For the past four years, Breana Shaw was living on borrowed time. Suffering from end-stage liver disease, the 30-year-old North Park resident was too sick to work and have a normal life, but not sick enough to qualify for a liver transplant from a cadaver donor.Then last December, she got the best Christmas present of her life. Damian Delaney, 57, an altruistic Catholic schoolteacher in Los Angeles, wanted to give the gift of life to a stranger, and his blood type and the portion of his liver he would donate were the perfect match for Shaw. On Dec. 12, the transplant was performed at Keck Hospital of USC in Los Angeles, and last month Shaw and Delaney met for the first time in a joyous greeting of tears and extended hugs. Shaw said meeting her benefactor was an overwhelming experience. It’s hard for her to describe the depth of her gratitude but she said she now considers Delaney “family” and she’ll be connected to him forever. “I really didn’t think … [Read more...] about Stranger blesses San Diegan with rare anonymous liver transplant
Blessing health system
Scale: blessing or burden for statewide ACOs?
A handful of accountable care organizations are moving to cover an entire state, but not everyone thinks bigger is better when it comes to population health management. Caravan Health, a company that works with ACOs, last week announced the launch of its second statewide program, this time in Florida. In the model, any of the 200-some Florida Hospital Association facilities that want to participate can join together to provide coordinated care. The bid is meant to bolster care quality for Medicare beneficiaries while lowering costs and risk for participating facilities. But some experts say the larger scale, like rampant consolidation, could be more like an anchor weighing down an ACO instead of a beam propping it up. "At the end of the day, success or failure is based on success in managing the quality of care," Michael Abrams, partner at Numerof & Associates told Healthcare Dive. "While there may be some bigger numbers involved, I think the safety angle that they're selling … [Read more...] about Scale: blessing or burden for statewide ACOs?
Texas Health’s area hospitals experience growth spurt
The 84 new rooms will include interactive patient portals and digital care boards to keep patients better informed.Two stories will be completely furnished, while the third will be a shell for future use. Texas Health Resources is one of the largest faith-based, nonprofit health systems in the nation.The health system, along with UT Southwestern founded Southwestern Health Resources in 2016. Nearly 30 hospitals are owned, operated, run as a joint venture or affiliated with Texas Health.In forms filed with the IRS, the Fort Worth location listed 2016 revenue as $104.5 million, up 11 percent from the previous year. At that time it listed 743 employees.Earlier this month, Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Denton held a blessing ceremony to When fully operational in January, the floor will house a 16-bed neonatal intensive care unit featuring all private rooms so parents can spend the night with their newborns.The unit also will have central monitoring of vital signs, a private milk … [Read more...] about Texas Health’s area hospitals experience growth spurt
Beth Israel-Lahey Health merger cleared with conditions, including price cap
Dive Brief: The Massachusetts attorney general this week approved the merger between Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Lahey Health with various conditions. The combined system will be barred from raising prices beyond a certain threshold for seven years following the merger. The price increase must be below the state's own healthcare cost growth benchmark, which is currently set at 3.1%, the AG's office said. The combined entity must also participate in the state's Medicaid program indefinitely, increase access to mental health and substance use disorder treatment and funnel significant investments to its safety net hospitals and programs. Dive Insight: State and federal regulators gave their blessing to the marriage of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Lahey Health, which will become the state's second largest health system behind Partners HealthCare. The approval, albeit with conditions, ends intense scrutiny of the healthcare merger. The … [Read more...] about Beth Israel-Lahey Health merger cleared with conditions, including price cap
Ascension sees greater shift toward outpatient care in Q1
Brief Dive Brief: The nation's largest Catholic health system reported volume declines in key categories during its first quarter for FY19 on Monday. On a same-facility basis, volume declined for discharges, inpatient admissions, emergency room visits and inpatient surgeries. Ascension has said that's expected as it focuses more on outpatient care. On the other hand, outpatient volumes shot up by 10% compared to the prior-year period. Comparing patient volumes at the same facilities year-over-year, outpatient visits and outpatient surgeries both increased. Outpatient services now represent nearly 53% of the system's overall patient revenue, another illustration of the shift from inpatient to outpatient. The system's income from operations increased dramatically from $11.5 million during the prior-year period to $36.4 million for the most recent quarter ended Sept. 30. Dive Insight: Ascension, like many other health systems, is pivoting away from a landscape that is … [Read more...] about Ascension sees greater shift toward outpatient care in Q1