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The ACA Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program applies penalties for high readmission rates. Among Medicare beneficiaries, rates declined after the ACA went into effect. There was no significant association between changes in observation stays and readmissions. Hospital readmissions within 30 days after discharge have drawn national policy attention because they are very costly, accounting for more than $17 billion in avoidable Medicare expenditures, 1 and are associated with poor outcomes. In response to these concerns, the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which was passed in March 2010, created the Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program. Since October 2012, the start of fiscal year (FY) 2013, the program has penalized hospitals with higher-than-expected 30-day readmission rates for selected clinical conditions. In FY 2013 and 2014, these conditions were acute myocardial infarction, heart failure, and pneumonia. Total hip or knee replacement and . . .

The Emergence of Modern Hospital Management and Organisation in the World 1880s-1930sanalyzes core themes from a business history perspective to reach a new understanding about the history of modern large scale healthcare institutions, from the United States to China, with particular attention to Spain.

\"Hospitals and Health Systems: What They Are and How They Work is a comprehensive look at the inner workings of the modern health care organization. Divided into four parts, it begins with a survey of the evolution of the hospital from its beginnings up to the modern free-standing facility. The author then examines the entry of government into health care, reaction to cost escalation, and reimbursement system as well as the development and growth in importance of the health system. Readers will also understand how the free-standing, individual hospital facility operates in delivering care\"-- Provided by publisher.

To evaluate the changes in productivity when scribes were used by emergency physicians in emergency departments in Australia and assess the effect of scribes on throughput. Randomised, multicentre clinical trial. Five emergency departments in Victoria used Australian trained scribes during their respective trial periods. Sites were broadly representative of Australian emergency departments: public (urban, tertiary, regional referral, paediatric) and private, not for profit. 88 physicians who were permanent, salaried employees working more than one shift a week and were either emergency consultants or senior registrars in their final year of training; 12 scribes trained at one site and rotated to each study site. Physicians worked their routine shifts and were randomly allocated a scribe for the duration of their shift. Each site required a minimum of 100 scribed and non-scribed shifts, from November 2015 to January 2018. Physicians' productivity (total patients, primary patients); patient throughput (door-to-doctor time, length of stay); physicians' productivity in emergency department regions. Self reported harms of scribes were analysed, and a cost-benefit analysis was done. Data were collected from 589 scribed shifts (5098 patients) and 3296 non-scribed shifts (23 838 patients). Scribes increased physicians' productivity from 1.13 (95% confidence interval 1.11 to 1.17) to 1.31 (1.25 to 1.38) patients per hour per doctor, representing a 15.9% gain. Primary consultations increased from 0.83 (0.81 to 0.85) to 1.04 (0.98 to 1.11) patients per hour per doctor, representing a 25.6% gain. No change was seen in door-to-doctor time. Median length of stay reduced from 192 (interquartile range 108-311) minutes to 173 (96-208) minutes, representing a 19 minute reduction (P<0.001). The greatest gains were achieved by placing scribes with senior doctors at triage, the least by using them in sub-acute/fast track regions. No significant harm involving scribes was reported. The cost-benefit analysis based on productivity and throughput gains showed a favourable financial position with use of scribes. Scribes improved emergency physicians' productivity, particularly during primary consultations, and decreased patients' length of stay. Further work should evaluate the role of the scribe in countries with health systems similar to Australia's. ACTRN12615000607572 (pilot site); ACTRN12616000618459.

With payers and policymakers' focus on improving the value (health outcomes achieved per health care dollar spent) of health care delivery, physicians are increasingly taking on senior leadership/management positions in health care organizations (Carsen & Xia, 2006). Little research has been done to understand the impact of physician leadership on the delivery of care. The aim of this study was to examine whether hospital systems led by physicians were associated with better U.S. News and World Report (USNWR) quality ratings, financial performance, and operating efficiency as compared with those led by nonphysician managers. Cross-sectional analysis of nationally representative data from Medicare Cost Reports and the USNWR on the 115 largest U.S. hospitals was performed. Bivariate analysis of physician-led and non-physician-led hospital networks included three categories: USNWR quality ratings, hospital volume, and financial performance. Multivariate analysis of hospital leadership, percent operating margin, inpatient days per hospital bed, and average quality rating was subsequently performed. Hospitals in physician-led hospital systems had higher quality ratings across all specialties and more inpatient days per hospital bed than did non-physician-led hospitals; however, there were no differences in the total revenue or profit margins between the groups. Physician leadership was independently associated with higher average quality ratings and inpatient days per bed. Large hospital systems led by physicians in 2015 received higher USNWR ratings and bed usage rates than did hospitals led by nonphysicians, with no differences in financial performance. This study suggests that physician leaders may possess skills, qualities, or management approaches that positively affect hospital quality and the value of care delivered. Hospital quality and efficiency ratings vary significantly and can impact consumer decisions. Hospital systems may benefit from the presence of physician leadership to improve the quality and efficiency of care delivered to patients. In addition, medical education should help prepare physicians to take on leadership roles in hospitals and health systems.

AimTo evaluate the effectiveness of a ‘Do not interrupt’ bundled intervention to reduce non-medication-related interruptions to nurses during medication administration.MethodsA parallel eight cluster randomised controlled study was conducted in a major teaching hospital in Adelaide, Australia. Four wards were randomised to the intervention which comprised wearing a vest when administering medications; strategies for diverting interruptions; clinician and patient education; and reminders. Control wards were blinded to the intervention. Structured direct observations of medication administration processes were conducted. The primary outcome was non-medication-related interruptions during individual medication dose administrations. The secondary outcomes were total interruption and multitasking rates. A survey of nurses' experiences was administered.ResultsOver 8 weeks and 364.7 hours, 227 nurses were observed administering 4781 medications. At baseline, nurses experienced 57 interruptions/100 administrations, 87.9% were unrelated to the medication task being observed. Intervention wards experienced a significant reduction in non-medication-related interruptions from 50/100 administrations (95% CI 45 to 55) to 34/100 (95% CI 30 to 38). Controlling for clustering, ward type and medication route showed a significant reduction of 15 non-medication-related interruptions/100 administrations compared with control wards. A total of 88 nurses (38.8%) completed the poststudy survey. Intervention ward nurses reported that vests were time consuming, cumbersome and hot. Only 48% indicated that they would support the intervention becoming hospital policy.DiscussionNurses experienced a high rate of interruptions. Few were related to the medication task, demonstrating considerable scope to reduce unnecessary interruptions. While the intervention was associated with a statistically significant decline in non-medication-related interruptions, the magnitude of this reduction and its likely impact on error rates should be considered, relative to the effectiveness of alternate interventions, associated costs, likely acceptability and long-term sustainability of such interventions.