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Monday,
May 12, 2003
National Kudos Offered to Nurses,
Hospitals
Today, Florence Nightingale’s birthday, marks the end of National
Nurses Week and the start of National Hospital and Healthcare Week.
National Nurses Week, held annually May 6-12, this year celebrated the
more than 2.7 million registered nurses in the U.S. under the banner “Nurses:
Lifting Spirits, Touching Lives.”
Hospitals will also receive recognition throughout the coming week as they, and their staff and volunteers, are honored for the many contributions they make to their communities. The 2003 theme, “Bringing the Power of Care to the Community,” emphasizes the importance of hospitals and health care associates to the communities they serve. Ohio hospitals are not only committed to their communities at large, they also are committed to the community of health care providers within their facilities that makes superior service possible. To learn more about exceptional programs and best practices that Ohio hospitals have implemented to attract and retain their talented health care providers, visit www.ohanet.org/workforce/practices/. Contact Jean Scholz at jeans@ohanet.org or 614.221.7614 to let OHA know of best practices in your facility.
May 13, 2003
Ohio Supreme Court Welcomes New Member
The office of Gov. Bob Taft yesterday announced the appointment of former Ohio Court of Appeals Judge Terrence O’Donnell of Cuyahoga County to the Ohio Supreme Court. Judge O’Donnell will succeed Justice Deborah Cook, who will move to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.
Justice Cook earned a reputation for practicing judicial restraint and respecting the role of the legislature to address societal issues during her time with the court and OHA looks to Judge O’Donnell to display a similar judicial philosophy during his tenure. Friends of Ohio Hospitals, the political action committee for Ohio hospitals and health care systems, endorsed O’Donnell in 2000 as a candidate who understood the importance of protecting and maintaining the quality of Ohio’s health care community. Although appointed now, Judge O'Donnell will be required to run for election, along with three other Ohio Supreme Court judicial races, in the fall of 2004.
To view a news release on Judge O’Donnell’s appointment, visit www.state.oh.us/gov/releases/051203odonnell.htm. (Rick Sites, ricks@ohanet.org)
Hospital Collaborative Breaks
Ground
The Cancer Network of West Central Ohio recently held a groundbreaking
ceremony for its High Point Regional Cancer Center in Bellefontaine. The
new cancer center will offer radiation oncology, medical oncology and
outpatient laboratory services in addition to other support services.
The network is comprised of five hospitals working together to provide
cost-effective services locally. The hospitals are Joint Township
District Memorial Hospital in St, Mary’s, Mercer County Joint
Township Community Hospital in Coldwater, Mary Rutan Hospital
in Bellefontaine, St. Rita’s Medical Center in Lima and Van
Wert County Hospital.
May 14, 2003
Med Mal Commission Commences
Ohio’s Medical Malpractice Commission, a group created by SB 281 to monitor the effects of the tort reform bill and investigate medical malpractice issues, met for the first time last Friday. The commission includes doctor, hospital and patient representatives, with Frank Pandora, Senior Vice President and General Counsel for OhioHealth, representing hospitals.
Director of Ohio Department of Insurance (ODI) Ann Womer Benjamin was chosen to chair the commission and lead the group during its two-year mission to address the medical malpractice situation in Ohio. Members are looking to gather more information on the process for insurance premium rate making and then to review ODI’s recent report to the governor regarding the feasibility of a patient compensation fund (see OHA News May 9 for more). The group has not yet reached a consensus on the regularity and location of the meetings but dates for future hearings will be available at www.ohioinsurance.gov.
Celebrating Ohio’s Invaluable Caregivers
Get-well card: $1.99.
Bouquet of flowers: $27.99.
A caregiver’s encouraging word or a smile: priceless.
Ohio's many health care workers touch the lives of their patients every year. The 2003 OHA Recognition Dinner June 9 will honor all nominees for, and the ultimate recipient of, the Albert E. Dyckes Health Care Worker of the Year award in addition to recipients of several other prestigious OHA awards. Four finalists and the ultimate recipient of the Dyckes award will be named the night of the event.
The dinner kicks off with a reception and cash bar at 5 p.m., with dinner at 6 p.m., followed by the featured speaker, Rosemarie Rosetti, Ph.D., a professional speaker, trainer, consultant and author with a powerful message about dealing with overwhelming challenges, viewing life from a fresh perspective and better coping with setbacks. The dinner costs $55 per person.
Now is the time to register for the event to honor representatives of Ohio’s outstanding caregivers. Visit www.ohanet.org/annualmeeting/Awards/ for the registration form and more information about the featured speaker and the other awards. (Tiffany Himmelreich, tiffanyh@ohanet.org)
May 15, 2003
U.S. Senate Considers Nurse Staffing Mandate
Federal legislation has been introduced that would mandate minimum nurse-to-patient staffing ratios and require hospitals to publicly report staffing information, including a daily posting of the number of nurses on each shift. The Registered Nurse Safe Staffing Act of 2003 (S. 991), introduced by Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-HI), would expose hospitals to fines of up to $10,000 per violation and publicly list those hospitals that have been fined.
While this bill may be well intentioned, imposing staffing ratios at this time of shortage could exacerbate bed shortages, closures and ER diversions. Ohio’s hospitals are committed to improving both their work environments and their pipelines for nurses. OHA is also working to address the workforce challenges in Ohio hospitals, including the current workforce shortage, through various initiatives and collaboration with hospitals statewide. For more information, visit www.ohanet.org/workforce/. (Jean Scholz, jeans@ohanet.org)
Hospitals Beware of Ad Scam
Hospitals in Ohio and across the nation should
be aware of an apparent advertising scam involving a company out of
Alberta, Canada, which sells ads for a coloring book, Healing Hands Busy
Hands. In the scam, the company tells local advertisers they can
purchase advertising space in the coloring books that will be
distributed to kids at a specific local hospital. However, the company
does not appear to gain permission from the hospital, nor does it
actually produce the coloring books.
Healing Hands Busy Book of Edmonton, Alberta, has an unsatisfactory rating from the Better Business Bureau (BBB) because of unanswered complaints regarding its refund practices, according to the BBB's Web site. Hospitals are asked to inform the U.S. Postal Inspection Service if they have been involved with this project, whether the hospital has received the number of books paid for by the donors, or any other relevant information at 312-983-7991.
Friday,
May
16, 2003
Federal Report Supports Need for Legislation
Physician-owned, limited-service specialty hospitals pose a significant
and growing threat to full-service community hospitals, according to a
report to members of Congress released Thursday.
The U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO) studied the growing trend of specialty hospitals and concluded:
they are a fast-growing segment of the health care delivery system
70-percent of specialty hospitals have physician ownership, and
patients treated in these specialty hospitals are less ill than those treated in general community hospitals.
The report is available online at www.gao.gov/new.items/d03683r.pdf.
“This report substantiates the concern of the Ohio Hospital Association Board of Trustees: Incentives for physicians who practice in their own specialty hospitals to cherry-pick the healthier and better-insured patients exist, and they are hard to resist,” said James R. Castle, president and CEO of OHA. OHA supports enactment of House Bill 71, sponsored by Rep. Jon Peterson, R-Delaware, in the Ohio General Assembly. The legislation would extend existing state law on physician self-referral to prohibit physicians from sending patients to their own specialty hospitals. (Mary Yost, maryy@ohanet.org)
CMS Releases Inpatient Payment Rule
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has released its
proposed rule on the 2004 Medicare inpatient hospital prospective
payment system (IHPPS) and it is scheduled to appear in the May 21 Federal
Register. Medicare’s 2004 IHPPS will affect discharges on or after
Oct. 1, 2003.
The proposed rule calls for a full market basket increase in inpatient hospital payments of approximately 3.5 percent. Other changes include a significant increase in the outlier threshold, changes to the IHPPS diagnosis related groups, and an increase in the number of DRGs subjected to the ‘transfer vs. discharge’ post-acute care payment policy in place since 1999.
The proposed rule is online at www.cms.gov and the final IHPPS rule will be released in August. An OHA bulletin on the proposed rule, including a detailed analysis, will be available to members online at www.ohanet.org/bulletins/. OHA has scheduled the annual review of Medicare and Medicaid policy and payment changes for Oct. 8 and additional information and registration materials will be released later this summer. (Charles Cataline, charlesc@ohanet.org)
SARS Info At Your Fingertips
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has updated its
guidance for health care workers exposed to SARS. CDC reports that
health care workers who develop a fever or respiratory systems within 10
days of being exposed to a SARS patient should not report to duty and
should report symptoms to the appropriate contact at their facility. If
symptoms begin while at work, the health care worker should immediately
apply a surgical mask and leave the patient care area. If the symptoms
improve within 72 hour after onset, the worker can return to work only
after consulting with infection control and local public health
authorities. The updated guidance is available at www.cdc.gov/ncidod/sars/exposureguidance.htm.
CDC and other organizations also provide Web sites with information regarding SARS. Below are several links to these resources:
Working Wonders
OHA would like to highlight extraordinary efforts and recent honors
bestowed upon Ohio caregivers.
Six Cincinnati-area nurses earned top awards from the University of Cincinnati College of Nursing’s 2003 Florence Nightingale Awards for Excellence in Nursing. They are: Renee Holleran, Ph.D., University of Cincinnati’s Air Care Program; Sally Kaiser, Children’s Hospital Medical Center; Kelly Calihan, Mercy Hospital in Fairfield; Helga Matthews, University Hospital, Susan Ware, Cincinnati VA Hospital; and Barbara Schaffer, Saint James Elementary School.
In celebration of Nurses Day, the Children’s Medical Center of Dayton honored several nurses for outstanding service. They are: Carol Wise, Rosemary Curp, Sandy Hibner, Bev Beyer, Jen York, Paula Ritter, Linda Duplechian, Karen Rittenhouse, Carol Gray and Heather Wells.
UHHS Geauga Regional Hospital Vice President of Nursing Services Terry Weaver received the Cleveland Plain Dealer “Best of the Best” award for nursing.
Going above and beyond, David Lang, chief financial officer at Magruder Hospital, Port Clinton, teamed up with a local martial arts expert to develop and teach violence prevention for women. The duo is looking for supporting agencies to help bring the program to several communities
throughout Ohio. (Jean Scholz, jeans@ohanet.org)