The obesity rate has risen dramatically, from 13% of men and 17% of women in 1980 to 28% of men and 34% of women in 1999-2000. Increasingly, outpatient surgery providers are faced with the question: Can we handle these people as outpatients?
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With many outpatient surgery programs having few, if any, funds available for public relations, there is a strong need for free or low-cost ways to improve your community image. Many programs are finding out that by giving back to their community, they also can reach potential patients and improve staff morale in the process.
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When a woman living near Lima, OH, started a service to provide free surgery to needy people overseas, she found a willing partner at nearby West Central Ohio Surgery and Endoscopy Center in Lima. The organization, called Childrens Medical Missions, sent a photo of a 10-year-old African boy needing a hernia operation to the center. She told the center a little about the child, and they decided to offer the surgery.
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After my security officer is designated and familiar with the HIPAA security rule, what are my next steps toward compliance? What steps are necessary for a proper risk analysis, according to HIPAA? Is a risk analysis and review of security rule compliance a one-time activity?
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Have you ever tracked how you spend your time? While boring, it can be useful information to have. I thought that it would be interesting to see what some of my operating room associates do with their time. We set up a task sheet to track this information.
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Like many outpatient surgery programs, Mount Nittany Surgical Center in State College, PA, has a limited budget and always is trying to stretch its educational dollars as far as possible.
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Six states have enacted legislation supporting creation of state patient safety centers, and four of those states (Florida, Massachusetts, Oregon, and Pennsylvania) will focus on ambulatory surgery centers. All six, which also include Maryland and New York, will focus on hospitals. A recent report from the National Academy for State Health Policy in Portland, ME, examined the models in use in the six states.
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On the fifth anniversary of the Institute of Medicines 1999 report on the high number of medical errors in this country, 66% of consumers surveyed said that they have talked to a surgeon about details of a proposed surgery to reduce the risk of experiencing a medical error when seeking treatment.
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The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) will recommend to Congress that the moratorium on development of specialty hospitals, including surgical hospitals, be extended by 20 months to Jan. 1, 2007.
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