Canada ranks worst among 16 OECD countries for its high number of coronavirus-related deaths in elderly care homes, according to a Canadian Institute for Health Information report released Thursday. Eighty-one percent of COVID-19 deaths in Canada were recorded in long-term care homes, according to an analysis by the government agency. This is significantly higher than […]
Affordable Care Act linked to better heart failure care for minorities, yet disparities persist
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) Medicaid Expansion appears to have eased health care inequities among heart failure patients; however, racial and ethnic disparities in heart failure care still exist, according to research presented today at the American Heart Association’s Quality of Care & Outcomes Research Scientific Sessions 2020. The virtual conference, to be held May […]
Neurologist calls for broad changes in stroke care during COVID-19
Broad modifications to current standards for treating acute stroke patients during the COVID-19 pandemic may be needed to preserve health care resources, limit disease spread and ensure optimal care, according to a Loyola Medicine neurologist. “Doctors are seeing a rise in COVID-19 patients of all ages suffering from stroke and other vascular complications, as the […]
Clinicians and autistic transgender youth partner to create first community-built care model
The first ever set of specific recommendations to support transgender autistic young people was co-created by these youth and their families working hand-in-hand with clinical experts. The resulting model offers clinicians a set of concrete ways to provide this unique population the support they need. The recommendations, A Clinical Program for Transgender and Gender-Diverse Neurodiverse/Autistic […]
High reliance on urgent care centers may disrupt primary care in children
A study of over 4 million children and adolescents in the U.S. enrolled in Medicaid found that those who rely on urgent care centers for more than a third of their outpatient health care needs had fewer visits to primary care providers. This may result in missed opportunities for preventative services, such as vaccinations, and […]
Pandemic delaying medical care of older Americans
The coronavirus pandemic has led many older adults to postpone medical care, a new survey finds. The University of Chicago survey found that 55% of U.S. adults aged 70 and older experienced a disruption in their medical care during the first month of social distancing. Thirty-nine percent put off non-essential care and 32% delayed primary […]
Lockdowns threaten childrens’ nutrition: why extra care is needed
Data from two years ago shows that close to 60% of children in South Africa lived below the poverty line, while a third were below the food poverty line. Statistics also show that households with children are more likely to experience hunger than those without. This will be aggravated by any loss of jobs or […]
Coercive measures are still frequently used in psychiatric care
The use of coercive measures in psychiatric care has decreased over the past years. However, a new study shows that coercive measures are still frequently used in Finland, and periods of both seclusion and mechanical restraint are long. According to root-level data collected from psychiatric wards, the use of coercive measures is considerably more common […]
Inequitable medicare reimbursements threaten care of most vulnerable
Hospitals, doctors and Medicare Advantage insurance plans that care for some of the most vulnerable patients are not reimbursed fairly by Medicare, according to recent findings in JAMA. It costs more to care for patients who are frail, have dementia, are depressed or are poor. However providers that treat them and health insurance plans that […]
Hospital critical care resuscitation unit improves patients’ chances of survival
Patients with acutely life-threatening health conditions who were treated in the innovative Critical Care Resuscitation Unit (CCRU) received faster treatment and had better health outcomes, including a 36 percent lower risk of dying than those who were transferred from a hospital’s emergency department then evaluated and treated in a traditional intensive care unit, according to […]