Surgical, Economic, and Psychological Impacts of SARS-COV-2 on a Kansas Community Hospital System.

The chief of surgery of a 264-bed acute care facility and clinic system in Topeka, KS, USA, gives a chronology that illustrates the rapid and profound clinical, economic, and emotional impact of the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak on his hospital and community. In his view, the pandemic has laid bare the weaknesses of several factors basic to the modern US health care system and the resulting economic crisis: just-in-time supply chain technology; foreign sourcing of masks, gowns, and critical equipment, all at critical shortages during the crisis; rural hospital closings; lack of excess capacity through maximization of utilization for efficiency; and an overreliance on high revenue elective procedures and tests. His team was tested by an emergency operation for bowel obstruction that put all the isolation protocols into action. Despite their readiness and the success of the operation and the potential for telemedicine as an alternative to in-person evaluations and outpatient visits, the forced cancellation of all elective operations have led to the loss of revenue for both hospital system and providers, furlough and termination of workers, and financial hardship and uncertainty.

Crise no Brasil e impactos na frágil governança regional e federativa da política de saúde / Crisis in Brazil and impacts on the fragile regional and federative health policy governance

Resumo Desde 2014, o Brasil vive crise econômica-fiscal-política-institucional. Este estudo avalia se a implementação das respostas à crise contribuiu para fragilizar a governança regional e federativa do SUS. Trata-se de estudo de implementação, ampliando-o com duas categorias da saúde coletiva, o poder em Testa e o sujeito em Campos, compreendendo que a implementação desloca poder e constrói sujeitos. Analisamos dados públicos, de 2014 a 2018, organizados em quatro eixos de análise: a) instrumentos de implementação da resposta à crise; b) interferência do Legislativo e do Judiciário nos investimentos; c) marcos legais da regionalização; d) atores federativos e possíveis coalizões de defesa. Os resultados revelam redução de recursos federais, especificamente para redes regionais de atenção; aumento da interferência legislativa e judicial nos recursos da saúde, pela evolução das emendas parlamentares e das ações judiciais e mudanças nas diretrizes de regionalização do SUS. Observa-se deslocamento de poder dos arranjos regionais federativos para o governo central, parlamento, judiciário e serviços locais isolados. Conclui-se que a resposta à crise fragilizou a governança regional federativa do SUS, agravando os impactos da crise na saúde.

Abstract Since 2014, Brazil has been experiencing an economic-fiscal-political-institutional crisis. This study evaluates whether the implementation of crisis responses contributed to weaken SUS regional and federative governance. This is an implementation study, and two theoretical categories of public health, the power in Testa and the subject in Campos have been incorporated. It presumes that the implementation shifts power and develops subjects. We analyzed public data from 2014 to 2018, organized into four axes of analysis: a) instruments for implementing crisis response; b) parliament and judicial interference in investments; c) legal frameworks of regionalization; d) federative actors and possible defense coalitions. Results show reduced federal resources, specifically for regional care networks; increased parliament and judicial interference with health resources, due to the evolution of congressional amendments and lawsuits, and changes in SUS regionalization guidelines. There is a shift of power from federative regional arrangements to the central government, parliament, the judiciary, and isolated local services. It is concluded that the response to the crisis weakened the regional federative governance of SUS, aggravating the impacts of the crisis on health.

A crise econômica e a atenção primária à saúde no SUS da cidade do Rio de Janeiro, Brasil / The economic crisis and primary health care in the SUS of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Resumo Este artigo aborda a crise na atenção primária à saúde do sistema público de saúde da cidade do Rio de Janeiro, a partir de 2018. Tal município teve forte expansão da atenção primária desde 2009, adotando Organizações Sociais para a contratação de profissionais e gerenciamento dos serviços, qualificando a infraestrutura das unidades e priorizando a medicina de família e comunidade, além de adotar práticas gerenciais como normatizações de ofertas, avaliação e remuneração por desempenho, "marketing", dentre outras. Diante da recente crise econômica, a decisão do gestor municipal foi de reduzir equipes de saúde da família, considerando a atual Política Nacional de Atenção Básica e argumentando ser possível otimizar recursos (fazendo mais com menos). Neste processo, enfrentou resistências, que não foram suficientes para freá-lo. Pela ressonância desta cidade (segunda maior do Brasil e com destaque na imprensa nacional) e tomando como base documentos públicos e formulações sobre a gestão, a crise expressa na atenção básica deste município foi problematizada em torno das implicações da adoção de Organizações Sociais na sustentabilidade dos serviços, da condução dos processos de gestão e suas racionalidades bem como da atuação política de agentes sociais em defesa do SUS e da atenção primária em particular.

Abstract This paper addresses the primary health care crisis of Rio de Janeiro public health system as of 2018. This municipality has experienced a robust primary care expansion since 2009, adopting Social Organizations for recruiting professionals and managing services, qualifying the infrastructure of units and prioritizing family and community medicine, as well as adopting management practices such as standardized offers, evaluation and pay-for-performance compensation, marketing, among others. Given the recent economic crisis, the municipal manager decided to reduce family health teams, considering the current National Policy of Primary Care and arguing that it is possible to optimize resources (doing more with less). In this process, he faced resistance that was not enough to stop him. Due to the resonance of this city (second largest in Brazil and prominent in the national press) and based on public documents and formulations on management, the crisis expressed in the primary health care of this city was debated around the implications of the adoption of Social Organizations in the sustainability of health services, conducting management processes and their rationalities, as well as the political action of social agents advocating for the SUS and primary care in particular.

The economic crisis and primary health care in the SUS of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. / A crise econômica e a atenção primária à saúde no SUS da cidade do Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.

This paper addresses the primary health care crisis of Rio de Janeiro public health system as of 2018. This municipality has experienced a robust primary care expansion since 2009, adopting Social Organizations for recruiting professionals and managing services, qualifying the infrastructure of units and prioritizing family and community medicine, as well as adopting management practices such as standardized offers, evaluation and pay-for-performance compensation, marketing, among others. Given the recent economic crisis, the municipal manager decided to reduce family health teams, considering the current National Policy of Primary Care and arguing that it is possible to optimize resources (doing more with less). In this process, he faced resistance that was not enough to stop him. Due to the resonance of this city (second largest in Brazil and prominent in the national press) and based on public documents and formulations on management, the crisis expressed in the primary health care of this city was debated around the implications of the adoption of Social Organizations in the sustainability of health services, conducting management processes and their rationalities, as well as the political action of social agents advocating for the SUS and primary care in particular.

Este artigo aborda a crise na atenção primária à saúde do sistema público de saúde da cidade do Rio de Janeiro, a partir de 2018. Tal município teve forte expansão da atenção primária desde 2009, adotando Organizações Sociais para a contratação de profissionais e gerenciamento dos serviços, qualificando a infraestrutura das unidades e priorizando a medicina de família e comunidade, além de adotar práticas gerenciais como normatizações de ofertas, avaliação e remuneração por desempenho, "marketing", dentre outras. Diante da recente crise econômica, a decisão do gestor municipal foi de reduzir equipes de saúde da família, considerando a atual Política Nacional de Atenção Básica e argumentando ser possível otimizar recursos (fazendo mais com menos). Neste processo, enfrentou resistências, que não foram suficientes para freá-lo. Pela ressonância desta cidade (segunda maior do Brasil e com destaque na imprensa nacional) e tomando como base documentos públicos e formulações sobre a gestão, a crise expressa na atenção básica deste município foi problematizada em torno das implicações da adoção de Organizações Sociais na sustentabilidade dos serviços, da condução dos processos de gestão e suas racionalidades bem como da atuação política de agentes sociais em defesa do SUS e da atenção primária em particular.

Keeping an eye on at-risk patients remotely.

Sitter pay ranges from $11 to $40 an hour, while the cost to use AvaSure is under $3 an hour per patient, Brad Playford said.

Psychiatry Departments Under Constrained Funding Mechanisms or What Is a Chairperson to Do?

OBJECTIVE: The authors surveyed academic departments of psychiatry to examine what effect decreases in funding levels may be having. METHODS: An internet survey of all departments of psychiatry was conducted at US medical schools. The response rate was 43 of 120 programs. Both large more research intensive and smaller more clinical departments responded. RESULTS: Majorities of departments reported that funding decreases negatively impacted faculty recruitment, research, faculty retention, and teaching programs. Approximately, one-third reported laying-off non-tenured faculty members and almost half, staff members. Graduate Medical Education (GME) funding was also a challenge. Departments reported responding by attempting to develop alternative funding sources. Few departments in the sample were doing significant fund raising. CONCLUSIONS: Academic departments find themselves stressed financially and are constricting some functions that are thought important. They are, in general, not able to replace lost funding. The research enterprise appears to be disproportionately affected and results in problems recruiting faculty. GME programs thus far seem less affected. Overall, funding issues appear to be causing serious issues that will have long-term consequences.

[Cooperations between biology laboratories of the establishments of healthcare]. / Coopérations entre laboratoires de biologie médicale des établissements de santé

In France, the cooperations between biological laboratories of the healthcare establishments increased after those realized in the private laboratories. The biologists are confronted with various hypotheses of organization. They are often complex because they may preserve the quality of the care and their continuity while realizing financial economies. These economies are mostly based on the global reduction in the staff and in the equipments by mutualising the biological tests with varying degrees. We describe the various elements to be taken into account (staff, activities, budget, quality, transport, materials) and propose many scenarios of cooperations, from a unique central shape to the transfer of very specialized tests, with their advantages and their inconveniences. The management of human aspects in these cooperations is determining to facilitate their success as well as a reliable preliminary inventory of fixtures.

Financial crisis and collapsed banks: psychological distress and work related factors among surviving employees--a nation-wide study.

AIM: The study considered psychological distress among surviving bank employees differently entangled in downsizing and restructuring following the financial crisis of 2008. METHODS: A cross-sectional, nationwide study was conducted among surviving employees (N = 1880, response rate 68%). Multivariate analysis was conducted to assess factors associated with psychological distress. RESULTS: In the banks, where all employees experienced rapid and unpredictable organizational changes, psychological distress was higher among employees most entangled in the downsizing and restructuring process. Being subjected to downsizing within own department, salary cut, and transfer to another department, was directly related to increased psychological distress, controlling for background factors. The associations between downsizing, restructuring, and distress were reduced somewhat by adding job demands, job control, and empowering leadership to the model, however, adding social support had little effect on these associations. CONCLUSION: Employees most entangled in organizational changes are the most vulnerable and should be prioritized in workplace interventions during organizational changes.

Doing the math. Groups say the debt-ceiling law's $11.1 billion hit to Medicare would lead to mass layoffs in healthcare.

As Washington wrestles with looming mandatory cuts forced by a deficit agreement, the AMA, AHA and ANA are warning of massive job cuts. "If I've got a choice of maintaining these beneficial programs or contract them for my core mission, you're going to choose your core mission. And that will cost the community more in terms of health and of dollars," says Rich Morrison, of Adventist Health System.

An evaluation of a sitter reduction program intervention.

Hospitals use sitters as an alternative to reduce patient falls. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a sitter reduction program by examining the differences between sitter use and falls in an acute care hospital. Findings indicate that a significant decrease in sitter use and falls remained constant. Reducing sitter use is possible without significantly increasing fall rates.