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Even mild concussions can cause lingering effects
The Associated Press via The Washington Post
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Children with even relatively mild concussions can have persistent attention and memory problems a year after their injuries, according to a study. In most children with these injuries, symptoms resolve within a few months but the study results suggest problems may linger for up to about 20 percent, said one study author.
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Treatment could prevent severe disabilities in trauma patients
CBS3 (CBS Philadelphia)
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 Traumatic brain injuries are often fatal or leave people with severe disabilities. Now a breakthrough treatment is being tested in Philadelphia that could change everything. One doctor at Hahnemann University Hospital is testing the pregnancy hormone progesterone on brain-injured patients.
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Why emergency physicians should care about in-patient metrics
Emergency Physicians Monthly
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Like it or not, the list of metrics by which your emergency department will be weighed and measured is growing, and even includes benchmarks that are more-or-less out of your control. The 30-day readmission metric is one such number, and it's going to be one of the key administrative issues for your C-wing this year.
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Study: Electronic records don't deter test orders
Health Affairs
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Policy-based incentives for healthcare providers to adopt health information technology are predicated on the assumption that, among other things, electronic access to patient test results and medical records will reduce diagnostic testing and save money. In one study, the availability of an electronic health record had no apparent impact on ordering; the electronic access to test results appears to have been the key.
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Related: Health IT chief disputes EHR testing, cost study (Kaiser Health News)
Trends in physician office visits shift as money worries affect behavior
American Medical News
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The economic downturn has kept many cash-strapped patients from seeing their physicians or caused many to delay treatment, research has shown. Studies and reports from doctors provide insight into how patient behavior has been affected by the 2007-09 recession and its slow recovery.
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Boston's plan aims to cut down ER visits
The Boston Globe
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Public health officials are pushing to alleviate crowds at Boston's emergency rooms by redirecting patients without life-threatening ailments to one of the city's 25 community health centers, where care can be tailored to individuals and is significantly less expensive. The initiative has established guidelines to facilitate communication between hospitals and centers to encourage patients to follow up at neighborhood facilities.
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Study: Whole-body CT scans can miss traumatic injuries
HealthDay News via Health.com
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Whole-body CT scans can confirm immediately whether severe trauma patients have certain injuries, but these tests could miss other problems if performed too early, a new study indicates. German researchers concluded that most emergency-room CT scans are done too soon, and could miss significant internal injuries. For the best results, emergency-room doctors should wait at least 30 minutes before ordering CT scans.
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Infectious diarrhea on rise in US healthcare settings
Infection Control Today
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With rates and deaths associated with Clostridium difficile, a pathogen that can cause diarrhea, at a historically high level, the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America recommends increasing prevention efforts aimed at controlling the spread of C. difficile — including good hand hygiene and antimicrobial stewardship. Unnecessary antibiotic use can create an environment for C. difficile to grow and create serious health issues.
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Study: Decreased stay after provider addition in ED triage
Emergency Medicine Journal (abstract)
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A St. Louis-based study shows physician and mid-level provider coverage at triage significantly reduced emergency department length of stay. Discrete event simulation accurately predicted the magnitude of the effect. These results suggest further work in the generalizability of triage providers and in the utility of DES for predicting quantitative effects of process changes.
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When hospital visitors get sick
The New York Times
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In the hospital, people who aren't employees fit into one of two categories: patient or visitor. But when visiting family members or friends become ill on a hospital floor, it's not easy to care for them. We don't know anything about them or their health history, writes nurse Theresa Brown. We can't offer standard inpatient care because they aren't registered in the system. They are here, they are sick, but they are not yet patients.
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