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Monday, September 16, 2002
Hospitals Lead the Way
Proving once again that hospitals are community assets and great places to work, four Ohio hospitals were last week named among the 99 Best Places to Work in Northeast Ohio. All four, either directly or through their affiliated system, are represented on the OHA Board of Trustees. They are:

EMH Regional Healthcare System in Elyria
Euclid Hospital, part of the Cleveland Clinic Health System
Parma Community General Hospital
Lake Hospital System in Painesville.

Based on criteria such as benefits, recruiting, retention, workplace safety and turnover, the distinction is awarded annually by the Employers Resource Council, an employer’s association with corporate membership in 22 Northeast Ohio counties, as part of its NorthCoast 99 program to recognize the 99 best employers in the region. EMH Regional Healthcare System also won the NorthCoast99 Award for Community Service. Watch for more information about how the hospitals made the list in OHA’s online Workforce Forum Best Practices at www.ohanet.org/workforce/practices/.

Also exhibiting hospitals’ commitment to their community is Hocking Valley Community Hospital Administrator Larry Willard, who has been named to Hocking College’s Board of Trustees by local school board presidents from Athens, Hocking and Perry counties. (Mary Yost, maryy@ohanet.org)

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(Editor’s note: StateHealthClips.com has gone to a subscription service. Please note that the link to access clips will change daily. If you visit www.statehealthclips.com, you will be required to enter a subscriber password. No password is required for the link published in HEALTH e-NEWS Plus.)

Tuesday, September 17, 2002
Awards to Recognize Rural Health Care
The State Office of Rural Health, a division of the Ohio Department of Health, has created an awards program to recognize achievement in Ohio rural health care services. Ohio’s Distinguished Rural Health Awards Program will give one award in each of the following five categories:

Rural Health Administrator: an individual who displays leadership in network development, community needs assessment and program implementation of health care services.
Rural Health Program: a program that facilitates the development of innovative health care delivery systems.

Rural Health Provider: a direct service provider who displays leadership in bringing needed health care services to a rural community.
Rural Health EMS Volunteer: a student who shows dedication to serving a rural community through his or her training.

To nominate a colleague or program you think deserves an award, or for more information, contact Pamela Hunt at 614.995.5556 or phunt@gw.odh.state.oh.us. All nomination materials must be submitted by Friday, Oct. 4.

Nursing Conference Next Month
The Nursing Quality Institute 2002, presented by the Ohio Nurses Foundation, is scheduled for Oct. 3-4 at the Columbus Hilton. The two-day educational conference for nurses will evaluate health care trends, as well as clinical practice and critical nursing issues, including the threat of bioterrorism. Registration information is available at www.ohnurses.org.

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Wednesday, September 18, 2002
Hospitals, OHA Support Increased Medicaid Funding
Jerry Friedman, assistant vice president in the Office of Health Sciences at the Ohio State University Medical Center, and Ryan Biles, OHA manager of health policy, testified today before the Ohio General Assembly’s Select Committee on Medicaid Reform in support of increased Medicaid funding for Ohio hospitals. David Miller, chief financial officer and vice president of Children’s Medical Center in Dayton, testified as well, on behalf of the Ohio Children’s Hospital Association.

In 2000, the year of the most current available data, Biles noted Ohio hospitals lost an average of 10 percent of the cost of providing care to Medicaid patients. While covering this deficit, hospitals also continue their efforts to implement new technologies and improve quality of care, which creates a heavy financial burden, he said. In times of economic hardship, state and federal governments look to reduce the size and cost of certain programs, but maintaining and increasing welfare programs such as Medicaid help strengthen crucial community assets including Ohio’s health care system, Biles added. Friedman also advocated for an improved and more cost-effective health care delivery system.

Stay tuned for additional information on the state budgeting process and how these decisions will affect Ohio’s hospitals. (Ryan Biles, ryanb@ohanet.org)

Court Declines Hospital’s Appeal
Despite OHA’s efforts and a dissenting Justice Evelyn Lundberg Stratton, the Ohio Supreme Court recently declined to hear UHHS Geauga Regional Hospital’s appeal of damages awarded to one of the facility’s former physicians. In June, the Eighth District Court of Appeals awarded $200,000 in damages to an obstetrician who was dismissed after failing to provide proper medical coverage for his patients when he was off duty.

OHA supported the hospital’s position that federal and state peer review law were not properly applied, jeopardizing the protection for hospitals that they are meant to provide. Without this legal protection, hospitals are less able to properly review and evaluate staff, which is necessary to ensure patient safety. The Court’s action leaves standing the decision of the Eighth District Appellate Court, which reviews decisions of lower courts in Cuyahoga County. (Rick Sites, ricks@ohanet.org)

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(Editor’s note: The news clips are being password-protected on the OHA Web site. OHA members will be notified separately of the password. HEALTH e-NEWS Plus subscribers can still access news clips through the daily e-mail without a password.)

Thursday, September 19, 2002
Bioterrorism Bill Introduced
Legislation to further Ohio’s bioterrorism response efforts was today introduced by Sen. Pricilla Mead (R-Columbus). Senate Bill 296 is based on draft model public health emergency legislation published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which urged each state to review its existing laws following the Sept. 11 attacks. Thirty-five states have introduced legislation based on CDC’s model and 19 states and the District of Columbia have passed their versions of the bill. Both Lt. Gov. Maureen O’Connor, chair of the State of Ohio Security Task Force, and Ohio Department of Health (ODH) Director J. Nick Baird have indicated their support of Ohio’s version of the bill.

In addition to enhancing disease surveillance and protecting personal health information reported to ODH, the bill would also authorize ODH to collect information from trauma centers describing their preparedness to respond to bioterrorism and other emergency events. OHA is evaluating the legislation to determine how it would impact providers. Stay tuned to HEALTH e-NEWS Plus for further developments. (Carol Jacobson, carolj@ohanet.org)

Hospital Rep Touts Tort Reform
As the issue of skyrocketing medical malpractice insurance costs continues to heat up, one hospital representative this week advocated for tort reform before members of the legislature. John D. Clough, M.D., director of health affairs for the Cleveland Clinic Foundation and OHA Board member, testified in support of pending tort reform legislation during a special meeting of the Select Committee on Quality Health Care focusing on the rising cost of medical malpractice insurance.

Testifying on behalf of the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Clough voiced support for Senate Bills 120, 179 and 281, which would provide joint and several liability, peer review protection and caps on non-economic damages among other things, respectively. Clough cited the increasing number of doctors forced to close their practices or limit services because they cannot afford malpractice insurance as a driving force to enact tort reform legislation. (Bridget Gargan, bridgetg@ohanet.org)

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Friday, September 20, 2002
West Nile Won’t Affect Flu Season
Providers worrying that an influx of patients due to concerns over West Nile Virus (WNV) will coincide with the usual flu season-related patient increase can rest easy. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the WNV epidemic is peaking now, and as the climate turns cooler, mosquito populations will die out with no overlap between WNV activity and flu season, according to a report of the American Hospital Association. In the U.S., there have been 1,641 confirmed human cases of WNV and 80 deaths this year. In Ohio, there have been 169 confirmed cases resulting in 8 deaths. More information about WNV is available at www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/index.htm. (Rick Sites, ricks@ohanet.org)

OHA Welcomes New Associate; Congratulates Others
OHA welcomes Mary Rinkoski as communications specialist. Mary is responsible for special projects of Public Affairs and contributes to various OHA newsletters. Mary can be reached at 614.221.7614 or maryr@ohanet.org.

OHA also congratulates the following:

Bridget Gargan has been promoted to vice president of state policy and advocacy. Bridget is responsible for state level advocacy and representation with the legislative and executive branches.

Tiffany Himmelreich has been promoted to manager of communications. Tiffany is responsible for various OHA newsletters and media relations and oversees content of the OHA Web site.

Jeff Klingler, director of state policy and advocacy, is being appointed treasurer of Friends of Ohio Hospitals, the political action committee of OHA.

Learn more about the OHA staff at www.ohanet.org/about_oha/staff.asp.

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