Debunking the debunking
I really don't want to write more about surgical robots, but you folks out there keep sending good material. Here's an article by a surgeon on ThirdAge.com "debunking the myths about robotic surgery."Let's look some assertions:The robotics technology is expensive and the whole surgical team has to be trained, which can add to the cost. But there’s also a tremendous savings compared with traditional surgery because the patient is out of the hospital more quickly and there are fewer complications.Many times, the robotics-assisted procedures can be done much more quickly, so there’s less risk simply because the ...
Source: Running a hospital - July 29, 2014 Category: Health Managers Source Type: blogs
Will you be in Panama City in August?
This is a must-see exhibit by the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute. A good chance to meet Matt Larsen, STRI’s new director, too. (Source: Running a hospital)
Source: Running a hospital - July 29, 2014 Category: Health Managers Source Type: blogs
Keeping up with the Joneses
ConclusionThere is a significant spatial and temporal association for hospitals acquiring surgical robots during the study period. Hospitals were more likely to acquire a surgical robot during the robot's early adoption phase if their nearest neighbor had already done so. (Source: Running a hospital)
Source: Running a hospital - July 29, 2014 Category: Health Managers Source Type: blogs
In memoriam: Marc Roberts
Sometimes unexpected news takes your breath away, and this was one such instance. I just learned that Marc Roberts died this past weekend.We never worked together, but we led parallel lives for decades--he in academia studying and writing about major societal issues like energy and health care, while I would work in organizations in the same fields.In this announcement from Harvard, Professor Michael Reich said, “Marc’s insights, his intellect, and his humor on all sorts of issues will be sorely missed by his colleagues and his students around the world.”Exactly: Insights, intellect, and humor. M...
Source: Running a hospital - July 29, 2014 Category: Health Managers Source Type: blogs
How to make sure no one will report the next time
From a Washington Post report on the CDC anthrax problem:Farrell had been reassigned following the June incident, and his future at the CDC was uncertain before his resignation this week. Sean Kaufman, a biosafety expert who also testified at last week’s congressional hearing on lab issues at the CDC, said Farrell had unfairly been made a scapegoat.“Michael immediately reported this incident. He did what he needed to do as a scientist. And when he did that, the repercussion was a loss of a job,” said Kaufman, a former CDC employee who conducted a training in Farrell’s lab as recently as this spring. “This...
Source: Running a hospital - July 28, 2014 Category: Health Managers Source Type: blogs
This one won't be on the daVinci website
The Baltimore Sun reports on a study:Using robotic techniques to remove a cancerous bladder doesn't reduce the risk of complications compared with conventional "open" surgery, according to a new comparison of 118 patients conducted by surgeons at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York. The study, detailed in the New England Journal of Medicine, marks the first ongoing comparison of the risks and benefits of the two techniques. Past studies concluded that the robotic technique meant less time in the hospital and fewer complications but they were done by looking back at the records of alrea...
Source: Running a hospital - July 28, 2014 Category: Health Managers Source Type: blogs
We must dream just right
A nugget from Gene Lindsey:The tension arises from the image of the perfect being balanced against what it is practically possible to accomplish. This is the hardest step for dreamers like me. Dreaming small is hard. Dreaming too big leads to failure and frustration. Like “Goldilocks,” we must dream just right. (Source: Running a hospital)
Source: Running a hospital - July 27, 2014 Category: Health Managers Source Type: blogs
MDs in Missouri say, "Show me."
Here's a fascinating story in Governing about Missouri's approach to alleviating a physician shortage in rural areas. (Thanks to the folks at Commonwealth Magazine for the tip in one of their daily newsletters.) The lede:A new Missouri law allows recent medical school graduates to practice primary care in underserved areas without completing a residency in a teaching hospital.The Missouri State Medical Association, the law’s chief backer, is calling it an unprecedented effort to help deal with doctor shortages in rural and other underserved areas, but opponents raise questions about whether circumventing...
Source: Running a hospital - July 27, 2014 Category: Health Managers Source Type: blogs
Ties that bind
Martha Bebinger over at Commonhealth gets it quite right when she describes recent comments submitted to the Trial Court about the AG-Partners Healthcare System proposed settlement:Quite an “only in Massachusetts” moment.Patriots owner Robert Kraft and leaders of Raytheon, Suffolk Construction and Putnam Investments have all filed letters in support of an anti-trust agreement that would not normally see the light of day before a judge approves the deal. The opposition includes public health professors, a group of top economists and politicians battling Attorney General Martha Coakley in the governor...
Source: Running a hospital - July 27, 2014 Category: Health Managers Source Type: blogs
MIT SDM Conference on Systems Thinking
Systems Thinking for Emerging, Evolving, and Established LeadersOctober 8, 2014, at MITMIT SDM Conference on Systems Thinking for Contemporary Challenges"Systems Thinking for Emerging, Evolving, and Established Leaders" is the theme of the 2014 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Conference on Systems Thinking for Contemporary Challenges, sponsored by the System Design and Management program. The event will be held on October 8 at MIT in Wong Auditorium. Speakers will include leaders from industry, government, and academic sectors who will discuss:How to use systems thinking to align and lead functionally an...
Source: Running a hospital - July 25, 2014 Category: Health Managers Source Type: blogs
Why America is a great country
I was at a restaurant and tore off the paper napkin ring. To my amazement, I saw that it was patented, number 6644498 to be exact.It dates back to 2001. Here's the abstract:A continuous strip of individual napkin ring blanks that can be separated to form a plurality of napkin rings. Each individual ring blank extends between a leading edge and a trailing edge and includes a first adhesive area and a second adhesive area. A line of perforation is formed between the leading edge of one ring blank and the trailing edge of the preceding ring blank such that the ring blanks can be separated from each other. Ea...
Source: Running a hospital - July 25, 2014 Category: Health Managers Source Type: blogs
Continuum of Care on WIHI
Madge Kaplan writes:The next WIHI broadcast — From Prehospital to In-Hospital: The Continuum for Time-Sensitive Care — will take place on Thursday, July 24, from 2 to 3 PM ET, and I hope you'll tune in.Our guests will include:Kedar Mate, MD, Vice President, Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI)David Williams, PhD, Improvement Advisor and Founder, TrueSimpleJonathan R. Studnek, PhD, NRP, Quality Improvement Manager, Mecklenburg EMS Agency (North Carolina)Kevin Rooney, MBChB, FRCA, FFICM, Consultant in Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Medicine; Professor of Care Improvement, University of the West of Sc...
Source: Running a hospital - July 24, 2014 Category: Health Managers Source Type: blogs
Time for HOPE Award nominations
Recognize someone who is doing great work!Nominations are now being accepted for the 2014 MITSS HOPE Award. This prestigious award is being sponsored by RL Solutions, and the winner will receive a cash prize of $5,000 to continue their important work.Take this opportunity to honor someone who is making a difference. Note that self-nominations are welcomed, and submissions from anywhere in the United States and Canada are encouraged.Nominations are due by Friday, September 19th, 2014, and the award will be presented at the MITSS 13th Annual Dinner and Fundraiser to be held on Thursday, November 13th, 2014, at ...
Source: Running a hospital - July 23, 2014 Category: Health Managers Source Type: blogs
Not at the beach
We have to award the best quote of the season to the Boston Globe's Shirley Leung:You don’t have to go to the beach to look for flip-flops this summer. There’s a pair in the gubernatorial race.She then tells the story of how two candidates changed their positions with regard to the Attorney General's deal with Partners Healthcare System. For my part, I don't care if they changed their positions, as long as they have come to realize the flaws in the deal. (Source: Running a hospital)
Source: Running a hospital - July 23, 2014 Category: Health Managers Source Type: blogs
Robots invade the rest of the world
There's a lot of good news in this story by Jaimy Lee at Modern Healthcare, but there is also a warning. The good:Intuitive Surgical saw its revenue and income fall again in the second quarter as sales of its da Vinci robotic surgery systems continued to drop.The use of robotic surgery systems in gynecologic procedures such as hysterectomies continued to decline, and that trend is not expected to reverse, company officials noted during a call with investors.The warning:Worldwide procedure volume for the company's products went up 9%, led by . . . a higher number of urologic procedures outside of the U.S. This re...
Source: Running a hospital - July 23, 2014 Category: Health Managers Source Type: blogs
