Highlights of the important and the interesting from the world of healthcare:
Some nurses struggle to find jobs despite nursing shortage: While the problem may not be as severe nationally, new nursing graduates in California are having difficulty finding jobs–with 40 percent not finding work as quickly as they thought. With all the talk of a national nursing shortage those struggles seem surprising, but a rotten economy has encouraged more seasoned nurses to stay on past retirement or re-enter the profession.
Who’s Donald Berwick? With President Obama expected today to use a recess appointment to get Donald Berwick past Republican objections and in as chief of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, now’s a good time to check out a “resource guide” on Berwick’s background.
BioLabs Pegasus Park Cultivates Life Science Ecosystem
Gabby Everett, the site director for BioLabs Pegasus Park, offered a tour of the space and shared some examples of why early-stage life science companies should choose North Texas.
Dirty Medicine: Washington Monthly takes a riveting look at group purchasing organizations–collectives formed by hospitals to save money on supplies–and comes to troubling conclusions. “It’s a system that has stifled innovation and kept lifesaving medical devices off the market. And while it’s supposed to curb prices, it may actually be driving up the cost of medical supplies.”
Handheld sales continue to grow … and there’s no reason to think they’ll stop. By the end of this year, the total market for handheld devices in healthcare will reach $8.8 billion, according to a new report. Think patient-monitoring devices, PDAs, smartphones, tablet PCs and handheld scanners.
What’s the key to high M&A valuations? File for an IPO first. Companies acquired after filing for an IPO command a premium price–as much as 26 percent higher–over those that solely seek a single buyer, a new study says.
Maybe U.S. drug prices aren’t so bad: A report that purports to use a more accurate, apples-to-apples measure of drug prices finds that U.S. prices are at most about 25 percent higher than Europe, and actually cheaper than Mexico.
A Personalized Approach to Medication Nonadherence
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.
Garbage in, garbage out: Disposing of medical waste is becoming an increasing problem for hospitals and other healthcare institutions as a shift toward sterile, disposable tools and supplies has created ever-more garbage. Only recently has the industry begun grappling with the amount of waste it generates, and one reason is that financially stressed hospitals are seeking ways to cut costs.
Photo from flickr user bgottsab
