Falck’s Post

🌟 A Beacon of Hope in Healthcare: The Hilltown Healthcare Story 🌟 Today, I want to highlight a story that embodies the true spirit of community-driven healthcare. Nurse Practitioner Jill Martin and the journey of Hilltown Healthcare in Berne is a testament to what can be achieved when determination meets community support. 🏥 Reviving Healthcare in the Hilltowns After the closure of a vital medical practice in Berne, Jill Martin stepped up, driven by a mission to bring medical care back to the community. Despite challenges, her unwavering dedication led to the opening of Hilltown Healthcare, PLLC, in December 2019. 💡 The Power of Community and Collaboration This success story isn't just about one person's effort. It's a narrative of how local businesses, residents, and former practitioners like Dr. Gary Kolanchick came together to support a noble cause. The generous donation from Hannay Reels Inc. and the collective effort of the community played a crucial role in making this initiative a reality. 🤝 Inclusivity and Accessibility at Its Core Hilltown Healthcare is more than a medical practice; it's a symbol of hope. With a focus on serving all patients, including the uninsured and under-insured, it stands as a model for accessible healthcare. The clinic's approach, offering affordable care and operating at a planned loss initially, underscores a commitment to patient welfare over profit. 🚀 A Lesson in Healthcare Innovation What Hilltown Healthcare represents is the essence of innovation in healthcare. It's not always about the latest technology or cutting-edge research. Sometimes, it's about filling gaps, addressing community needs, and putting people first. 🔍 Reflecting on Our Own Roles As professionals in the healthcare industry, this story prompts us to reflect on our roles. How can we contribute to similar positive changes in our communities? What can we learn from Hilltown Healthcare's approach to inclusivity and community involvement? 💭 Your Thoughts? I'd love to hear your thoughts on this inspiring story. How can we replicate such impactful community-driven healthcare models in other areas? What can we do to support initiatives like Hilltown Healthcare? #CommunityHealthcare #InclusiveHealthcare #PrimaryCare

Interesting dynamic with the different growth patterns for these systems (HCA Healthcare, Tenet Healthcare, and Community Health Systems). Clearly two of the three are trimming and focused on improvement of existing operations with one in growth mode. It would be interesting to see what is going on with UHS, the other large for-profit system. Thanks for the information Andrew Cass. #healthcare, #healthcarenews, #hospital, #healthcareconstruction, #healthcareexperience, #healthcareoperations, #healthcarerealestate

Thoughts from the Wild Health Summits Burning GP Summit: Should there be a salaried GP model to provide for patients that aren't fit for fee-for-service? Repeatedly throughout the day, there are examples of the current funding models failing complex patients that don't fit into the fee-for-service paradigm. This has been a problem for years, and despite advocacy from lots of different groups, patients with complex health needs continue to be failed by the fee-for-service model. We are in a situation where GPs are subsidizing these patients' care with their own income, and their own families suffer a drop in financial wealth as a direct result of GP altruism. Are we now at the point where we should consider a truly publicly funded, universally accessible, primary care GP-led system? The single employer model could be a soft landing for this idea. In reality small GP clinics are continuing to fail in low socioeconomic areas due to the inability of patients to pay a gap alongside poor Medicare rebates, I'd argue the government should be stepping in to nationalize these clinics when requested by practice owners and GPs. I know there are a lot of younger GPs who would be quite happy to spend part of the week in a salaried role doing altruistic work and spending another part of the week in a different role l/clinic doing private fee-for-service work. Is it time for a discussion about what this looks like? We’ve already seen councils and other funding bodies stepping to rescue small rural clinics. Maybe it’s time for a national approach. Jeremy Knibbs Michelle O'Brien The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) Australian Medical Association

A new report by the nonprofit Center for Healthcare Quality and Payment Reform shows more than 700 rural hospitals – over 30% of all rural hospitals in the country – are in danger of closing. Another report, from healthcare consulting firm Chartis, estimates 167 rural hospitals have closed since 2010, with another 418 likely to follow unless they turn things around. #RuralHealthcare

Join @CAQH on February 20 for a dynamic discussion on 2024 #healthcare policy updates, including federal and state legislations. Register now to be part of this conversation on the future of #HealthIT policy.

Tobias Alpsten, CEO and Founder of iPlato Healthcare, comments on a recent report about public satisfaction with the NHS ➡ "The decline to just 24% satisfaction is a reflection of real struggles faced by real people seeking care. Long waiting times and staffing shortages, as reported, are not just inconveniences—they are barriers to essential health services and have resulted in increasing patient dissatisfaction. The solution to such systemic issues lies in adopting digital-first approaches. Digital transformation can streamline access, reduce administrative burdens, and support overstretched staff. The transition to online services, especially since 2020, is a step forward, but the potential for technology in healthcare is vast and not yet fully leveraged. In fact, since 2017, iPLATO technology has enabled patients to cancel over 5.2 million appointments, freeing up appointments worth over £177m and releasing over 633,510 hours of GP appointment capacity. In times where 71% of people are dissatisfied due to long waits for appointments, digital platforms can offer faster, more convenient access to health services. Increased digital engagement helps us meet patients where they are: online. For example, using apps to book appointments, access medical advice, or receive remote consultations can dramatically reduce wait times and improve the patient experience. Investment in digital infrastructure is a cost-effective way to future-proof the NHS: aligned with the public's support for increased spending—48% are in favour of increased taxes for more NHS funding. Digital solutions can ensure this funding is used effectively, cutting down on the 47% dissatisfaction due to perceived insufficient government spending and the 32% citing wastage of funds. The mission ahead is clear: We must invest in digital health, not as an afterthought, but as a core strategy to rebuild and re-energise the NHS, to return it to its world-leading status. This is where the battle for public trust and satisfaction will be won or lost. Let's make the NHS a pioneer once again, not just in the principle of healthcare for all, but in delivering it through the smart, effective use of technology." Read more here: https://lnkd.in/dbFKcXpw #NHS #digitalhealth Nuffield Trust The King's Fund

#HiChallenge: Hospital in my Hand 🏥 The Royal Hospital for Children deals with more than 180,000 clinical interactions each year, with more than 70,000 patients being seen by 27 specialities and departments. Communication, information and interaction are critical for every patient to receive the best possible care. This is why we’ve put this challenge to you now - do you have the technological solution to give our clinical teams quick, easy access to existing clinical information systems, guidelines and training tools? Is there a way to integrate hardware and software components already in place, and design something that is robust and easy to integrate? We want to give our team more time to talk and interact with patients and more time for treatment and care. 🥼 We also know that a solution for us could benefit the 84 children’s hospitals across the UK, not to mention adult inpatient services too. The scale for this project could change the face of healthcare communications for us, the UK and possibly the world. We’ve defined the challenge, are you ready to deliver the solutions - visit 🔗 https://www.hiscot.org/ #FromScotlandToTheWorld #TodaysQuestionsTomorrowsAnswers #Jaundice Glasgow Children's Hospital Charity NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde West of Scotland Innovation Hub #Childrens #Healthcare #HealthcareInnovation #Healthcare #GlobalHealth #Innovation #Future

In this Becker's Healthcare article, “Hospital downgrades keep outpacing upgrades: S&P,” Becker’s writes about S&Ps latest report… “Nonprofit hospital rating downgrades outpaced upgrades in the last year… We continue to affirm the vast majority of our ratings; however, a negative bias on rating actions remains," states the report. "Those actions are generally due to persistent strained cash flow with balance-sheet metrics that no longer provide adequate cushion. although there are other reasons and various nuances." Abax Health’s mission is to help health systems and medical groups improve both revenue and margin by using AI to Identify, Quantify, and Act on missed and unscheduled referrals. Let Abax Health help you improve your days cash on hand! https://lnkd.in/eGxgenAe abaxhealth.com | #untappedrevenue

In general, public-private partnerships are great tools for boosting both the quality and accessibility of healthcare around the world. However, there are times when they don't work out. Spotting this early on allows us to make adjustments or even scrap plans that do not have the desired impact. So, how do we evaluate if a PPP is successful? In my experience, there are multiple parameters that can inform us if a PPP is successful, and ultimately the reference is whether the objectives that were set out at the time of designing the project are being met. However, these objectives are typically set out in broad terms, e.g. improve patient experience, or increase access to school places etc. The best way to assess the success of a PPP is to drill down from these objectives and focus on measurable aspects. In PPPs, the preference is to measure outcomes. However, in more complex PPP projects, we also measure inputs and the extent of the adoption of good practices in processes. A good example of this, which my firm Concept Realisation uses when designing quality parameters for integrated healthcare PPPs (I.e. those whose scope of work includes clinical services) is the Donabedian framework. We cannot give this subject matter justice in a short post, so look out and follow for more on this. Below is a glimpse into the complexity of designing measurable outcomes. To design and specify outcomes in a way that does not unfairly penalise a care provider, it is important to use Quality Indicators (QIs), Availability Indicators (AIs) and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that the provider in able to control (within reason). If a care provider sets out a treatment plan and a nutritional regime for a patient to follow, there is so much the care provider can control when the patient is away from the care provider's premises. Health expenditure systems then play a part in determining the modality and affordability of care. In addition, education levels, income levels and personal motivation (amongst others) each play their part. This is how the complexity starts to unfold. So, if you're going to set these kinds of QIs, AIs and KPIs, consider how much influence a healthcare provider has over their achievement. This can be a great way to determine if they are fair in the first place, and if they contribute to accurately reflect the success and impact of the PPP. At the very least, this approach can help avoid selecting ones that might give the wrong answer. #PPPs #KPIs #Healthcare #HealthcarePPPs

In my new piece, I will dissect this issue from various angles regarding the for-profit healthcare model and the debate, prompting stakeholders, from doctors to economists, patients to lawmakers, to voice their concerns and opinions. The notion of for-profit healthcare is like a surgeon's scalpel—capable of healing, but also, in the wrong hands, capable of inflicting severe harm. #valuebasedcare #innovation