Value-based Care
Impact of total knee replacement practice: cost effectiveness analysis
31 Mar, 2017 | 19:01h | UTCSee also: Knee Replacement Should Be Reserved for More Severe Osteoarthritis, Study Suggests – Physician’s First Watch (free)
Total knee replacement for patients with osteoarthritis had minimal effects on quality of life in this study. Severely affected patients seem to benefit the most from the procedure.
New Lists from Choosing Wisely Canada
31 Mar, 2017 | 19:04h | UTCNew Lists from Choosing Wisely Canada – List of Items Physicians and Patients Should Question (all resources are free)
Critical Care / Pediatric neurosurgery / Sport and exercise medicine / Nursing / Long term care / Medical microbiology
Lists from other countries: Choosing Wisely UK / Choosing Wisely Australia / Choosing Wisely U.S.
The Choosing Wisely initiative aims to reduce unnecessary tests, treatments and procedures to reduce harm and promote value in healthcare.
Putting Patients First by Reducing Administrative Tasks in Health Care
29 Mar, 2017 | 17:13h | UTCSee also: ACP: Stop Saddling Docs With Administrative Tasks – MedPage Today (free registration required)
“It’s time for all those involved in the healthcare industry to reevaluate and reduce the administrative task burden placed on clinicians” (from MedPage commentary above).
Value-Based Purchasing: Time for Reboot or Time to Move On?
29 Mar, 2017 | 17:03h | UTCValue-Based Purchasing: Time for Reboot or Time to Move On? by Ashish K. Jha, MD – The JAMA Forum (free)
Pay-for-performance (P4P) as a policy tool does not seem to be improving health care quality or lowering costs.
Regression to the mean, and its importance in healthcare decisions
29 Mar, 2017 | 16:59h | UTCRegression to the mean, or why perfection rarely lasts – The Conversation (free) (RT @PaulGlasziou)
“Regression to the mean, and its importance in healthcare decisions” (RT @Tammy_Hoffmann see Tweet)
Teleretinal Diabetic Retinopathy Screening
28 Mar, 2017 | 16:55h | UTCImplementation and Evaluation of a Large-Scale Teleretinal Diabetic Retinopathy Screening Program in the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services – JAMA Internal Medicine (free) (RT @PreetiNMalani)
Editorial: Seeing the Effect of Health Care Delivery Innovation in the Safety Net (free)
A large-scale telemedicine diabetic retinopathy screening program increased overall rates of screening by 16.3%, and wait times for screening were reduced by 89.2%.
Healthcare Quality and Safety Online Course
28 Mar, 2017 | 16:50h | UTC
Enhanced recovery after surgery
28 Mar, 2017 | 16:43h | UTC
Telehealth Doctor Visits
27 Mar, 2017 | 00:57h | UTCTelehealth Doctor Visits May Be Handy, But Aren’t Cheaper Overall – NPR Health News (free)
Link to original article abstract ($ required for full-text): Direct-To-Consumer Telehealth May Increase Access to Care But Does Not Decrease Spending – Health Affairs
Costs have increased in this study because 88 percent of telehealth visits represented people who would not have gone to a doctor otherwise.
Surgeries are being performed with the patient awake
27 Mar, 2017 | 00:59h | UTCGoing Under the Knife, With Eyes and Ears Wide Open – New York Times (free access to 10 articles per month)
“More and more surgeries are being performed with the patient awake and looking on, for financial and medical reasons”.