Looking for the latest in healthcare? Here are five interesting articles making headlines this week.
Paramedics Aren’t Just For Emergencies, published by The Wall Street Journal
A new initiative, called Community Paramedicine, is working to close the gap between high need patients and hospital readmission. By expanding the training of paramedics, the leaders behind this program are focused on increasing chronically ill and elderly patient’s access to preventative and follow-up home based care. Once trained, the paramedics would be able to perform lab tests, take vitals, and collaborate with physicians and the patient’s medical team. This bridge in the continuation of care has the potential to extend medical influence into a component of wellness traditional providers struggle to impact: home safety, medication compliance, and chronic disease management. Read more here.
100 Most Influential People in Healthcare – 2015, published by Modern Healthcare
Modern Healthcare has released its 2015 edition of the 100 Most Influential People in Healthcare. The list encapsulates a variety of players, ranging from hospital CEOs to politicians to groundbreaking researchers and technology innovators. These leaders in the field are recognized for his or her contribution to the medical landscape, within the country and around the world. Each individual’s ranking on the list is outlined along with his or her job title, age, compensation, and number of years featured on Modern Healthcare’s List. Read more here.
Freezing Eggs May Reduce a Woman’s Odds of Success with IVF, published by NPR
As in-vitro fertilization steadily becomes a mainstream component of family planning, scientists and researchers continue to produce information providing insight as to best practice methods. Most recently, The Center for Human Reproduction published a report with the Journal of American Medical Association, comparing the success of live births following utilization of cryopreserved eggs versus fresh eggs. The study, which analyzed data from the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology’s 2013 annual report on in-vitro fertilization outcomes, found that nearly 20% more live births occurred following insertion of a fresh egg. More information on the study’s process, methodology, and findings, along with recommendations for future study can be found within the article. Read more here.
Blood Test ‘Detects Cancer Relapse’, published by BBC
According to the article published by BBC, the findings of a study on cancer relapse may provide insight into early detection of the disease. Science Translational Medicine recently released the study, which evaluated fifty-five breast cancer patients in remission, but at high risk for relapse. Tests analyzing the DNA of the initial tumor were compared over time with changes in the blood; of the fifteen participants who experienced a relapse of cancer, DNA mutations were found in the blood of twelve of them. The article outlines the study’s process, and the impact further study and research could have on detecting and treating cancer relapses. Read more here.
Medicare Says Doctors Should Get Paid to Discuss End-of-Life Issues, published by Kaiser Health News
In 2009, legislators removed a component of the Affordable Health Care Act that would have allowed physicians to be reimbursed for time spent speaking to patients about end of life issues. This removal came after right wing conservatives and religious organizations spurred public uproar about the appropriate role of providers. Consequently, this absence established a void in care that prevented patients from receiving information on advanced care planning tools, such as legal documents and established treatment options. Additionally, physicians were forced to choose between neglecting the conversation all together, and initiating it on their own, limited time. The article article outlines both sides of the debate, along with the federal government’s upcoming discussion on the topic. Read more here.
Check back next week for another roundup of healthcare news. Stay tuned @BoardVitals.