Tis the season- too much alcohol, depression, suicide attempts, overdose, domestic disputes and car accidents/fatalities... Sounds like a very busy night at the E.D.! Sounds about right, but interestingly I found an article that says something different- According to Dan Romer, director of the Annenberg Adolescent Risk Communication Institute at the University of Pennsylvania, "deliberate self-harm" is actually much less frequent during the holidays. In this study, the used the admission records of 19,346 people in England and looked at daily rates of self-induced injury from 1976 to 2003. The conclusion? Between the dates of December 19-26 all levels were decreased and held this pattern through New Years. According to the article, even people with family problems were less inclined to attempt to hurt themselves during the holiday time. The feeling was that with extended family close, they feel less pressure. People are in the "spirit of giving" Hmmm... Maybe we should have more holiday time?! Despite what statistics/research may say, the holidays are not for everyone. We are all aware of the dangers on this Eve.... Hopefully yours is filled with joy and those wonderful New Years resolutions!
Wishing everyone a Happy, Healthy New Year!
Be Thankful and be safe! :)
Monday, December 31, 2007
Sunday, December 30, 2007
As if Professionals in Emergency Medicine don't have enough to worry about!
If you ever want entertainment (or some real horror/night sweats/bad dreams) google "Patient Claims" and see what comes up!
An interesting claim about Dr. Adams and Ms. Lucas: a lipo-surgery patient who claims she met Dr. Adams while Bartending- he was her customer. According to her claim, Dr. Adams agreed to do lipo on Ms. Lucas's upper arms and abdomen, as she was an aspiring model and actress. According to Ms. Lucas, just as surgery was about to begin, Dr. Adams whispered in her ear "that he 'loved' her, that he was 'going to marry her." According to the law suit, Dr. Adams began making "house calls" shortly after the procedure, eventually taking her to dinner and drinking wine, while still heavily medicated. The plaintiff claims this is when Dr. Adams took her home and had sexual intercourse with her. Lucas claims this is when she became pregnant. According to the suit, Dr. Adams wanted to keep the baby and Ms. Lucas did not. According to the claim, Dr. Adams eventually referred Ms. Lucas to an OB/GYN who would end the pregnancy. Ms. Lucas also claimed that Dr. Adams "botched" her surgery and sued for sexual battery and malpractice. What in the world is happening???!!!! According to Wrong Diagnosis.com, the highest dollar payouts are often related to: misdiagnosis, failure to diagnose or delayed diagnosis of a severe medical condition. CALLING ALL EMERGENCY PHYSICIANS: DO YOU SEE THESE STATISTICS?! You are the ones who are blamed for this! Yes, you are overworked, understaffed, and a big part of your bonus is determained by how many patients you see per hour.... no sleep, not enough help, but when you make a mistake you get sued!! Between Physician/patient love-drama gone wild (which could be another blog) and issues such as patient safety, it's no more a question of "have you ever been sued?" It's more like: "When was the last claim filed against you and what was your involvement?"!! According to NCHS, data shows that in 2002, there were 33,051 deaths involving complications of medical or surgical care.
An interesting claim about Dr. Adams and Ms. Lucas: a lipo-surgery patient who claims she met Dr. Adams while Bartending- he was her customer. According to her claim, Dr. Adams agreed to do lipo on Ms. Lucas's upper arms and abdomen, as she was an aspiring model and actress. According to Ms. Lucas, just as surgery was about to begin, Dr. Adams whispered in her ear "that he 'loved' her, that he was 'going to marry her." According to the law suit, Dr. Adams began making "house calls" shortly after the procedure, eventually taking her to dinner and drinking wine, while still heavily medicated. The plaintiff claims this is when Dr. Adams took her home and had sexual intercourse with her. Lucas claims this is when she became pregnant. According to the suit, Dr. Adams wanted to keep the baby and Ms. Lucas did not. According to the claim, Dr. Adams eventually referred Ms. Lucas to an OB/GYN who would end the pregnancy. Ms. Lucas also claimed that Dr. Adams "botched" her surgery and sued for sexual battery and malpractice. What in the world is happening???!!!! According to Wrong Diagnosis.com, the highest dollar payouts are often related to: misdiagnosis, failure to diagnose or delayed diagnosis of a severe medical condition. CALLING ALL EMERGENCY PHYSICIANS: DO YOU SEE THESE STATISTICS?! You are the ones who are blamed for this! Yes, you are overworked, understaffed, and a big part of your bonus is determained by how many patients you see per hour.... no sleep, not enough help, but when you make a mistake you get sued!! Between Physician/patient love-drama gone wild (which could be another blog) and issues such as patient safety, it's no more a question of "have you ever been sued?" It's more like: "When was the last claim filed against you and what was your involvement?"!! According to NCHS, data shows that in 2002, there were 33,051 deaths involving complications of medical or surgical care.
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
Emergency Medicine on Life Support
As we know, Emergency Medicine in the United States is in critical condition. Over-worked, under-paid, and under appreciated. Ambulances are turned away, patients are left waiting for hours and sometimes days. When they are finally seen internal pressure like lack of staffing combined with bonus structure such as RVU, makes getting these patients through as quickly as possible the priority vs. real patient-care. The result? Mistakes, Claims.... Patients and families left unhappy, suffering and physicians feeling like nothing can be done. What about reimbursement, overcrowding and lack of specialtists when they are needed most?
EMS, Specialtists and Emergency Physicians need to work as a team, Congress needs to ensure all emergency rooms are properly equipped and ready to handle whatever comes through the door. In 2003, emergency departments saw nearly 114 million patients - a 26 percent increase over the previous decade - but during the same 10 years the United States lost 703 hospitals and 425 emergency departments, one report noted.
Emergency departments are also playing key roles in disaster response, but in 2002 and 2003, emergency medical services received just 4 percent of the $3.38 billion doled out for emergency preparedness by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.The reports urges Congress to allocate $50 million to reimburse hospitals for uncompensated emergency and trauma care and to increase funding to provide hospitals with resources needed to handle disaster situations.
Uninsured patients use the emergency departments as if they are walk-in clinics. With over 47 million uninsured people in the United States, where are they supposed to go? Instead of putting out these daily fires in the ED, we have got to create long-term solutions.
EMS, Specialtists and Emergency Physicians need to work as a team, Congress needs to ensure all emergency rooms are properly equipped and ready to handle whatever comes through the door. In 2003, emergency departments saw nearly 114 million patients - a 26 percent increase over the previous decade - but during the same 10 years the United States lost 703 hospitals and 425 emergency departments, one report noted.
Emergency departments are also playing key roles in disaster response, but in 2002 and 2003, emergency medical services received just 4 percent of the $3.38 billion doled out for emergency preparedness by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.The reports urges Congress to allocate $50 million to reimburse hospitals for uncompensated emergency and trauma care and to increase funding to provide hospitals with resources needed to handle disaster situations.
Uninsured patients use the emergency departments as if they are walk-in clinics. With over 47 million uninsured people in the United States, where are they supposed to go? Instead of putting out these daily fires in the ED, we have got to create long-term solutions.
ED Quality News
Texans approved Proposition 12, a constitutional amendment that protects that state's tort reform legislation from judicial reversal. The amendment gave the Legislature the constitutional authority to set limits on damages in medical malpractice and other lawsuits. This has important ramifications for emergency physicians and emergency departments state-wide.
According to the Houston Chronicle, Prop. 12 "would remove a likely legal challenge to the constitutionality of a recently enacted civil justice law capping noneconomic damages for pain and suffering in medical malpractice lawsuits. It also would clear the way for the Legislature in future sessions to limit damages in other types of lawsuits."
"Proposition 12 represented an epic struggle between doctors and plaintiffs' lawyers. More than $13 million was spent on advertising. Most of the $7 million spent in opposition to the measure came from wealthy personal injury trial lawyers."
Governor Rick Perry said, "...today Texans have taken an important step toward protecting both the practice of medicine and Texans' access to quality health care."
Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst stated, "The people of Texas have voted to limit frivolous lawsuits, and families will now have greater access to affordable health care."
State Rep. Joe Nixon, R-Houston, who sponsored Prop. 12, said, "The Legislature went to work for the citizens of the state of Texas to ensure adequate access for health care. It looks like right now that the citizens have supported our efforts on their behalf."
Pain and Suffering Caps:
Injured patients may still collect unlimited real or economic damages, which includes all lost past, present and future wages and medical costs. However, the amendment caps the subjective noneconomic damages at a maximum of $750,000 for pain and suffering, emotional distress and loss of consortium. Only $250,000 of the noneconomic damages could come from physicians, $250,000 from a hospital or nursing home and $250,000 if a second facility is involved.
Premium Relief:
The state's largest medical malpractice insurer, Texas Medical Liability Trust, promised to reduce rates 12% in January, 2004 if the amendment passed.
Texans approved Proposition 12, a constitutional amendment that protects that state's tort reform legislation from judicial reversal. The amendment gave the Legislature the constitutional authority to set limits on damages in medical malpractice and other lawsuits. This has important ramifications for emergency physicians and emergency departments state-wide.
According to the Houston Chronicle, Prop. 12 "would remove a likely legal challenge to the constitutionality of a recently enacted civil justice law capping noneconomic damages for pain and suffering in medical malpractice lawsuits. It also would clear the way for the Legislature in future sessions to limit damages in other types of lawsuits."
"Proposition 12 represented an epic struggle between doctors and plaintiffs' lawyers. More than $13 million was spent on advertising. Most of the $7 million spent in opposition to the measure came from wealthy personal injury trial lawyers."
Governor Rick Perry said, "...today Texans have taken an important step toward protecting both the practice of medicine and Texans' access to quality health care."
Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst stated, "The people of Texas have voted to limit frivolous lawsuits, and families will now have greater access to affordable health care."
State Rep. Joe Nixon, R-Houston, who sponsored Prop. 12, said, "The Legislature went to work for the citizens of the state of Texas to ensure adequate access for health care. It looks like right now that the citizens have supported our efforts on their behalf."
Pain and Suffering Caps:
Injured patients may still collect unlimited real or economic damages, which includes all lost past, present and future wages and medical costs. However, the amendment caps the subjective noneconomic damages at a maximum of $750,000 for pain and suffering, emotional distress and loss of consortium. Only $250,000 of the noneconomic damages could come from physicians, $250,000 from a hospital or nursing home and $250,000 if a second facility is involved.
Premium Relief:
The state's largest medical malpractice insurer, Texas Medical Liability Trust, promised to reduce rates 12% in January, 2004 if the amendment passed.
Thursday, December 20, 2007
High Death Rate Among Street Youth - Journal Watch Emergency Medicine
This seems to be growing... Shouldn't we be pro-active and create change? As emergency physicians, we have the power to do something about this! Research proves it. As a mentor, you have the ability to change this horrible outcome and make a difference.
High Death Rate Among Street Youth - Journal Watch Emergency Medicine
High Death Rate Among Street Youth - Journal Watch Emergency Medicine
Monday, December 17, 2007
Some positive news in medicine!
American hospitals are making measurable strides in the quality of care provided for patients with heart attacks, heart failure, pneumonia and surgical conditions, according to The Joint Commission's second annual report on healthcare quality and patient safety in the nation's hospitals. The report portrays the aggregate performance of accredited hospitals against The Joint Commission's standardized national performance measures and its National Patient Safety Goals
Joint Commission Report Shows Improvement In Healthcare Quality In Hospitals
Joint Commission Report Shows Improvement In Healthcare Quality In Hospitals
Even the famous can't escape
What's going in Medicine? What is going to drive change in our hospitals/emergency rooms?
Require reporting of medical errors DesMoinesRegister.com The Des Moines Register: "Actor Dennis Quaid's newborn twins were reportedly the victims of a medical error. While at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in California, the infants were given 1,000 times the intended dosage of heparin - a blood thinner used to keep IV catheters from clotting. When blood is too thin, patients are at risk for life-threatening bleeding and hemorrhages."
Require reporting of medical errors DesMoinesRegister.com The Des Moines Register: "Actor Dennis Quaid's newborn twins were reportedly the victims of a medical error. While at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in California, the infants were given 1,000 times the intended dosage of heparin - a blood thinner used to keep IV catheters from clotting. When blood is too thin, patients are at risk for life-threatening bleeding and hemorrhages."
In the News
Patient Care, Medical Errors = Claims
For the third time this year, doctors at Rhode Island Hospital have operated on the wrong side of a patient's head -- an action that has brought about censure from the state Department of Health and a $50,000 fine. For the third time this year, doctors at Rhode Island Hospital have operated on the wrong side of a patient's head -- an action that has brought about censure from the state Department of Health and a $50,000 fine.
For the rest of the story please follow this link: ABC News: How Can It Happen? Mistake Brain Surgery
For the third time this year, doctors at Rhode Island Hospital have operated on the wrong side of a patient's head -- an action that has brought about censure from the state Department of Health and a $50,000 fine. For the third time this year, doctors at Rhode Island Hospital have operated on the wrong side of a patient's head -- an action that has brought about censure from the state Department of Health and a $50,000 fine.
For the rest of the story please follow this link: ABC News: How Can It Happen? Mistake Brain Surgery
Sunday, December 16, 2007
What is your feeling regarding Emergency Room Scribe Programs?? What have the results been?
Thought this was interesting and would love to know your thoughts!
Expediting the ER Process: The Emergence of Emergency Room Scribe Programs
Expediting the ER Process: The Emergence of Emergency Room Scribe Programs
Emergency room data shows boys at risk from peer violence
Emergency Depts/Physicians often are the very first to know about teen violence/high-risk... Research proves that one positive presence can change the outcome. EDMD ThinkTank wants to see this happen. We are searching for a pilot ED who is willing to implement "LifeForce" and see the difference!
Emergency room data shows boys at risk from peer violence- Canadian Red Cross
Emergency room data shows boys at risk from peer violence- Canadian Red Cross
Saturday, December 15, 2007
LifeForce -
We are in the process of developing a program for At Risk Youth, as well as to initiate new leadership within the Emergency Dept.
If you are interested in this program, please contact us !
Please check it out!
LifeForce
If you are interested in this program, please contact us !
Please check it out!
LifeForce
Coming soon!!
Please check back for content! We are currently under construction and should have some interesting discussion/feedback soon... Be sure to check out EDMD ThinkTank to find out about our services. We look forward to hearing from you!
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