ASHHRA eNews Pulse

As you read this, we are at the annual conference in Phoenix, Ariz. This year’s gathering has been one of high energy and inspiration. Congratulations to our annual conference committee, under the leadership of Nancy Dinon, for their vision and hard work in making this year’s lineup one of the best ever, if not the finest! The ASHHRA staff is in conference mode and working in high gear, as they always do, to make our conference highly successful. I thank them for their amazing efforts.

For me this great conference will be bittersweet. Most past presidents will tell you that the completion of the annual conference duties signal the end of major presidential responsibilities for the year! However, when you agree to do the ASHHRA president path, you sign on for three years, one as president-elect and vice president, one year as president, and your third year as immediate past president, which really provides great continuity for this office. I have been very fortunate to serve with some of the organization’s finest during my board tenure. I salute the efforts of those whom I have learned so much from in the past including Past Presidents Barbara Palmer, Molly Seals, Jeanene Martin, Dan Zuhlke, and Jeff Payne. I am proud to have served for this group of distinguished leaders and their influence has helped me to develop a great understanding of our organization. Our current board of directors has worked very hard on some challenging goals that I have mentioned in past newsletters. We will be discussing progress and outcomes in Phoenix, but I am happy to report that 2011 has all the ingredients of a great year. Kudos to the board and ASHHRA staff!

I am happy to return to my home of five years, Phoenix, and to see old friends and enjoy some of the places that I have missed since moving to Florida. So, while you are in Phoenix, make sure you take some time to visit the many great attractions it has to offer, including the Grand Canyon, Meteor Crater, Biosphere, and definitely Sedona, my all-time favorite location and most spiritual and romantic places in the world, among the red rocks!

Until next month,
Robert Walters, SPHR
Corporate Director, HR Operations
Health First, Inc.
3550 North Harbor City Blvd.
Melbourne, FL 32932-0069
(321) 434-1957
bob.walters@health-first.org

 

ASHHRA held the fifth Thought Leader Forum on Monday, July 18,2011, in San Diego, California. A select group of thought leaders – human resources and public relations/marketing/communications experts – participated in the Forum, a two-hour session entitled, Healthcare Reform Engagement. Results of the session have been compiled in the Summary of Findings.

Visit http://www.ashhra.org/about/governance/thoughtleaderforum.shtml to view the full article online.

 

Due to overwhelming demand, the ASHHRA HR Metrics Tool Survey is reopened. Input your fiscal year 2010 data and get industry benchmarks.

Visit http://www.ashhra.org/products/metrics.shtml to view the full article online.

 

By Debra Wood, RN
Focused on patient safety and heeding guidance from numerous professional organizations, hospitals are increasingly requiring nurses and other health care workers to receive the annual influenza vaccine; in those facilities requiring the vaccination, staff coverage was 98.1 percent, according to a recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report.
SOURCE: NURSEZONE.COM

Visit http://www.nursezone.com/Nursing-News-Events/more-news/Mandatory-Flu-Vaccinations-Boost-Nurse-Compliance-with-Guidelines_37678.aspx to view the full article online.

 

By Patrick Dunne
The American Academy of Physician Assistants released its 2010 Census Report and Salary Report. These documents provide data revealing that, even in a down economy, the profession continues to grow rapidly and reward PAs professionally and personally.
SOURCE: AMERICAN ACADEMY OF PHYSICIAN ASSISTANTS

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/ahh-nwl/articles/index-v2.asp?aid=153806&issueID=22508 to view the full article online.

 

By John Commins
The healthcare sector has again provided about the only bright spot in an otherwise drab report on job growth in August from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Healthcare employment rose by 29,700 jobs in August, and the sector has created 205,100 new jobs in the first eight months of 2011, accounting for 22 percent of the 930,000 non-farm payroll additions in the overall economy in 2011, BLS preliminary data show.
SOURCE: HEALTH LEADERS MEDIA

Visit http://www.healthleadersmedia.com/content/HR-270510/Healthcare-Creates-1-in-5-New-Jobs to view the full article online.

 

By Richard Tolstrup
As healthcare is evolving, including modifications in delivery and payment methods, physician compensation has to evolve as well. Nationwide, we are anticipating the advent of Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs), and Patient Centered Medical Home (PCMHs) as well as universal coverage. In Massachusetts, we are beginning to live that change already and our experiences might be indicative of what the country will see in a few years.
SOURCE: JOURNAL OF THE ASSOCIATION OF STAFF PHYSICIAN RECRUITERS

Visit http://www.aspr.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=461 to view the full article online.

 

By Jennifer Garland

"Having worked at several hospitals – both large and small, urban and rural – and since coming to Campbellford Memorial Hospital (CMH), I have not encountered a hospital that does so much to enhance patient safety as we do here," says Andrea Thomas, a certified pharmacy technician working in CMH’s pharmacy.
SOURCE: HOSPITAL NEWS

Visit http://www.hospitalnews.com/modules/magazines/mag.asp?ID=3&IID=158&AID=1978 to view the full article online.

 

By Sharon H. Fitzgerald

Considering how well-trained America's health professionals are, it would be safe to assume that some of America's healthiest workforces are in hospitals, right? Wrong. What Adam Long, PhD, vice president of research and informatics for Brentwood-based Onlife Health, Inc., discovered through a recent case study is that such wellness coaching, even for employees of a hospital, produced statistically significant positive results and a nearly three-to-one return on the investment.
SOURCE: NASHVILLE MEDICAL NEWS

Visit http://nashville.medicalnewsinc.com/wellness-coaching-keeps-hospital-workers-healthier-cms-2472 to view the full article online.

 

By Suzanna Mahler

In a recent study, researchers asked a slew of physicians and administrators in private practices within the United States and Canada "how much time they spent each day with insurers and other third-party payers, tracking down information for claims that were denied or incorrectly paid, resolving questions about insurance coverage for prescription drugs or diagnostic tests, and filing the different forms required by each and every insurance company, according to an article in "The New York Times."
SOURCE: HOSPITAL PHYSICIANS ONLINE

Visit http://hospitalphysicians.com/2011/09/01/hospital-physicians-face-insurance-maze/ to view the full article online.

 

By Katie Pence

Although society’s perception might be that surgeons endure greater mental challenges and stress in their work duties than a primary care doctor, new research from experts at the University of Cincinnati shows that this isn’t necessarily the case.
SOURCE: UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI ACADEMIC HEALTH CENTER

Visit http://healthnews.uc.edu/news/?/14474/ to view the full article online.

 

By Jennifer Larson
Can doctors and nurses learn to get along well enough to collaborate? Can they truly be partners in providing excellent patient care? Many health care experts now say "Yes." But that hasn’t always been the case.
SOURCE: NURSEZONE.COM

Visit http://www.nursezone.com/nursing-news-events/more-news.aspx?articleid=37644 to view the full article online.