Quality

The focus of quality improvement in healthcare is to bolster performance and processes related to diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. Leaders in this space also ensure the proper selection of imaging exams and procedures, and monitor the safety of services, among other duties. Reimbursement programs such as the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) utilize financial incentives to improve quality. This also includes setting and maintaining care quality initiatives, such as the requirements set by the Joint Commission.

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TAVR programs follow inconsistent DNR policies, potentially skewing data

Not all hospitals respect the written preferences of patients, possibly motivated by a desire to report better TAVR outcomes.

American Heart Association and Joint Commission launch new Comprehensive Heart Attack Center certification

The new certification, based on recommendations published in Circulation, was developed to signal that a facility offers cardiac surgery and primary PCI at all times. 

Kaiser mental health strike

Mental health workers at Kaiser go on strike

Nearly 2,000 unionized mental health workers from Kaiser Permanente facilities in California are on strike over contract negotiations.

5 joint interventions for which ultrasound guidance is better than no imaging, preferable to other modalities

Clinicians injecting or aspirating joints of the upper extremities should know that imaging is a more precise guide to the target than palpation—and that ultrasound guidance offers potential advantages over aid from other imaging modalities.

Emergency overreads change care for 92% of patients with discrepant outside reports

When emergency radiologists overread interpretations of critically ill transfer patients, they discover discrepancies in fewer than 15% of cases. However, more than 90% of these second opinions produce a change in patient care or follow-up.

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‘Sham’ health insurer ordered to refund $100M to FTC

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has cracked down on a health services provider accused of selling unqualified, sham health insurance plans through deceptive marketing and sales tactics. 

As the US population ages, Medicare radiologists are bunching up in some areas and thinning out in others

There are plenty of radiologists serving Medicare patients in the U.S., but the headcounts are unevenly distributed, and widely so.   

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Prostate AI cleared for U.S. sales

A medical AI startup in Omaha, Neb., has received the FDA’s blessing to market software for diagnosing prostate cancer on MRI scans.