You the patient are really not the customer of the physician. Since the insurer will determine whether and how much the physician will be paid for attending to your needs, you are largely a bystander in the relationship. The doctor’s customer has become the insurer. Our system of care is definitely not customer-focused. Doctors truly […]
The story of a woman who survived the Boston Marathon bombing is a sad but perfect illustration of the tension that often comes up in a patient-doctor relationship. The tendency in American healthcare is to treat, treat, treat. When a patient says, “No more,” or simply, “No,” this disagreement can break down communication. Last week […]
Munck Wilson Mandala Partner Greg Howison shared his perspective on some of the legal ramifications around AI, IP, connected devices and the data they generate, in response to emailed questions.
LAREDO — For 12 hours a day, the waiting room at Dr. Gustavo Villarreal’s family practice is often packed with patients, people who will pay a flat $50 fee for the convenience — or necessity — of a walk-in, quick-turn doctor’s visit. Villarreal’s practice, which does not accept any form of health insurance, has thrived […]
Ed Park Presentation at HIMSS from Brian Ahier A few months ago I spoke with the CEO who ran several nursing homes. We were having lunch in Cincinnati and I mentioned a recent health conference that featured an executive from Disney. “I am so tired of hearing about how healthcare should be more like Walt […]
I have heard rumblings about narrow networks since early 2013. Mostly the discussion was framed in terms of “one more thing everyone will hate about the Affordable Care Act.” Sarah Kliff of the Washington Post recently published a simple and comprehensive explanation of this “feature” of many exchange plans. Just the name itself, a narrow […]
As we enter the New Year, I like to reflect on where we've been and where we're heading in medicine. By far and away, this is the most tumultuous time I have ever experienced in health care. Doctors and nurses appear stressed and downtrodden, administrators are running scared, desperate to seem "value-added," and patients are scrambling to get seen in these last two days of 2013. It's strange
At the Abarca Forward conference earlier this year, George Van Antwerp, managing director at Deloitte, discussed how social determinants of health and a personalized member experience can improve medication adherence and health outcomes.
Two authors pose a new theory about lowering the cost of care: Make medical school more affordable. A new editorial up at the New England Journal of Medicine, suggests we may be in (or approaching) a medical education bubble market. As patients expect more affordable care and medical school tuition rises, that bubble could be […]
Whether it’s just expensive healthcare marketing or design to improve life, hospital construction has kicked it up a notch. In the NYTimes, Elizabeth Rosenthal discusses the pros and cons of hospitality-based design and care in hospitals, which is following more of a hotel model from the decor to the cuisine. But is this “creature comfort” […]
Though the medical device industry supports two million U.S. jobs and prices have increased below the rate of inflation, medical devices and diagnostics take up less than a dime of every dollar spent on healthcare in America, according to a new infographic released at Advamed 2013.
Paul Keckley said goodbye to the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions today. In his 243rd memo about healthcare reform, he critiqued the Affordable Care Act and the industry's reaction to it. He also predicted that tight economic times mean the second round of reform will be even more wrenching.
We will highlight Build My Health's revenue practice management tools, which could help physician practices add up to $250,000 to their practices.
If you don’t follow Hugo Campos (@HugoOC) on Twitter, you probably should. He’s changing the way at least one of the big medical device companies–Medtronic (MDT)–thinks about sharing data with patients. He’s also posting interesting stuff on patient empowerment, privacy and data democritization. Campos posts regularly, too. He seems to really curate his feed. Here are […]
When Medtronic announced its acquisition of Cardiocom earlier this week, it was a big (and loud) move in shaping the company’s “now we’re a healthcare service provider” strategy. But Cardiocom only makes $40 to $50 million in revenue, relatively small potatoes for a titan like Medtronic. What does this announcement mean, really, then? “The importance […]
SharedClarity has created an alliance of long-time healthcare frenemies (payers and providers) to test effectiveness of heart and orthopedic medical devices with the aim of lowering costs, reducing readmissions, allowing members to negotiate device pricing and getting patients effective implantable devices. For the study, United Healthcare will join forces with Baylor Healthcare System in Dallas, Dignity Health in […]
The push for regular interaction between patients and doctors, for mHealth and for data transparency has only begun. But the results from Scripps Translational Science Institute‘s research may add even more fuel to the flame for mHealth and patient engagement. The organization will study whether integrating wireless, medtech and social networks can bring down the […]
The NYTimes points toward areas of the United States where surgeries may be much cheaper for some patients, in part due to programs trying to drive down costs, in a comment-driven follow-up to the newspaper’s article on medical tourism and the medical device industry. The California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) program is the exemplar […]