fesko has brought about a change in culture that's resulted in rising patient-satisfaction scores and greater teamwork among vice presidents. He's led infrastructure changes such as a new pavilion that houses the emergency department and renovation of three floors to add 75 private rooms. On the technology side, he's presided over the creation of a robotic surgery program. FULL STORY »
When Alyson Pitman Giles became president and CEO of CMC Healthcare System in Manchester, N.H., 13 years ago, she inherited an organization losing $6 million a year. FULL STORY »
During the decade-plus that Major Gen. David Rubenstein has served in a series of senior leadership positions in the U.S. Army's medical operations, he and his colleagues have faced a series of challenges related to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. FULL STORY »
Michael Waters led his organization through several transformations in healthcare management during his nearly quarter-century as CEO at Hendrick Health System in Abilene, Texas, where he served from 1980 to 2004. FULL STORY »
As the healthcare industry undergoes structural changes, some hospital and system executives are finding the most efficient way to change with it is to join with a larger or better-funded partner through a sale, realignment or joint venture. FULL STORY »
By David Burda | December 12, 2011
| Print Magazine
Modern Healthcare congratulates the winners and honorable mentions of the 19th annual Spirit of Excellence Awards, co-sponsored by Sodexo Health Care Services.This year's five winners and five honorable mention honorees are profiled on the following pages. Each of the five winners will receive a cash prize of $5,000, and each of the five honorable mentions will receive a $1,500 cash prize. FULL STORY »
By Modern Healthcare | December 12, 2011
| Print Magazine
With a teen pregnancy rate in or near the top 10 of any community in the state, Lowell, Mass., is seeing immediate benefits from Lowell General Hospital's decision to bring teen-oriented pregnancy prevention, parent education and childbirth classes into Lowell High School. FULL STORY »
By Modern Healthcare | December 12, 2011
| Print Magazine
Teens in Chelsea, Mich., have reduced recent alcohol and marijuana use by 40% to 50% and indicate a 13% to 32% increase in peer disapproval of such activities since Chelsea Community Hospital began working with the Chelsea School District four years ago to implement the SRSLY (text speak for “seriously”) substance-abuse prevention program. FULL STORY »
By Modern Healthcare | December 12, 2011
| Print Magazine
To prevent medical errors from affecting patients—and minimizing the harm caused when they do—Helen DeVos Children's Hospital has introduced “high reliability units” in several higher-risk patient-care areas based on evidence-based practices. FULL STORY »
By Modern Healthcare | December 12, 2011
| Print Magazine
Andalusia (Ala.) Regional Hospital reduced confirmed healthcare-associated infections by 75%—from 1.46% of admissions to 0.37%—from 2010 to 2011 after initiating a pilot program to monitor and improve hand hygiene in December 2010. FULL STORY »
By Modern Healthcare | December 12, 2011
| Print Magazine
A combination of centralized scheduling, customized nursing grids, a well-trained float pool and the creation of a 13-bed “flex” unit that opens or closes based on volume has enabled University of Utah Health Care to reduce labor costs by $2.4 million while boosting patient satisfaction and quality outcomes during the past 1½ years. FULL STORY »
By Modern Healthcare | December 12, 2011
| Print Magazine
The 353-bed Heartland Regional Medical Center in St. Joseph, Mo., has spent the past year paying homage to its state's motto with the Show You! project, aimed at improving poor community perception and patient-satisfaction scores in its emergency room. FULL STORY »
By Modern Healthcare | December 12, 2011
| Print Magazine
Located down the road from the Army's Fort Knox and not much farther from Fort Campbell, the Lincoln Trail Behavioral Health System, based in Radcliff, Ky., has always worked closely with military service members and their families. FULL STORY »
By Modern Healthcare | December 12, 2011
| Print Magazine
People with physical disabilities who become largely homebound in central Indiana are able to receive high-quality, cost-effective medical care thanks in part to INHouse Primary Care's house-call program, launched in June 2007. FULL STORY »
By Modern Healthcare | December 12, 2011
| Print Magazine
Hispanic associates—and customers—of WellPoint have received renewed focus during the past three years with the establishment of the SOMOS associate resource group, which aims to provide a view of healthcare through the eyes of Hispanic members. FULL STORY »
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A sense of mission and urgency were the twin themes of the American Health Information Management Association's 83rd annual convention in Salt Lake City last week. FULL STORY »
Two years ago this month, Modern Healthcare first reported on the status of cloud computing in the healthcare information technology industry, noting there was little awareness of its potential and limited uptake of cloud services in the healthcare IT industry at that time. FULL STORY »
Two organizations and six individuals are winners of the 2011 awards for outstanding achievement in applied medical informatics from the Association of Medical Directors of Information Systems. FULL STORY »
By Joe Carlson | December 19, 2011
| Print Magazine
Hospital fire fact: If a small blaze broke out next to an MRI machine, would-be firefighters couldn't use a traditional metal extinguisher because powerful magnetism might yank it out of their hands. FULL STORY »
The U.S. Justice Department is seeking to intervene in a False Claims Act lawsuit that accuses a public hospital in central Florida and its independent payroll firm of violating the Stark law in its relations with nine specialty physicians. FULL STORY »
By Andis Robeznieks | July 04, 2011
| Print Magazine
Current trends aside, not all physicians want to be employed, but many are finding the challenges of maintaining an independent practice more trouble than they are worth. One option available to these doctors is to hook up with like-minded souls in an independent physician association. FULL STORY »
By Jessica Zigmond | June 06, 2011
| Print Magazine
As federal lawmakers argue over a congressional plan to privatize Medicare in the long term, healthcare policy experts are focused on a more immediate concern: how upcoming payment changes will affect the future of Medicare Advantage. FULL STORY »
Medtronic faces a Senate investigation after canceling contracts with one of the largest group purchasing organizations. Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.), chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, initiated the investigation Monday over the Minneapolis-based devicemaker's cancellation of contracts with Novation, which uses such agreements to obtain bulk rate discounts. FULL STORY »
Recruiting doctors to live and work in rural America is a chronic problem. Most health centers try to attract workers with big salaries and expensive homes. FULL STORY »
California Gov. Jerry Brown's proposed budget for 2012-13 would reduce Medicaid revenue for hospitals in the state by $86 million and could cause problems for rural health clinics, seniors and people with disabilities, according to a media statement from C. Duane Dauner, president and CEO of the California Hospital Association. FULL STORY »
By Melanie Evans | August 01, 2011
| Print Magazine
When Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City joined a larger health system last year, it did so saddled with debt, financial losses and a chronic need for capital investment. FULL STORY »
Are the terms offered for hospital acquisitions by tax-exempt and investor-owned organizations converging? And if so, is it because these two subsectors of the hospital industry are growing more alike, or because the pool of hospitals for sale is changing? FULL STORY »
Healthcare private-equity deals rebounded after the slump that followed the nation's recession and preceded passage of health reform legislation. Now, investors are scouring the marketplace for companies well-positioned under what many expect to be uncertain and more cost-conscious years ahead for healthcare spending. FULL STORY »
