A few best practices for healthcare social media

The presence of the social media in the healthcare sector is perhaps the best indication of the extent to which they have pervaded every facet of our lives. Who would have imagined a few years ago that something as serious as healthcare would be influenced by something that is as seemingly frivolous as the social media? Call it the reach of technology or the power of marketing. Whichever way you look at it, it is a fact that the social media are now an integral part of healthcare.

Given the fact of the social media’s presence-and a growing one at that-in the healthcare sector, understanding the best practices for healthcare social media is not just optional; it is mandatory. Why? It is because while the social media have enormous power in influencing; it comes with a huge responsibility. The possibility of the social media causing mischief, either intended or unintended, can never be trivialized or underplayed.

Social media best practices for healthcare should help to mobilize the media for the better

It is a fact that the social media have been a gigantic source for a number of highly far-reaching actions such as mobilizing public opinion and causing the fall of governments. They can also largely influence public and buyer behavior. There are unimaginable things the social media can do. What is needed is the power to harness it for the right reasons. With healthcare being an area that has awesome reason for being violated and misused; there is a compelling case and reason for understanding and implementing the best practices for healthcare social media.

As of now, the regulations that relate to the best practices for healthcare social media are largely fluid and interpretative. This makes it a grey area. If there is a global groundswell in favor of regulation of the social media; there are equally vociferous voices against it, too. So, how does one go about formulating a set of social media best practices for healthcare? This becomes a rather open-ended and subjective point of discussion.

Shun insensitivity, spread good

The bottom line is that the best practices for healthcare social media are ideally decided at the individual level of the healthcare provider. While best practices for healthcare social media are left to them, the critical requirement is that the social media practices should avoid causing hurt, should not give out false medical information about the patient or the industry or the healthcare provider, and should not give out unnecessary information that impinges on the privacy rights of the patient.

While all these are important to bear in mind from a privacy or legal point of view, social media best practices for healthcare should ideally consist of a set of practices and approaches that go on to enhance the reputation of the healthcare provider and making the patient feel good. Towards this end, social media best practices for healthcare should be positive.

A few social media best practices for healthcare

Keeping the sensitivities of the sector as a whole in mind, one can think of a set of social media best practices for healthcare that could be on these lines:

Educate

Social media have a humungous opportunity to reach out to literally millions of people. Why not utilize it in a manner the benefits people? Well, it may not be the job of a healthcare provider to offer educational degrees and certificates, but surely, the social media can be used to spread a few good words about the healthcare industry, the healthcare provider, general tips on health, etc.

The healthcare provider will be doing the general population a lot of good by spreading information about certain disease outbreaks and the ways to take care to prevent them from spreading, for instance. The healthcare provider can also get its senior staff to write blogs that could open new perspectives among people. The social media offer an opportunity to become some kind of thought leader.

Inspire 

Inspirational stories and blogs are of value to anyone. In a healthcare related blog, they are invaluable. Many patients look for great inspirational stories of how people with ailments similar to theirs have triumphed against odds and conquered disease. This kind of story can make a very positive impact on many patients.

Uplift and motivate

Any patient needs a dose of motivation in her life. Writing and sharing uplifting and motivational stories is one of the social media best practices for healthcare. When patients read them, they feel a sense of high that they can do what someone else did.

Social media policy for healthcare

Why has social media policy for healthcare now become a rather indispensable part of the official routine of most healthcare settings? Simple: The sheer prevalence of this medium. The social media such as Facebook, WhatsApp, LinkedIn, YouTube or Instagram offer unlimited opportunities for spreading information about a business or individual to vast sections of the populace. For healthcare settings, it is a tool of enormous use and value because the healthcare unit can propagate information in unimaginable ways through the social media.

However, social media policy for healthcare is a matter of some concern because the information this sector deals with is extremely sensitive and confidential. We all know that the tool that governs Protected Health Information is the Electronic Health Record (EHR). All that hackers need is access to this information. Given the high demand that this data commands in the black market-estimated to be higher than that of even social security and insurance information-it is natural that social media policy for healthcare should be designed to ensure that in the process of giving out information, the healthcare unit should not disclose information that it is meant to safeguard.

Social media policy for healthcare should ensure that HIPAA provisions are not violated

This is important not only from the viewpoint of safeguarding patient information, but also because doing so invites penalties under HIPAA. When private information is disclosed to the wrong sources, it can lead to a serious breach of the provisions of HIPAA, which is concerned with safeguarding Protected Health Information (PHI).

Preventing such a scenario from occurring is the main purpose and reason for which social media policy for healthcare should be enacted. Organizations are aware of the high potential for information leak in this industry. This makes it imperative for them to frame policies that will help the organization achieve this. The point to be borne in mind about social media policy for healthcare is that all policies must be framed with clarity. This is the most important quality for policies, because when they are ambiguous and hazy, they can be interpreted in any way by an employee. This can be used as a very solid excuse to get away from prosecution because the person who impinges data can take shelter under the subjective element of a policy.

How should social media policy for healthcare be framed?

The social media policy for healthcare should be framed keeping in mind the nature of the social media. Which are the most important reasons for which people use the social media and what are their most frequent activities? If the healthcare setting understands this basic information, it will go a long way in helping it frame a proper and safe social media policy for healthcare. One of the most common uses of the social media by people is photos. Most social media users love to upload photos of anything and everything.

When in a hospital, it is common to see patients or their relatives or friends upholding photos of their near and dear ones recuperating at hospitals. They could upload photos for every step along the way, such as taking medications, entering the operation theater, getting nursed, and so on. While these can be lighthearted in nature, they can become dangerous and legally actionable when they end up leaking sensitive, protected information about the patient.

Messaging

Messaging is the soul of the social media. WhatsApp handles literally billions of messages every day from around the globe from its vast user community. Sending harmless messages about the patient’s general health is fine. But information about which medications have been prescribed, their dosage, whether the patient is complying with the treatment regimen or not-these are potentially tendentious bits of information that could land the users in jail if done wrongly.

Interacting

Policy on how to interact with hospital staff should constitute the third part of social media policy for healthcare. Many people have a tendency for befriending hospital staff. This may not be a bad thing in itself, but when it goes beyond mere offline greetings and other gestures of gratitude or friendship and gets carried on the social media, the relationship enters a grey area. This should not be misused for gaining negative motives. Social media policy for healthcare should cover these aspects and should show utmost care in these dealings.

Having said all these, it is most important to keep in mind the fact that social media, by their very nature, offers enormous scope for misuse. The social media policy for healthcare should be the real guide to help employees understand how to deal with sensitive information.

 

Defining and Implementing Your Own Sharps Safety Program

Sharps constitute one of most dangerous sources from which healthcare professionals can suffer physical injuries in the course of their daily work. Sharps, of which needle sticks are a part, are instruments that have the potential to cause serious problems in the healthcare setting. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that close to 400,000 sharps-related injuries take place in the healthcare environment in the US every year.

While the pinprick in itself can be hurtful; the fact is that sharps injuries can cause a much deeper impact: these can result in occupational transmission of hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), as well as at least 20 other pathogens.

Gain complete knowledge of all the aspects of sharps management

The need for managing sharps is thus a matter of vital importance. A full-length explanation and familiarization with all the aspects of sharps safety will be imparted at a very in-depth webinar on this subject that MentorHealth, a leading provider of professional trainings for all the areas of healthcare, is organizing.

At this veritable boot camp for sharps injuries, MentorHealth brings to you the seasoned executive with 40 years of experience in the life sciences & healthcare industries, Angela Bazigos.  Angela has held various positions in the course of her illustrious career, during which she has worked in areas as varied as Quality Assurance, Regulatory Compliance, Business Administration, Information Technology, Project Management, Clinical Lab Science, Turnarounds and Business Development.

Want to understand the ins and outs of sharps management in the healthcare setting? Please enroll for this webinar

Focus on preventing sharps injuries

This is going to be a detailed, three-hour session, at which Angela will offer total understanding of the risks of sharps injuries that are common in this industry, and how to prevent and manage sharps injuries. Professionals who are vulnerable to sharps injuries, such as the perioperative educator, manager, and staff RN, will be given complete knowledge of how they can educate their healthcare team members on the importance of sharps safety in the healthcare setting. Angela will offer learning on the techniques that can be used in the healthcare setting to prevent sharps injuries, and to also customise them to the unique needs of different individual work settings.

From this learning, participants will be able to identify the risks of bloodborne pathogen exposure and get clarity on the legal issues associated with this. They will also learn about the current status of multidisciplinary sharps safety initiatives, the components of a sharps safety program, and the barriers to change.

Angela will cover the following areas at this webinar:

• Assessment your facility’s sharps injury prevention program
• Facts, Legal Concerns & Care
• Development and implementation of your planning and prevention activities
• Implementation of your prevention interventions

• • Safer Sharps Devices
  • Safe Work Practices
  • Needle sticks & Disposal of Needles

• Implementation of your post exposure prophylaxis (PEP) management interventions
• Reporting sharps injuries
• Healthcare Personnel Safety Reporting Plan
• Evaluation of the impact of your prevention interventions.

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The A – Z Of The Patient Technology Revolution

Today’s patients are approaching healthcare with consumer expectations, demanding modern, frictionless experiences from intake to payment and follow-up. Smartphones have only been the catalyst for this change, and we’re seeing this expectation shift in all demographic segments, not just Millennials, as many expect.

This is the second entry in a series examining how medical groups are appealing to patients as consumers. The first post introduced the concept of patient experience management (PXM), an emerging category that represents the sum of all experiences a patient has within their healthcare journey, with intention to create more convenience for patients, staff, and providers. This post continues that exploration with a look at the four stages of PXM strategies.

REINVENTING HEALTHCARE IN A DIGITALLY-FIRST WORLD

Like any business strategy, patient experience management will evolve over time as a flexible framework that is capable of taking advantage of new technology and new patient desires to give patients what they want.

It will not be something that is implemented overnight or in a week. Rather, PXM will be a strategic investment requiring careful watering and feeding. But, over time the dividends will add up to greater convenience for both the patient and the practice by offering greater efficiency, easier access, personalization, and long-term deeper automation of workflows and data.

By embracing the concept of patient experience management rather than simply point solutions for patient engagement, healthcare organizations will eventually find themselves in a position to reinvent what a physical healthcare location is and should be in the future. This is not a far-flung pipedream either, it will be a crucial necessity in the era of population and value-based contracts when treating social determinants will matter as much for physicians as treating illness.

THE 4 STAGES OF PXM STRATEGIES

Since PXM is an emerging category, practices need to figure out what works for them individually – both from a patient demand perspective and a resource capability. But, they will need to establish a roadmap for adding patient experience tools intelligently over time. We believe PXM strategies can be implemented across 4 levels of sophistication, based on how they deliver convenience to both patients and medical practices.

Read More : https://www.carecloud.com/continuum/the-patient-technology-revolution-is-here/?wordpress_seo

Thorough understanding of the CERT program is necessary to fix error rates

The Comprehensive Error Rate Testing (CERT) is a program used by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) for calculating the rate or extent of improper payments of Medicare Fee-for-Service (FFS). The method used by the CMS under CERT is to pick up a stratified random sample of some 40,000 claims that are statistically valid and calculate and audit it to determine if the payments were made in accordance with the rules relevant to items such as coding, Medicare coverage, and billing rules.

These claims are selected from the submissions made to Part A or Part B Medicare Administrative Contractors (MACs) and Durable Medical Equipment MACs (DMACs) during each reporting period. This sample is deemed as being adequately representative of the universe and is considered a good enough indicator of the method by which improper payments can be calculated for the whole system.

For the 2016 fiscal year, the CMS arrived at Medicare FFS program improper payment rate of 11.00 percent. This means that as much as $41.08 billion was made in improper payments. This represented a slight dip over the previous fiscal year, in which the improper payment rate was 12.09 percent, meaning that a high volume of $43.33 billion was made in improper payments.

Knowing CERT is important

Having knowledge of the CERT is necessary for players in the healthcare industry, as anyone of them can be picked up from the statistically valid random sample that the CMS chooses from to audit for checking improper payments. How do these entities make sure they are properly equipped to deal with the CERT program?

A webinar from MentorHealth, a leading provider of professional trainings for the healthcare industry, will seek to answer this. At this session, Gail Madison Brown, a Registered Nurse and an attorney who has focused on health care compliance and revenue cycle management operations for the last 15 years, will be the speaker. To gain full knowledge of how to comply with CERT, please register for this webinar by logging on to

http://www.mentorhealth.com/control/w_product/~product_id=800965LIVE/?Wordpress-SEO

Full exploration of CERT and its functioning

To understand the nitty-gritty of the way the CERT is designed and works. This comprehensive learning about the CERT program will equip participants with the knowledge needed for ensuring compliance with billing and healthcare operations, so that their organization does not get hauled up by the CMS for improper payments. The way in which this program affects the organization and its reimbursement will be taken up for discussion. She will arm the participants with prevention strategies with which they can improve compliance.

Gail will take up these topics at this webinar:

1. Summary of the CERT program and how it affects healthcare providers
2. Improper payment measurement history
3. CERT process and how to respond
4. Prevention Strategies

Those in compliance, audit, billing and coding, and other professionals engaged in operational strategies will find this course highly useful. Gail will cover the following areas at this session:

• CERT program -what it does and who if affects
• History and trends of improper payments
• How the CERT process works and how you need to respond, including what documentation to provide
• Understand types of improper payment categories and implement strategies to prevent further CERT requests and demands -No documentation, insufficient documentation, medical necessity, incorrect coding and other issues.

Getting MACRA and other CMS programs right is very important

The CMS has various programs, such as Quality Payment Program, MACRA, MIPS and APM incentive implementation. Healthcare professionals need to give close attention to the proper implementation of these programs. They have to be very thorough in paying full attention to the structure and program-specific details.

Effective from January 1, 2017, CMS has started using one of these two pathways for rewarding clinicians for their delivery of high-quality patient care:

1. Payment of incentives given for participating in Advanced Alternative Payment Models, or what are called Advanced APMs;
2. Making either a positive or a negative adjustment pursuant to the clinician’s performance under the new Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS).

This is the time of the year during which the CMS is expecting clinicians to accelerate the speed of their participation for the 2017 performance year. There is no better time for these entities to make preparations, in view of the fact that the payment adjustments for the first performance year for these programs, which has begun on January 1, 2017, will follow in 2019 (i.e., the 2019 bonus/penalty adjustments will be based on the 2017 performance metrics).

Clinicians and healthcare professionals will have the option of using either of three flexible options to submit data under MIPS. They can also use a fourth option to join an Advanced APMs if they have to ensure that they will not trigger a negative payment adjustment in 2019. All this means that clinicians and health care leaders need to be on their toes in developing strategies which will help them position their organizations for financial success under the new Quality Payment Program.

Getting trained to get an understanding of the program is necessary

Given the situation that clinicians and healthcare professionals are in in view of this kind of huge preparation they need to be making, it is important for them to get trained from a professional to overcome the challenges associated with the implementation part of these CMS provisions.

It is to help professionals in the healthcare industry who are required to deal with the CMS provisions, such as in-house counsel, healthcare compliance officers, healthcare human resources and healthcare CFO’s that MentorHealth, a highly regarded provider of professional trainings in the areas of healthcare, will be organizing a webinar.

This webinar will seek to put to rest all the doubts and misunderstandings in the minds of healthcare professionals as regards the implementation of these programs.

The speaker at this webinar is Joseph Wolfe, who is an attorney with Hall, Render, Killian, Heath & Lyman, P.C., the largest healthcare focused law firm in the country. To gain proper and thorough understanding of the whole aspects of the Quality Payment Program and what it means to implement them; please enroll for this webinar by visiting

http://www.mentorhealth.com/control/w_product/~product_id=800955/?Wordpress-SEO

Joseph will focus on an overview of the Quality Payment Program, including its MIPS and Advanced APM pathways. He will provide clarity with his straightforward and uncluttered explanation of key provisions and options for clinicians and healthcare professionals who need to keep the CMS requirements for 2017 transition year and beyond in mind.  He will explain the Quality Payment Program and its pathways.

In all, this webinar will be a thorough heads-up on how to get the provisions of the CMS programs such as Quality Payment Program, MACRA, MIPS and APM incentive implementation.

A complete discussion on the 2017 requirements and more

In offering a full and clear explanation of the CMS’ requirements for 2017 and beyond, Joseph will cover the following areas:

• Provide a general overview of MACRA and the CMS Quality Payment Program
• Explain the consolidation of historic incentive programs into MIPS and provide an overview of the underlying MIPS scoring methodologies
• Discuss qualifying Advanced APMs and the process for earning program incentives for APM participation
• Describe strategies for engaging key stakeholders, and for picking your pace in the transition year
• Discuss potential strategies for incentivizing physicians in connection with the rollout of the new Quality Payment Program.

Ways of developing and maintain compliant IRB policies and procedures

It is imperative for any organization that is carrying out clinical research to have in place thoroughly and properly written and complete policies and procedures. These are the cornerstone for any well-functioning Institutional Review Board (IRB) and Human Research Protection Program (HRPP).

This is a requirement set out by the Office for Human Research Protections (OHRP), which is tasked with protecting the rights, welfare, and wellbeing of human subjects that are involved in research conducted or supported by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). OHRP is part of the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health in the Office of the Secretary of HHS.

SOPs should be complete, compliant and up-to-date

Any IRB or HRPP has to have Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) that are well-defined, clear and in compliance with regulatory requirements. These HRPP policies and procedures should be complete, approved, and up-to-date, and should cover all regulatory requirements.

Most often, organizations carrying out clinical studies falter at meeting these requirements. This happens due to insufficient knowledge of carrying out these procedures in accordance with regulatory requirements.

Learn the ways of getting IRB and HRPP requirements right

A webinar from MentorHealth, a leading provider of professional trainings for the healthcare industry, will offer learning on how to get the IRB and HRPP requirements right.

The speaker at this webinar, Peter Vasilenko, who is the President of his HRPP/IRB consulting company, Apex Ethical Services, LLC, will explain the proper ways by which to write SOPs that meet regulatory requirements, are clear and concise. In order to gain this understanding, all that you need to do is enroll for this webinar, which you can do by visiting

http://www.mentorhealth.com/control/w_product/~product_id=800972LIVE/?Wordpress-SEO

At this webinar, the speaker will explain regulatory requirements and the required guidance on written materials. He will also show how HRPP accreditation Standards can help with writing complete SOPs. He will also show how to include best practices. Peter will describe what SOP’s organizations should have in place based on their type of research, and the format and content of SOP’s.

Also covered is why SOPs should be periodically reviewed and revised, as well as how to use SOPs for IRB education. This session is of high value to professionals who develop or are developing their SOP’s, or are interested in reviewing and improving their existing SOPs, such as IRB personnel who are developing their IRB and HRPP policies and procedures, IRB personnel who want to review and improve their IRB and HRPP SOP’s to ensure regulatory compliance and comprehensive content, Institutional Officials, IRB Managers, IRB Administrators, IRB Coordinators and RB Chairs.

Peter will cover the following areas at this webinar:

• Regulatory requirements and guidance
• How accreditation Standards can help with your SOP’s
• What SOP’s should you have
• Format and content of SOP’s
• Periodic review and revision of SOP’s
• Using SOP’s for education.

Responding to the special needs of college students with autism

College students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), or just autism, have their own peculiar challenges. When they enter college, they face their own issues, because they need to be understood for the uniqueness they bring. This calls for a very wide understanding of college students with autism on the part of other students and other people in the college.

As the number of students attending university is increasing, those with autism are also enrolling in large numbers for colleges across the US. Around 50,000 youths with autism enter the age of 18 every year, out of whom just over a third go on to attend university. This means that Americans universities are dealing the college students with autism in the thousands every year.

Sensitization is very important

Given the unique nature of the condition, universities need to sensitize their students and other administrative and other persons with the nature of autism and the emotional and psychological needs and wants of college students with autism. Other students who come across college students with autism and with whom they have to interact on a consistent basis need to understand the special needs of this segment of students.

Research has shown that one of the areas in which college students with autism struggle is in “fitting in”. Mingling with students and talking and comprehending at their wavelength is quite a challenge for college students with autism. This leads to further levels of difficulty in finding jobs and building a successful career.

A lot of commitment, education and training, as well as an in-depth and operational understanding of the special needs of college students with autism is needed if they have to be imparted the kind of quality education that helps them integrate into the mainstream and find career opportunities.

An important educative session on accepting and interacting with college students with autism

A very major and valuable educative webinar from MentorHealth, a leading provider of professional trainings for the healthcare industry, will throw light on this highly important topic of college students with autism. At this session, Aaron Hughey, who is a Professor in the Department of Counseling and Student Affairs at Western Kentucky University, will be the speaker.

To gain the critical learning needed for understanding the special needs of college students with autism, please register for this webinar by visiting

http://www.mentorhealth.com/control/w_product/~product_id=800961LIVE?/Wordpress-SEO

Evidence-based best practices

At this highly important session on college students with autism, the speaker will describe evidence-based best practices for ensuring that students with ASD transition to college successfully and derive the best out of their educational experience. He will explain what needs to be done by centers of higher learning at every possible outlet in which students interact with college students with autism, be it the classroom or the residence hall, or the dining facilities or the athletic venues. He will offer learning about how college students with autism are accepted and can fit in into the overall campus community.

At this highly valuable session on college students with autism, the speaker will cover the following areas:

• Characteristics of College Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
• Ethical and Legal Obligations
• Teaching Strategies
• Coping Strategies
• Interaction Strategies
• Social Integration
• Potential Student Discipline Issue and Solutions
• Reasonable Accommodations
• Promoting Self-Management
• Campus Resources (including Counseling Services)
• Keeping Everyone on the Same Page.

The costs of medical malpractice are exorbitant

The costs of medical malpractice are exorbitant, to put it mildly. First, what is a medical malpractice? A straightforward definition of medical malpractice is that it is an act of wrongdoing, a sort of negligence by a medical practitioner in diagnosing or administering treatment that leads to harm in a number of ways to the patient. This negligence is usually the result of choosing a substandard drug or mode of therapy that leads to this situation for the patient.

The physician works in close contact with the patient, which brings them into a kind of sacred and intimate relationship. This goes beyond just the administration of the drug or conducting tests. Patients, even when they are highly educated and knowledgeable about disease, come to physicians seeking some kind of solace and reassurance. Ordinarily, in this kind of scenario, there should be no place for a medical malpractice.

Medical malpractice can still happen

Yet, although physicians and patients work on a kind of unwritten, implied trust; there are occasions when a medical malpractice can happen. A medical malpractice usually happens when this trust is broken. A medical malpractice can happen in a number of ways, misdiagnosing or administering the wrong drug being just some of these instances.

A medical malpractice can be said to have taken place when any of these scenarios happen:

• An untoward result of treatment or surgery
• An outstanding invoice being mailed to a patient who is not satisfied with the treatment methods or outcomes
• A physician’s wife or assistant working as the office manager filling up a medical leave authorization form and charging money for it
• Just a perceived lack of concern on the part of the doctor or personnel.

Since any of these can count as medical negligence, it is all the easier for patients to seek legal remedy when they feel they have been wronged in one way or another. America being the highly litigious country that it is; it is always good to devise the means to avoid being taken to court for medical negligence.

Learn the in-depth aspects of medical negligence

In what ways can medical practitioners avoid showing medical negligence and being taken to court? The diligence and care that they should take to avoid being in such a situation will be the basis of the learning a webinar that is being organized by MentorHealth, a leading provider of professional trainings for the healthcare industry, is organizing.

http://www.mentorhealth.com/control/w_product/~product_id=800934LIVE/?Wordpress-SEO

The critical need for learning about medical negligence

Why is this learning important? It is because it is essential for medical practitioners to understand the elements and nuances of medical negligence, given that the field of medical negligence being a colossal one that involves huge amounts of money in damages. A book by the late Steve Jacob says the following startling facts and disclosures about medical negligence:

• Using a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report as the basis, PwC estimated that malpractice insurance and defensive medicine accounted for a tenth of the total healthcare costs. This is corroborated by a 2010 Health Affairs article, which puts these costs at about one-fortieth of all of healthcare spending;
• The depth and extent of fear of being taken to court for medical negligence is reflected in a 2010 survey, at which American orthopedic surgeons conceded that almost a third of the tests and referrals they order were medically unnecessary and was being done purely to reduce physician vulnerability to lawsuits;
• An analysis made by the AMA in 2011 found that the increase in the average amount to defend a lawsuit went up by around 60 percent in less than decade from 2010 to $47,158, from $28,981 in 2001. This was accompanied by a steep rise in the average cost to pay a medical liability claim-whether it was a settlement, jury award or some other disposition. This cost went up to $331,947 from $297,682 in 2001;
• A good portion of doctors’ professional careers are spent in fighting lawsuits, no matter what the final outcome is. The average span of a medical negligence litigation is over two years. If doctors spend around a year and eight months in defending cases that were eventually dismissed; medical negligence claims going to trial took three and a quarter years to settle. Another painful piece of statistics concerning medical negligence is that physicians who finally won the case spent as much as three years and eight months in litigation;
• A New England Journal of Medicine report estimated that by age 65 around three fourths of all low-risk specialist physicians have been subjected to at least one lawsuit for medical negligence, while it is an unbelievable 99% for high-risk specialties practitioners.
• Finally, Brian Atchinson, president of the Physician Insurers Association of America [PIAA], nearly three fourths of legal claims for medical negligence do not result in payments to patients, while physician defendants prevail four out of five times in claims resolved by verdict.

Being organized in the backdrop of these situations; this webinar on medical negligence by MentorHealth will cover the following areas:

• Understanding What’s at Stake in Litigation
• What every Doctor must Know
• Steps to Take after Summon and Service Receipt
• Trail Players Burden of Proof
• Types of Trials Discovery Process
• Depositions
• Motions In-Li mine
• Jury Selection
• Opening Statements
• Presentation of Evidence
• Summation and Final Instructions
• Jury Deliberations
• The Verdict and Relief.

Top Five Patient Safety Concerns for 2015

Obviously, one of the highest priorities and concerns for patients relate to their safety. This of course, is a very broad and general term, covering as it does every aspect of the patient’s stay in a healthcare setting and outside. Pointing out to the safety concerns of patients for 2015 is a wild game, because there is no single issue about which patients across the country are concerned. Nevertheless, a meticulous study done by the ECRI Institute, PA shows some common concerns.

A look at some of the areas in which there have been patient issues gives some idea about the top five patient safety concerns for 2015:

EHR: This certainly is the biggest among the top five patient safety concerns for 2015. Patient safety is vouchsafed in the EHR; it is when this document becomes assailable and vulnerable that patients get concerned, and quite understandably. Although tremendous improvements have been made into the science of the EHR; there is considerable reason to believe that there is enough porosity in these documents, as the breaches of millions of health records of 2014 and those of the previous years show.

Concerns about nonworking condition of alarm hazards: The whole system of healthcare in the US is wired and interconnected into a complex web. Most of these are automated for enabling greater patient convenience and access. However, a snag somewhere in the chain could trigger a host of failures and leave patients unattended, simply because an alarm may not go off as intended.

Administration of the wrong drug or dosage: Although utmost care is taken by healthcare professionals to ensure that patients get the right drug and in the right dosage; there is always scope for a human error. A wrong dose or inappropriate drug could cause serious damage to the patient’s health could easily cause concern and figures among the top five patient safety concerns for 2015. Some issues relate to the proper administration while converting dosage forms from imperial weights and measures to metric, and vice versa.

Improper hygiene practices: In the US, there are strictly enforceable protocols for a number of practices and procedures. Yet, like in the case of the previous example, there could a chance that sensitive or infection-causing instruments or devices such as surgical instruments or endoscopes could be culprits, making this one among the top five patient safety concerns for 2015.

 Patient violence: Although this sounds incongruous to a society like the US; patient violence figures among the list of top five patient safety concerns for 2015 in the ECRI study.

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