Editor's Note An October 2023 report from Fitch Ratings finds that nonprofit hospitals will continue to have weak operating margins into 2024 and need to control labor costs in order to return to stronger margins, Chief Healthcare Executive October 5 reports. Some highlights of the report include: Median operating margins…

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Editor's Note Healthcare employment in the US rose by 40,900 from August to September, according to the latest report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, released on October 6. That is compared to the average monthly gain of 53,000 over the prior 12 months, for a total of 17,055,100 seasonally…

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Editor's Note Due to staffing shortages, thousands of qualified applicants were turned away from nursing schools last year, despite the nationwide shortage of nurses, CNN Business October 5 reports. According to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, nearly 78,200 qualified applications were denied by nursing schools in 2022. Nearly 66,300…

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Editor's Note A new report from cybersecurity provider Critical Insight notes that data breaches are continuing to pose major problems for healthcare systems, an August 2023 Business Wire press release reports. Already more than 40 million patients' medical information was reportedly involved in data breaches in 2023. Following are key…

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A previous issue of OR Manager included the article, "Building a business case for new technology," which featured tips from leaders at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center on the importance of building a thorough business case for implementing new technology in the OR. With the next OR Business Management…

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Editor's Note This KFF survey from June 2023 found that some six in 10 adults with health insurance have experienced problems when trying to use their insurance, KFF Health News September 29 reports. The problems included denied claims, network adequacy issues, and preauthorization delays and denials.  According to the survey,…

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Editor's Note This review published by the Journal of the American College of Surgeons shows that surgical scorecards, or cards that summarize information regarding the cost of surgical items and procedures along with comparisons to similar operations, have been shown to significantly reduce costs without impacting clinical outcomes when presented…

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Editor's Note The September 2023 National Hospital Flash Report, published by Kaufman Hall on October 2, analyzed data from August 2023 and revealed that while margins are still below historic levels, hospital performance has continued to steadily improve. According to the report: "While hospital operating margins remain below historical levels,…

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Editor's Note Major warehouse corporation Costco has entered a partnership with virtual care company Sesame to expand its healthcare offerings to its members, Chief Healthcare Executive September 27 reports. This collaboration will reportedly allow Costco members to access Sesame's telehealth services at “affordable rates.” David Goldhill, Sesame's CEO and a…

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Editor's Note In a first of its kind surgical procedure, doctors have installed artificial intelligence (AI) implants in the brain of a 46-year-old man who was paralyzed from a fall on the ice, CNN September 27 reports. The AI implant formed a "digital bridge"–an idea pioneered by the French neuroscientist…

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