The Marcinko Method of Improving Quality while Reducing Medical Errors and Healthcare Costs

18 Responses

1. Clinic Doctors, on July 11, 2012 at 4:27 PM said:

   Do you really believe 83% of docs are considering quitting?

   Dr. Marcinko – We were going to ignore this, at our medical clinic, but all are talking about it.

   Eighty-three percent of American physicians have considered leaving their practices over President Barack Obama’s health care reform law, according to a survey released by the Doctor Patient Medical Association.

   http://theincidentaleconomist.com/wordpress/do-you-really-believe-83-of-docs-are-considering-quitting/

   Clinic Doctors

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2. Dr. Randall, on July 20, 2012 at 5:02 PM said:

   Why Can’t Medicine Seem to Fix Simple Mistakes?

   The death of 12-year old Rory Staunton from septic shock prompted NYU’s Langone Medical Center to revamp its emergency room procedures to address a startling lapse.

   http://www.propublica.org/article/why-cant-medicine-seem-to-fix-simple-mistakes

   History shows that the profession is unlikely to learn from this mistake.
   Book well done; David. Trust it helps.

   Dr. Randall

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3. Sam, on August 6, 2012 at 7:38 PM said:

   Rival Views to Control Health Care Costs

   Dr. Marcinko – Two articles in the New England Journal of Medicine show how far apart Democrats and Republicans stand on the question of what to do about rising healthcare costs.

   http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/768521

   Sam

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4. Dave, on August 8, 2012 at 5:38 PM said:

   A Focus on Imaging
   [The Right Scan at the Right Time]

   Geri Aston writes that since implementing a new system to better control utilization of imaging services, Partners HealthCare System has slowed annual growth for both CT and MRI from 12 percent to 1 percent and 7 percent, respectively, despite increasing patient volumes.

   The Boston-based health care system is part of a growing movement to ensure that patients are getting the right scan at the right time. To a large degree, the trend is being driven by payers who are trying to control costs and weed out what they see as unneeded scans. Concerns have also been raised about radiation dosing and patient safety.

   http://www.hhnmag.com/hhnmag/jsp/articledisplay.jsp?dcrpath=HHNMAG/Article/data/04APR2010/1004HHN_FEA_ClinicalManagement&domain=HHNMAG

   My definition of medical quality: reasonable diagnosis, right intervention, right time, right venue, right price, right patient and right provider.

   If pursued, cost reductions follow naturally.
   This is a classic B-school mantra.

   Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA CMP™
   http://www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.org

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5. Ann Miller RN MHA, on September 13, 2012 at 10:17 AM said:

   IOM study finds 30 percent waste in health spending

   The U.S. healthcare system has long been laden with growing inefficiencies, heightened costs and increasing complexities, all of which have stymied industry progress, according to a new Institute of Medicine report.

   http://www.physbiztech.com/news/iom-report-aims-treat-ailing-healthcare-system-new-industry-tactics?email=MARCINKOADVISORS@MSN.COM&GroupID=90115

   Ann Miller RN MHA

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6. Ann Miller RN MHA, on September 21, 2012 at 9:54 AM said:

   How You Can Help ProPublica Investigate Health Care Quality

   Be part of the patient safety conversation, get regular updates and share stories or views.

   http://www.propublica.org/article/how-you-can-help-propublica-investigate-health-care-quality

   Ann Miller RN MHA

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7. Ann Miller RN MHA, on January 13, 2013 at 1:39 PM said:

   Ten (or more) ways to improve health system efficiency

   The Commonwealth Fund offers ten ways to improve the health system, here:
   http://www.commonwealthfund.org/Publications/Fund-Reports/2013/Jan/Confronting-Costs.aspx

   And, The Institute of Medicine offers its set of ten, here:

   Click to access Best%20Care%20at%20Lower%20Cost_Recs.pdf

   Ann Miller RN MHA

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8. Ann Miller RN MHA, on February 25, 2013 at 3:42 PM said:

   7 massive problems with our health care system

   Health care is bankrupting the country, and there’s little we can do about it. Here’s what caused this crisis, according to the author Kim Peterson.

   http://money.msn.com/now/post.aspx?post=28a18004-2ed4-434d-b7cf-3728f3491ff0

   A $21,000 bill for heartburn?

   Ann Miller RN MHA

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9. Ann Miller RN MHA, on April 17, 2013 at 12:04 AM said:

   Fee Data Puts Brakes on Docs’ Test Orders: Study

   It has long been an article of faith among certain healthcare reformers that soaring national healthcare costs can be constrained by making patients more aware of the cost of their own episodes of care. Price awareness by physicians could have similar effects, according to a team of researchers from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, reporting in a six-page article in the online edition of JAMA Internal Medicine.

   Their work, “Impact of Providing Fee Data on Laboratory Test Ordering: A Controlled Clinical Trial,” shows that presenting lab test costs to providers at the time the tests are ordered resulted in “a modest decrease” in test orders and costs. “Adoption of this intervention may reduce the number of inappropriately ordered diagnostic tests.”

   Joseph Conn, Modern Healthcare [4/15/13]

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10. Zena, on April 30, 2013 at 10:37 AM said:

    Trading for healthcare services?

    A growing number of small businesses are turning to bartering to get healthcare services they otherwise couldn’t afford.

    http://www.healthcarefinancenews.com/news/trading-healthcare-services?topic=05,22

    It’s a strategy that also offers benefits for the healthcare businesses providing the services.

    Zena

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11. Ann Miller RN MHA, on September 5, 2013 at 5:38 PM said:

    Large U.S. Employers Health Care Benefit Costs in 2014

    The cost of providing employee health care benefits at the nation’s largest employers is projected to increase 7% in 2014 – the third consecutive year employers have budgeted this amount, according to a new survey by the National Business Group on Health.

    While large employers will not be eligible to participate in state health exchanges until 2017 at the earliest, employers expect that certain populations may find exchanges to be a viable option on an individual basis in 2014.

    Roughly four in ten (41%) employers believe COBRA plan participants might find public health exchanges to be the most cost effective option. Additionally, more than one-fourth (26%) felt that some pre-65 retirees might opt to join exchanges, while 20% believe that some part-time employees will do the same.

    Source: National Business Group on Health

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12. Sharon, on February 1, 2014 at 2:46 PM said:

    Docs Say We Are Scanning Ourselves to Death

    Every patient wants to know now if they have cancer. And, health care today encourages early detection. Pysicians are facing more and more pay-for-performance initiatives for chronic care management, too. Those incentives – or threats of penalties – encourage early diagnoses and perhaps too many radiology diagnostic scans?

    http://www.physiciansnews.com/2014/01/31/doctors-suggest-that-we-are-scanning-ourselves-to-death/?utm_source=Copy+of+Copy+of+Copy+of+1.28.14&utm_campaign=11713&utm_medium=email

    Costly as well as deadly; Dr. Marcinko.

    Sharon

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13. Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA CMP™, on April 8, 2014 at 12:47 PM said:

    10 overused tests waste healthcare dollars

    1. Nuclear stress tests, and other imaging tests, after heart procedures
    2. Yearly electrocardiogram or exercise stress test
    3. PSA to screen for prostate cancer
    4. PET scan to diagnose Alzheimer’s disease
    5. X-ray, CT scan or MRI for lower back pain
    6. Yearly Pap tests
    7. Bone density scan for women before age 65 and men before age 70
    8. Follow-up ultrasounds for small ovarian cysts
    9. Colonoscopy after age 75
    10. Yearly physical

    Source: AARP

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14. Ann MIller RN MHA, on May 6, 2014 at 6:14 PM said:

    Physician Views on Unnecessary Medical Tests and Procedures

    According to research released today by the ABIM Foundation, nearly three out of four U.S. physicians say the frequency with which doctors order unnecessary medical tests and procedures is a serious problem for America’s health care system-but just as many say that the average physician orders unnecessary medical tests and procedures at least once a week.

    Other ABIM Foundation findings include:

    • 66 percent of physicians feel they have a great deal of responsibility to make sure their patients avoid unnecessary tests and procedures
    • 53 percent of physicians say that even if they know a medical test is unnecessary, they order it if a patient insists
    • 58 percent of physicians say they are in the best position to address the problem, with the government as a distant second (15%)
    • 47 percent of physicians say their patients ask for an unnecessary test or procedure at least once a week
    • 70 percent of physicians say that after they speak with a patient about why a test or procedure is unnecessary, the patient often avoids it.

    Source: ABIM Foundation

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15. Darrell K. Pruitt DDS, on September 16, 2014 at 5:10 PM said:

    Healthcare Costs

    According to Jim Landers:

    “Health care overhead is costing us big bucks – WASHINGTON — Americans spend more than $9,000 apiece on health care every year. Ouch, you say. But how does it feel to know that more than $1,000 of that sum goes to administrative costs? Or that Americans spend more than $210 billion a year on the health insurance claims system? Needless back-office spending is one of the biggest sources of waste in health care, according to health insurers, providers and academics alike.”

    http://www.dallasnews.com/business/columnists/jim-landers/20140915-health-care-overhead-is-costing-us-big-bucks.ece

    Darrell K. Pruitt DDS

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16. Phillip, on May 14, 2016 at 6:19 PM said:

    A Podcast

    On medical errors by JHU:

    http://medcitynews.com/2016/05/hopkins-medical-errors-podcast/

    Phillip

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17. Ann Miller RN MHA, on July 25, 2017 at 2:30 PM said:

    1.3 Million Are Injured by Medication Errors Annually in the U.S.

    NPR recently published an article on medication errors outside healthcare facilities. Here are some key findings from the report:

    • Serious medication errors outside health facilities doubled from 2000 to 2012.
    • 1.3 million people are injured by medication errors annually in the U.S.
    • Cardiovascular drugs were associated with 1 in 5 serious medication errors.
    • 6-12-year-olds are most likely to take or be given another person’s medication.
    • One third of these medication errors resulted in hospital admissions.
    • There were 6,855 serious medication errors outside of health facilities in 2012.

    Source: NPR, July 12, 2017

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18. Nick Brecker, on March 15, 2019 at 10:33 PM said:

    Health Care Costs

    “It’s clear that the impacts of employee health and benefits extend beyond the medical care costs. Employees and employers are looking for solutions that connect medical care with pharmacy, dental, vision, disability and other benefits programs, so that employees can get the support they need to improve their overall wellbeing, satisfaction and productivity.”

    Nick Brecker
    [President, Anthem’s Specialty Business]
    via Ann Miller RN MHA

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