Authored by Joe Dorko, Senior Consultant. I was listening to a song on the radio, “See the World” by Brett Dennen when I heard the line, “Now I’m planting trees I’ll never climb.” Then a thought occurred to me…this is how leadership feels. As a young pharmacist, I would take time at the end…
Patient Complications Are on the Rise Back in October 2014, CMS began implementing a 1% Medicare payment reduction for hospitals falling in the “worst-performing quartile with respect to hospital-acquired condition (HAC) quality measures,” as part of the HAC Reduction Program. This year, a resulting 764 hospitals will be subject to such a payment cut. Reductions…
The Women Who Shaped Modern Healthcare Over the course of history, women have made tremendous contributions to the field of healthcare, both as care providers and as pioneers in medical research. Despite facing significant barriers and discrimination throughout history, many women persevered and achieved breakthroughs in their fields, paving the way for future generations of…
My Aunt Judy Before I began my lifelong journey in a career dedicated to heart health, February was just another month with a holiday. Valentine’s Day held no other significance than the hope of receiving a declaration of true love from a significant other, along with some chocolate, flowers, and if I was especially lucky,…
American Heart Month Having been born on Valentine’s Day, February is a month that is near and dear to my heart! Every year, the swirl of excitement around this day for me and all those that I love takes on special meaning. Cards, presents, dinner, and special treats are showered on the birthday girl, and…
Author: Amy Newell Accountability of an Accredited Program As we continue to accredit PCI programs and Chest Pain Centers across the country, oftentimes we find programs are able to capitalize on their current success as either being an active PCI center, or a stand-alone chest pain center. Managing cardiac patients across the continuum of care…
What is ECMO? COVID-19 has presented healthcare with many challenges over the past two years, but an increasingly popular treatment has shown tremendous potential in saving the lives of a highly select population of patients. The treatment in question? Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO). In a general sense, ECMO is a technology that supports the work…
As a follow up to the October 18, 2021 blog post, “The FY 2022 Reimbursement Outlook,” CMS has since finalized the 3 rulings for the following payments systems: (1) Hospital Outpatient Payments (2) Ambulatory Surgery Center Payments, and (3) Physician Fee Schedule Payments. All three rulings will go into effect on January 1, 2022. Below…
Promoting Your Cardiovascular Accreditation With the continued rise of social media use across many and varied platforms, most of us are used to seeing near-constant posts and messages about the accomplishments of our peers, friends, and colleagues. This can naturally lead to self-reflection and -comparison. And sometimes, parallels emerge between our personal and professional lives,…
Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common heart arrhythmia, and according to the CDC, its prevalence has only been increasing, a trend that will continue. In fact, estimates reveal that 12.1 million people in the United States will have AF by 2030 (CDC, 2021). However, it is encouraging that steady progress and advances in novel…
