| I'd urge everyone interested in health care reform to read the book "Nudge" by Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein. The book outlines specific ways companies can improve health care outcomes for patients, and how small changes to the system can result in much better results. Sunstein is currently advising the Obama Administration on ways that the government can "nudge" people to make better choices in medicine. Here's a link to the book: http://www.nudges.org/ I just finished it this afternoon (after hearing a keynot... more >>> |
| We have studied the issue of plastic versus reusable cloth bags and use the plastic bags primarily for safety reasons followed by cost considerations. Linen bags must be liquid proof and able to contain blood and body fluids. Cloth bags that are sturdy enough to meet this requirement are very hard to wash and ensure all traces of blood and fluids have been removed. The cost of the plastic bags is $.12 and we use 1.5 million per year. When you consider the cost of purchasing, replacing and washing cloth bags the cost per use is $.34 and would... more >>> |
| In a brutally honest perspective, hospitals are hotels, are they not? Without sufficient volume (% capacity), they sink. Therefore, I can understand a marketing campaign focusing on how to make medicine better; great, innovation is a key staple - part of being American. However, research shows that upwards of 60% of health care costs fall in the area of "potentially avoidable complications." Much of this waste falls within the hospital setting; for reference, visit www.prometheus.org Shouldn't more dollars, efforts and focus b... more >>> |
| I am a Patient Care Tech at Missouri Baptist Medical Center. Let me tell you that being there is the best thing that has ever happened to me. I have been working there for nine years, and have had only 6 1/2 bad days there. I bring a little joy everyday to my patients, to my co-workers to Missouri Baptist, oh wait, we call it MOBAP. It is so exciting working there, everyday, you get to help someone, or give a smile to a coworker or a doctor. I am proud to work for BJC, and can truly say that there are days when things get a little tough,... more >>> |
| I was 14 when I had a posterior-lateral disc bulge on my left L4. My parents took me to the family practitioner who was fine with sending me to a surgeon right off the bat. Thankfully, my parents took me to a chiropractor to have it conservatively managed. The first one wasn't good so my parents took me to another one. After a good history and diagnostic imaging was taken, he initiated a 3 week treatment of care plan to see if he could reduce my symptoms (pain shooting below my knee, etc). And it worked! It took about 25 visits along with ho... more >>> |
| I recently spent several weeks in a BJC institution receiving a bone marrow transplant. The preparation and transplant itself went very well, and I was well looked-after. Beginning from the day of transplant, however, I was almost entirely ignored by the entire medical staff except for the bare minimum of contact. I would call for pain relief, and on more than one occasion HOURS would pass (and several more calls) before a nurse would show up. I had to ask multiple times to have bed linens changed. Entire shifts would pass with only... more >>> |
| Many years ago, you could tell who was a nurse and who was there to clean your room. Now you cannot tell the difference. When I am out shopping, I see hospital workers, all sorts, out shopping in their uniforms. My opinion is whereever they go and whatever they do from the time they get dressed until the time they go to work, their clothes are collecting germs, germs from their sick children, handling dirty money, touching dirty things in general, then they go to work and their clothes come in contact with me, the patient. This transfers... more >>> |
| Cut the prices D-O-W-N. No one needs to pay $20,000 for a cast to be put on!!! more >>> |
| How about providing a way that a patient can review their appointment schedules by way of the internet? It could cut down on printing schedules on paper. This will save time for the people who print the schedules. It could cut down on the cost of paper and ink. It could be the first step to move patient care into the 21st century. It would save me time from calling the hospital to get my latest schedule, because I misplaced the paper that they gave me a few days ago. I realize that some people are not up to u... more >>> |
| I really think we are in a catch 22 situation here. First, we must locate where the waste is, then we have to find the areas where excessive profits and salaries are occurring. When we do so we risk taking incentives away for creative thinking, but there must be some limitations put on these things as well. There is also so much misinformation being broadcast on the airwaves that is just outright innacurate. These people such as Rush Limbaugh, Bill O'Reilly, Glenn Beck, and Sean Hannaty (and there are many others) are just spewing negati... more >>> |
| BJC has created nine preventable harm teams who are reviewing proccesses throughout the BJC facility to determine where the potential for caregiver-induced harm can be eliminated. Read the article below and tell me if you think we can eliminate this type of preventable harm. http://www.ragan.com/ME2/Audiences/dirmod.asp?sid=&nm=&type=MultiPublishing&mod=PublishingTitles&mid=5AA50C55146B4C8C98F903986BC02C56&tier=4&id=0596AD8127DE460FA4C79713241946A1&AudID=3FF14703FD8C4AE98B9B4365B978201A more >>> |
| One of the first things Prez. Obama brought up in the Healthcare debate was cutting costs. Not all Patients need the services of a Nurse particularly those who only need observation or minimal care. All businesses have to operate as efficiently as possible, don't believe me?Look at how the Auto Industry has been gutted. At one time many years ago, car bodies were welded by hand at the factories. Thousands of people made their livings as welders until the robot came along. There are several areas where Technology can be better used to reduce ... more >>> |
| I would like to see BJC use the front of Food Stores for distributing information on Healthy Diets (Stoes lkike Dierbergs, Schnuks, Shop and Save) The diets I would like to see shown and distributed are 1) Heart and Vascular healthy 2) Diabetic, and a brand new one called 3) Allergy Healthy. Missouri is the number three ranking State for Allergies and why more isn't being done to aleve people's suffering has always been a mystery to me so please develop the Allergy Diet. As a lifetime sufferer the main thing I can say is that citrus fruits a... more >>> |
| None of the proposals talked about contain any "Bricks and Mortar" to actually provide services to the Public. California has closed 5 Hospitals in as many years, East St. Louis doesn't have a Hospital any longer, not even a good sized Clinic. To me, I wish the Private Hospitals would stay Private as an individual person will have a better chance of getting quality Healthcare. As the old saying goes, "You get what you pay for." The job of the private Hospitals should be to bring costs down to an affordable level so the Pr... more >>> |
| I would like the "Powers That Be" to consider having the Blood Drawers install I.V.'s into a patients arm rather than an R.N. Why? The Blood Drawers are more efficient at what they do. This is what they deal with on a daily and hour to hour basis. I would also like to see the I.V be installed very soon after arriving at the Hospital. Too frequently an R.N. who isn't real skilled at installing an I.V. has to go hunt down a co-worker that is, and take that person away from his/her job to do a task that the blood drawers take right in... more >>> |
| I have often wondered how many plastic Laundry Bags the BJC Organization uses every year and the closest approximation I can see is that it is in the 10's of thousands. The number has a dollar amount attatched to it for the cost of the bags but has a cost to the Planet as well as Plastic is not Bio-degradable. If A pillow case (used on patient beds) were doubled in size, it would fit all the linen (dirty) on the rest of the bed, including the fitted sheet, flat sheet, pad and blanket. Our dirty Laundry could be "packaged" cheaper a... more >>> |
| Rather than announce patients’ names, I would like pharmacies to have an LED board, where last names could be posted once their Rx is filled. This would allow people to leave the waiting area and know upon their return if their Rx ready. more >>> |
| Consumer research on patient/doctor relationships ALWAYS addresses the importance for being treated with dignity and respect. It's obviously very important to people that they are treated with dignity and respect...but what does that mean? Anybody got examples or personal definitions of what it means to be treated by your doctor (or any health care provider) with dignity and respect? And what steps do you take when you feel that you are not? more >>> |
| It appears that the balance of power between the Democrats and the Republicans has changed with the election of Scott Brown. This means that Healthcare will be back to "square one" on the Grand Stage of Politics. To me this would be the ideal time for the Hospitals of America to band together with a United Front and a United Proposal. Let the tail wag the dog, rather than the dog wag his tail in a manner of speaking. My proposal would be for the Government to pick up the un-paid portion of every Hospitals Emergency Room bills and if care is ... more >>> |
| In today's world filled with technology, I am being reminded daily of the different tools available to me to make it easier to keep up with my own health. For example, Google Health is available in which you can fill out your own information and let others securely access it. I still haven't tried it out, but I'm curious to hear from others that use it how it's helped them out??? Or if there are other tools that you know about please let me know. Being a mother of 5, I think something like this would be great to keep up with all of my ... more >>> |
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