Craig Cudworth has been appointed Interim CEO of Trios Health. Also, Dr. David O’Brien has been appointed MultiCare Chief Executive for Eastern Washington. Dr. O’Brien will be based in Spokane and begin work at MultiCare on June 19. Congratulations Craig and Dr. O’Brien!... Read More >>
Recent member news from the May 11, 2017 Weekly Report.... Read More >>
The Protecting Access to Medicare Act (PAMA) authorized Medicare to promote the use of “appropriate use criteria” (AUC) before ordering advanced diagnostic tests — such as advanced imaging as well as the use of clinical decision support mechanisms in eight clinical areas — for Medicare patients. WSHA Industry partner PARA Healthcare Financial Services has written a paper detailing developments regarding this topic.... Read More >>
Next week is National Hospital Week, which marks one of the nation’s largest health care events of the year. It’s a week to pay tribute to the history, technology, and dedicated men and women who make hospitals and health systems beacons of confidence and care in their communities.... Read More >>
WSHA will host a webcast on from 12-1:30 p.m. May 17 highlighting new resources for behavioral health integration into primary care. This webinar will focus on the two options for evidence-based integrated behavioral health that are outlined in Project 2A of the Medicaid Transformation Toolkit.... Read More >>
Nearly 800,000 Americans have a stroke every year, leading to 133,000 deaths annually. Statistics show that someone in the U.S. has a stroke every 40 seconds, someone dies of stroke every four minutes. Stroke is the leading cause of serious, preventable long-term disability.... Read More >>
After being discharged from a hospital stay, it’s important that you follow up with the right treatment and medications, and that you get your questions answered. To make sure discharged patients have the resources they need, Grays Harbor Community Hospital in Aberdeen launched an automated phone system that calls and gives post-discharge care instructions and gives an opportunity for the discharged patient to indicate if he or she needs a follow-up phone call from a hospital caregiver.... Read More >>
Congress is poised this week to approve legislation that would fund the federal government through September 30. The $1 trillion bill includes a 4 percent boost for rural health programs, including a small hike in the Rural Hospital Flexibility and telehealth grant funds.... Read More >>
To combat the growing epidemic of prescription drug abuse, Confluence Health recently began allowing community members to safely dispose of opioid painkillers and any other unused medications at three Central Washington locations.... Read More >>
The nine Accountable Communities of Health (ACHs) are in the process of designing and selecting projects related to the Healthier Washington demonstration, with applications to be submitted by October. Don’t miss the opportunity to participate in this important work. Over the next five years, the state Health Care Authority (HCA) will be distributing up to $1.1 billion through the demonstration.... Read More >>
