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This month in Healthcare Global we take a look inside the largest hospital in South Africa, the Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital. We considered the institutions quest for operational excellence, the importance of training and efficient people management and uncovered the challenges of working under extreme environmental conditions.
Speaking of training, we also take a look at the world’s best medical schools in this edition of the magazine, after all, great healthcare provision starts with well-trained physicians and medical professionals.
Also in this issue we uncover how wireless technology is having an impact on the way hospital executives manage their supply chains. Mobile technology is big news in the healthcare industry at the moment, so healthcare executives need to sit up and listen.
Enjoy the issue!
Abigail Phillips
Editor, Healthcare Global
]]>Written by Emily Couch
Read This Article In The May Edition Of Healthcare Global's Digital Magazine
The hospital supply chain has been trying to pull alongside its counterparts in the retail and manufacturing industries when it comes to the implementation of wireless technology in their facilities. A hospitals supply chain is one of the most complex operations within the hospital. The adoption of wireless technology as a means to manage and lower the cost of hospital supplies and streamline the management of the supply chain is becoming a hot topic at the forefront of the healthcare industry. The goal of reducing cost while providing high-quality medical care is a top strategic objective.
When trying to lower annual cost and save money, one of the first steps any healthcare facilities should take is to look at all aspects of their supply chain. On average, one-third of their budget is allocated to supplies, which is only second to labor cost. Conventionally hospitals only used logistics software to track and manage high-cost elements; in today's economy it dictates that organizations should use software tools to identify any elements that could be causing them to lose money.
Putting The Emphasis On Software
It is critically important to rely on data collection tools. In the nations unpredictable economy it is imperative for hospitals to examine every part of their supply chain for any possible areas of cost savings. All supply chain categories, including information technology, facilities and purchased services, should be accounted for. Cost savings can come from unlikely places and that’s why relying on supply software to analyze your supply chain is more effective and less subject to human error.
When hospitals widen their search for savings in the supply chain, they need to employ different tools and networks to do so effectively. For most organizations it is not cost efficient to have multiple employees with high levels of expertise on staff. The ideal situation would be having supply chain experts on staff to help their facilities to better manage their supply chain and inventory. Instead, healthcare providers should consider using supply chain software and wireless technology that can aid in discovering any issues or potential cost saving shortcuts.
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Inventory Management
The main purpose of introducing wireless technology into a hospitals supply chain if for cost reduction through inventory management. Electronic medication administration and reporting systemsalong with automated drug dispensing systems can help manage the amount of drugs being dispensed and to whom. Having a more precise system of tracking drugs and where they are going leaves less room for human error.
Inventory management systems can adequately track all inventory in the hospital from surgical supplies to high end machinery. In the past hospitals did not pay as much attention to lower end inventory, but it came to light that savings on the lower end inventory can save hundreds of thousands in the annual budget.
Visibility Within The Supply Chain
The savings of time is at the helm of this issue. Generally speaking an individual lacks the visibility of their entire supply chain. With the implantation of mobile devices all aspects of the supply chain are right at their fingertips while they move about the hospital. Up-to-date inventory reporting, ordering and notifications are instantaneously. The user no longer has to go back to their desk to access and update valuable information, improving their work flow.
The value of implementing wireless technology to a hospitals supply chain can cut down on wasted time, money and resources. Ensuring the right people and wireless technology is employed to manage a supply chain is just as vital as the supply chain itself. Establishing a governing supply chain council will provide direction and help align supply chain strategies with the hospitals overall strategy. This governing council should be lead by the leader of the supply chain organization as well as corporate executives, business unit managers, and other influential company leaders.
Overall, a reduction in data inaccuracy, increased cycle times and decreased supply chain cost, can be the direct benefits of employing wireless technology into a hospitals supply chain.
]]>READ THE APRIL EDITION OF HEALTHCARE GLOBAL HERE
Last month, the FDA moved to block the manufacture and sale of generic versions of the original OxyContin, which has gone off patent but which is easier to abuse than the current version. A newer version of OxyContin, introduced by its maker, Purdue Pharma LP, in 2010, contains an infusion of polymer that makes the pill difficult to crush, meaning addicts can't get all of the extended-release ingredients at once to get high.
Similarly, this week the FDA is considering the effectiveness of another safeguarded, brand-name painkiller, Endo Pharmaceuticals Opana ER. If the FDA rules that Opana ER slows abuse, the agency can choose to shield Endo from the competition, because the generic options don’t have abuse-deterrents.
Such a decision would send a strong message to pharma manufacturers, that pain drugs with no safeguards are likely to be removed from the market—and that there are billions of dollars in potential revenue to be had from the sale of painkillers that are abuse proof.
Creating An Abuse Proof Painkiller
With such a ruling in the pipeline, companies such as Pfizer, Johnson and Johnson and Endo are trying to crack the potentially lucrative market.
“Over time, it should be a scientific race across the whole pharmaceutical industry to create a market where all opioids have abuse-deterrent properties,” said Gary L. Stiles, Senior Vice-President of Research and Development at the closely held Purdue Pharma.
Read Related Article In Healthcare Global
The race could give a boost to an already lucrative market and raise the cost of pain treatment. A recent Cowen & Co. report predicts an increase in prescription pain drug sales of more than 15 percent by 2017, reaching $8.4 billion, thanks in part to the FDA ruling. It could also bring about a reshuffling of market share in the fast-growing $7.3 billion pain market, as companies such as Pfizer move with full force in the opioid painkiller market for the first time.
The FDA isn't directly requiring all painkillers to have safeguards. But should an effective abuse-deterrent drug be developed, the FDA said it has the power to remove on-the-market rival products, which don't.
With this in mind many of the world’s pharma giants are ramping up their R&D when it comes to finding and implementing effective abuse-deterrents.
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On Wednesday the Food and Drug Administration appealed a court order addressing the agency to make the “morning-after” pill available over-the-counter to women of all ages. According to court documents, lawyers with the Justice department filed the appeal with the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York.
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Known as “Plan B”, the appeal is the latest incursion in the years-long legal battle over the drug, which has sparked outcry from both political and religious sects. The government is seeking to overturn U.S. District Judge Edward Korman’s ruling from April 5th that requires the FDA to make the emergency contraception available within 30 days to all girls of reproductive age.
According to FDA spokeswoman Erica Jefferson, the Justice Department has asked the district court to temporarily stop its order from taking effect while the appeal is pending.
The ruling comes in response to a lawsuit filed originally in 2005 by the Center for Reproductive Rights and other groups against age and access limits to the emergency contraception. The groups argue that there is no scientific proof that girls of reproductive age could not safely use the drug without supervision.
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The FDA has originally approved over-the-counter sales with no age limits but the order was reversed in a surprise December 2011 decision by U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. President Barack Obama supported that restriction, barring girls from under 17 from buying the pills without a prescription.
In his ruling, Korman calls Sebelius’ decision “arbitrary, capricious and unreasonable.”
“The motivation for the secretary’s action was obviously political,” he wrote.
The agency confirms its decision to lower the age limit for Plan B One-Step was based on scientific data submitted by Teva that showed girls as young as 15 could safely use the drug without the intervention of a healthcare provider. In addition, cashiers will still have to verify the customer’s age before selling it, the FDA said.
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From devices to monitor patient health to apps for scheduling appointments, investors are pouring billions of dollars into new innovations to improve health care. As more and more hospitals start utilizing “big data” applications to identify patients with elevated risks of hospital re-admissions, new evidence suggests that helping patients take their medication more consistently can be influential in lowering health care costs, while also improving patient outcomes.
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Recent studies (Roebuck et al., 2011, Stuart et al.,2011, and Choudhry et al., 2001) have identified direct associations between appropriate medication use and healthcare spending. Data collected from these studies have prompted the Congressional Budget Office to recently change its stance on medication adherence from a budgetary perspective. Previously, CBO did not believe the evidence of a direct connection between medication use and health care spending was sufficient to “score” a medical cost offset in its budgetary forecasts. Now, CBO believes medication adherence can lead to a reduction in doctor visits and hospitalizations, impacting the rise of health care costs.
The Congressional Budget Office now estimates that a 1 percent increase in the number of prescriptions filled would cause Medicare spending on medical services to fall by roughly one-fifth of 1 percent. While this may not seem like much, Medicare will spend more than $2 trillion on hospitalizations over the next ten years. These tiny reductions result in major savings and lower projected savings from the new healthcare provider payment models that are being tested under the Affordable Care Act.
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In addition, the CBO points out future programs or policies that achieve more targeted improvements in adherence for certain beneficiaries with particular diseases or on particular medication could lead to larger savings. Cost offsets from medication adherence could also encourage members of Congress to consider additional polices to realize these cost savings.
Recently, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) announced it is analyzing the fiscal impact of adherence on Medicare. MedPAC, an independent Congressional agency that advises Congress on policies affecting Medicare, will have a big influence on how Congress thinks about future policies to promote devotion in the Medicare program. Additionally, private payers are seriously considering how lack of adherence affects medical spending.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has taken vital steps to promote medication use on a more consistent basis for certain chronic conditions. As part of its “Star Ratings” program, CMS now offers financial bonuses to health plans when they help eligible Medicare beneficiaries increase adherence to blood pressure, cholesterol, and diabetes medication.
Overall, the payoff for health plans is huge. Along with the potential medical savings they can utilize when their members take chronic disease medications more consistently, health plans earning 4 or 5 “Stars” can earn an additional 4 to 5 percent in premium bonuses each year. These bonuses can be used to either enhance benefits or lower future plan premiums to attract new members. While we still need to find more effective ways to improving adherence for individual patients, a concerted to push to realize the opportunity along with new incentives and investments in health IT and data could exceptionally strengthen, and potentially improve patient health and lower costs.
]]>READ THE APRIL EDITION OF HEALTHCARE GLOBAL HERE
While a majority of respondents (35 percent) placed meaningful use in the top spot, 19 percent of respondents identified the areas in which HIT will achieve the most significant improvements as health information exchange, clinical Integration and mobile health, respectively.
“Those hospitals that can successfully achieve meaningful use implementation will benefit greatly from the resulting updated systems, enhanced processes and increased data security,” said Shane Pilcher, Vice President of Stoltenberg Consulting. He cautioned that “organizations still need to overcome the hurdles inherent in meeting meaningful use however, before they can reap the benefits of it.”
Survey respondents identified the three greatest challenges in fulfilling meaningful use requirements in their organizations as confusion and/or ambiguity about the regulation itself (29 precent); competing health IT projects (23 percent) and lack of resources such as funding, IT skill, talent and time (17 percent).
“While these challenges certainly impact hospitals of all sizes, they are particularly daunting for rural and community hospitals,” noted Pilcher. “To have the best chance of meeting meaningful use, smaller hospitals should develop an effective plan of action that unites IT, internal administration and clinical providers.”
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Emerging Health IT Trends
The Stoltenberg survey also uncovered the top three issues likely to dominate HIT dialogue for the remainder of 2013: Health Information Exchange (62 percent); Mobile Health (58 percent) and Clinical Analytics (54 percent).
Pilcher stated that “like meaningful use, Health Information Exchange, mobile health and clinical analytics can all ultimately have a positive impact on an organization's bottom line in addition to the ability to improve healthcare delivery, but they also require the type of extensive knowledge, expertise and experience in healthcare IT that might be best accessed through a qualified HIT services provider.”
In fact, according to the Stoltenberg survey, the issues or problems that HIT executives would most likely consult with a specialized IT consulting firm to resolve are: ICD-10 (25 percent); meaningful use (25 percent); clinical and business intelligence (23 percent); cloud computing (21 percent); and CPOE/clinical systems implementation (20 percent).
Survey respondents included HIT management, physicians and clinicians representing healthcare providers and payers, government agencies and HIT services vendors, among others.
About Stoltenberg Consulting
Founded in 1995, Pittsburgh-based Stoltenberg Consulting Inc. creates an environment for success by working with healthcare organizations to provide a variety of services including project management, implementation support and integration between systems. Members of the Stoltenberg Consulting team are consultants with extensive experience in both financial and clinical systems, averaging more than 15 years of direct on-site hospital experience. Stoltenberg Consulting has grown rapidly to serve a client base of more than 200 preeminent healthcare organizations throughout the United States providing services for Siemens (Approved Partner), Epic (Preferred Partner), Cerner, McKesson, Meditech, NextGen, Allscripts and Zynx customers. Stoltenberg was named #1 in the Staff Augmentation category by the 2012 Best in KLAS Awards: Software & Services report. For more information call 1-888-724-1326 or visit www.stoltenberg.com.
]]>READ THE APRIL EDITION OF HEALTHCARE GLOBAL HERE
The healthcare industry is constantly changing, and new technology is always entering the market place, however the question still remains if patients are ready to embrace PHRs.
Experts acknowledge that PHRs can be extremely beneficial for patients and the healthcare industry as a whole, however a recent study conducted in the US highlighted that only one in 10 American’s had a personal health record and only about 50 percent of those questioned even knew what a PHR was.
A number of reports in the last fortnight have also indicated that patients became far more involved, engaged, responsible and satisfied with their healthcare when they were granted access to their health records.
Healthcare Global looks into why are patients reluctant to embrace PHRs?
Technological issues include >>>
Philosophical issues include >>>
Many experts in the mHealth field believe that the real spur in adoption will have to come from physician engagement and encouragement. Many patients are reluctant of new technology, especially when it comes to their health records, so in order for the industry to see the benefits associated with PHR adoption, the driver is going to have to come from physicians and healthcare professionals.
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]]>A recent study, released on Sunday 21st April reveals that two thirds of nurses polled believe patients in their own hospitals are at risk of neglect. The report also highlighted concerns that bosses put financial targets ahead of patient care, according to three quarters of nurses; while a third say staffing is dangerously low.
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These findings come from a poll of 8,000 nurses conducted by the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) in the United Kingdom. However, there is concern that this feeling could be mutual in other parts of the world. The report was conducted in the wake of one of the UKs hospital scandals – at the Mid Staffordshire NHS Trust, up to 1,200 died from neglect between 2005 and 2009. The NHS Trust described how patients were subject to ‘inhumane’ treatment because bosses prioritised targets ahead of care.
Furthermore in March another NHS survey found that nearly 40 percent of doctors and nurses would not want family members treated in their own hospital. The RCN says understaffing often causes poor care, and it is particularly concerned about shortages on elderly wards where many patients have dementia and need help with basic tasks such as eating and washing.
In a separate poll, the RCN found that a third of 2,086 ward sisters and senior community nurses felt staffing levels were unsafe at least once a week. Three quarters said they were potentially dangerous at least once a month while one in ten said they were rarely ever safe.
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The Cause Of The Problem
According to the latest official figures, the NHS lost 2,409 nurses last year, down from 372,277 to 369,868. However, the number of unqualified healthcare assistants rose by 2,691 over the same period. This statistic leaves some experts worrying that hospitals are replacing better paid senior nurses with inexperienced staff on similar wages to cleaners.
Other figures compiled by the RCN show NHS nurses spend 2.5million hours a week on needless paperwork. More than half of the 6,387 who took part in the poll said the amount pointless admin had soared in recent months.
]]>The network giant is encouraging innovators, entrepreneurs, academics and other individuals to enter the contest and compete for a $10 million prize.
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Entries must use Verizon networks and technology, such as wireless, cloud and broadband, to help deliver solutions that ‘address societal challenges, deliver social benefit and grow markets.’
Winners will be chosen in each category, with the top prize being $1 million and additional prizes of $850,000, $700,000, $500,000 and $285,000.
“The world’s biggest challenges need big solutions, and that’s why Verizon Wireless is seeking out the best and brightest ideas from innovators, entrepreneurs, academics and other individuals,” said Krista Bourne, President of the Verizon Wireless Houston-Gulf Coast region.
“We’ve long been a company dedicated to innovation and addressing critical needs via communication solutions and that’s exactly what we’re looking to do via the Powerful Answers Award.”
Ideas will be accepted now through June 30, 2013. From there, entrants will be selected to submit full proposals of their ideas to address the social challenges no later than July 15.
Full details and submission information can be found at www.powerfulanswersaward.com.
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Healthcare cannot be likened to a factory, however there is one similarity insofar as delays in the billing chain can still hold up the process of turning patient care into revenue. Within any industry, the flow of cash is extremely important and healthcare is no different.
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Healthcare Global discovers four ways hospital executives can improve cash flow through lean efforts >>>
#1. Identify The Key Players In The Team
Before you implement any changes it is important to listen to what your people on the ground are saying. Before you embark on a lean journey coordinate a week when members from every step of the billing workflow, including nurses and hospital executives, met for five eight-hour days to brainstorm, goal set and devise a plan of attack. Sharingtheir interaction in the billing process will give needed insight to help find where waste occurs and where and how it can be feasibly prevented.
It is understandable that many healthcare executives may be afraid of taking employees off the ward for such a long period of time, however frontloading the planning accomplishes 40 to 50 hours of planning in one week that could otherwise take a year of hour-long weekly meetings. This not only keeps all parties on the same page when changes are launched, but it allows for better accountability and easier on-the-spot adjustments while plans are implemented.
#2. Share Ideas & Prioritize Solutions
During the planning week, have attendees make diagrams of the billing workflow using Post-Its describing each step of the process and each department's role in advancing claims. This is called Value Stream Mapping and helps everybody identify where problems are occurring.
Once the process has been identified, attendees can brainstorm possible solutions and improvements to the current system, then prioritized those solutions into four groups based on how cost and time effective each would be. This will help the team see multiple ways to confront the problem at the lowest cost and with the greatest chance of successful follow-through.
#3. Implementation
Now you have a plan in place, it is vital to implement it effectively. This will take commitment from the whole planning team and involves a lot of checking to ensure processes are being followed correctly. Once the process is up and running it is also useful to make changes where necessary. Training is a big part of this, as well as streamlining processes.
#4. Accountability
Ensure accountability for those responsible for implementing the changes. It is essential to realise the importance of accountability and to ensure there are checks in place to make sure the new processes are being adhered to.
Empowering staff members to identify and address waste at the ground level helps to maintain those efficiency improvements organically without the need to devote an entire week to planning sessions. The solution is to educate more people and get more looking for waste in their area.
In this issue we also take a look at the latest social media channel developed specifically for business executives, Businessfriend. The newly launched social network could help open up the lines of communication between hospital executives and facilitate information sharing more readily, allowing for cost saving and efficiencies down the line.
Finally we take a look at ERP solutions and financial planning software solutions.
Read The Articles On Healthcare Global Today
I hope you enjoy the issue!
Abigail Phillips
Group Editorial Director
]]>Read This Article In the April Edition Of Healthcare Global
The advent of social media has been compared to the popularization of the printing press, invented by Johannes Gutenberg more than 500 years ago. Both have forever changed the way we communicate, learn, educate, inform and interact with one another on a global scale, paradigm-shifting the processing of knowledge. Both revolutionary in their impact at the time, the printing press could only disperse information while social media supports and relies upon human interaction. Personally and professionally, social media allows humans to affect the database of knowledge: to challenge it, contribute to it, question it, popularize it and connect with it, building relationships through it.
The just-launched social and professional site Businessfriend is focused on our role as communicators – striving to enhance how we work and live today. Businessfriend is a fluid, all-inclusive channel that provides individuals with the tools to interact with people across the full spectrum of relationships – personal, professional and in between.
Healthcare & Businessfriend
Businessfriend connects professionals to their contacts via tools that centralize information. A side drawer on the website stores each tool, including the Bf Inbox (which can link to personal and professional e-mail accounts), Bf Cloud (a doc manager supporting more than 100 file types), Bf Calendar (to correlate business and personal appointments), a Digidex of contacts, note-taking application and video-conference ability.
For healthcare professionals, Businessfriend is an important tool that helps connect and centralize the often-blended personal and professional moving pieces in their lives. Utilizing inner and outer “circles,” the site allows sharing in a controlled environment. Users can share more personal posts with an inner circle of friends, or share more professional information with a larger group of contacts.
“Those in the healthcare industry can connect with vendors, patients and peers to utilize the tools, save information for both patient and doctor, and keep communication open with partners and suppliers in a one-stop shop,” says Businessfriend Marketing Manager Philip Diehl.
In a patient-professional relationship, of course, privacy is paramount in the healthcare sector. Businessfriend doesn’t strive to replace confidential Electronic Medical Records or release private information, but the site can help with scheduling, reminders, questions and general information.
Additionally, the spirit of Businessfriend focuses on connecting the work and social life of each individual – to the extent that they choose. Through Businessfriend, a healthcare facility’s employees can connect with colleagues, people within their fields and even clients in a controlled environment. This personalization and humanization of the professional online presence leads to the overall humanization of an employee’s workplace.
For healthcare facility executives, Businessfriend organizes events, meetings, shared information and articles, and encourages collaboration between intra- and inter-office colleagues. Additionally, healthcare supply chain executives are able to utilize the website’s calendar, doc sharing and more to set up vendor relationships, explore new products through company profiles and keep up with trends at similar facilities globally.
Taking Care Of BUSI
“Businessfriend allows you to engage with other platforms at the same time you engage with ours,” says Businessfriend Communications Director Rhonda Marable. “We aren’t asking users to ‘switch’ to Businessfriend and abandon other networks, but to acknowledge its value. It’s unique in its functionality, with its unique utility drawers and multitasking in a way that no other site does.”
Marable says, “productivity is the focus.” The site has adopted the term BUSI to describe its functionality as Business Utility/Social Identity. Users and companies who want to expand their presence and connectivity on Businessfriend can purchase customized tools that facilitate marketing, hiring and more.
Currently, Businessfriend is working on building its reach through professional events and partnering with foreign businesses to expand its global presence. For the healthcare field, a global business utility means professionals can network with their suppliers, vendors, customers, partners and more through one site, anywhere in the world, all from one location.
The Network Of Social Networks
Businessfriend is building a correlative and complementary relationship with social media behemoths LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter, says Marable.
“Every platform and certainly a business’ own website can provide value,” she says. “We are looking to enhance each social and professional opportunity for individuals to engage them and encourage them to engage with one another.”
The diversity and infinite idea of the Internet as a tool is a mind-boggling concept, and this new site is looking to help each person create a unique, personalized presence with the ability to connect, to change, to inspire and create with others in Businessfriend’s space. As described by Mashable Founder Pete Cashmore, connecting on our increasingly global, fast-paced world as a professional is a must.
“Those who insert themselves into as many channels as possible look set to capture the most value,” Cashmore says. “They’ll be the richest, the most successful, the most connected, capable and influential among us. We’re all publishers now, and the more we publish, the more valuable connections we’ll make.”
]]>Novartis argued that it needed a new patent to protect its investment in the cancer drug Glivec, while activists said the company was trying to use loopholes to make more money out of a drug that’s patent had expired. Many big pharma companies agreed with Novartis, stating that patents for improved drugs should be granted to facilitate further research and development.
The decision has global implications, since India's $26 billion generic drug industry supplies much of the cheap medicine used in the developing world.
The ruling has set a precedent that will prevent international pharmaceutical companies from obtaining fresh patents in India on updated versions of existing drugs. The landmark court ruling states that patents can only be given to new drugs.
Novartis has not yet made a comment regarding the outcome of the trial. The Swiss pharmaceutical giant has fought a legal battle in India since 2006 for a fresh patent for its leukemia drug Gleevec, known in India and Europe as Glivec.
India's patent office had rejected the company's patent application because it was not a new medicine but an amended version of its earlier product. The patent authority cited a legal provision in India's 2005 patent law aimed at preventing companies from getting fresh patents for making only minor changes to existing medicines, a practice known in the industry as “evergreening”.
Novartis appealed, arguing Glivec was a newer, more easily absorbed version of the drug and qualified for a fresh patent.
Aid groups, including Doctors Without Borders, have opposed Novartis' case, fearing that a victory for the Swiss drugmaker would limit access to important medicines for millions of poor people around the world.
Gleevec, used in treating chronic myeloid leukemia and some other cancers, costs about $2,600 a month. Its generic version was available in India for around $175 per month.
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“Big Pharma is nervous because nothing has gone in their favour in the recent past,” Ajay Kumar Sharma, Associate Director of the Pharmaceutical and Biotech Practice at business consultancy Frost & Sullivan says.“With this verdict, at least, things will get clearer about what is the definition of patented medicines.”
Novartis has been fighting since 2006 to win a patent for Glivec, which many oncologists view as a major advance in treating chronic myeloid leukaemia, which kills 80-90 percent of sufferers, and some gastrointestinal cancers.
India has refused protection for Glivec on the grounds that it is not a new medicine but an amended version of a known compound - a decision consistent with domestic patent law, which sets tight restrictions on multiple patents for a drug.
By contrast, in the United States, amended versions can be patented.
Novartis is seeking to overturn a clause in Indian Patents Law that restricts patent protection for newer forms of existing molecules, and next week's ruling could set a precedent for how other similar patent claims are treated.
Ranjit Shahani, Vice Chairman and Managing Director of Novartis India Limited, said cheap generics had an important role to play once drug patents expired, but the company was concerned about the non-recognition of patents that were ultimately needed to sustain drug research.
What do you think? We are keen to hear your thoughts on our Businessfriend page.
The social media concept can trip even the most professional people up if they do not know how to engage with it properly – take the instance in the news recently of Dr Amy Dunbar, an ob-gyn working at St. John’s Mercy Medical Center in St. Louis. Dunbar posted a comment to Facebook about a patient who was continually late for her scheduled appointments. Dunbar wrote:
“So I have a patient who has chosen to either no-show or be late (sometimes hours) for all of her prenatal visits, ultrasounds and NSTs. She is now 3 hours late for her induction. May I show up late to her delivery?”
When asked in the comments why she didn’t cancel the procedure or transfer the woman to another doctor, Dunbar publically announced that the patient in question had endured a stillbirth in the past. The post was visible not only to Dunbar’s 470 friends, but also to the wider Facebook community.
Dunbar’s posting angered and upset one reader, Amanda Johnson, who took a screenshot of the status update and posted it to a Facebook group run by Dunbar’s hospital – Mercy Moms To Be.
“When did it become okay for a doctor to ridicule and demean their patients?” Johnson, who works in the healthcare field, told Mashable in a Facebook message. “Even in my nursing home contract it very plainly states that we may not speak in any way of our clients, even if their names are not used.”
The Mercy Moms To Be Facebook page was frantic with comments for and against the post; many believed her comments were unprofessional and breached patient confidentiality, but some supported Dunbar and suggested that patient was at fault. Some also noted that Dunbar had never used the patient’s name.
After an investigation the hospital found that Dunbar had not in fact broken any patient privacy laws, nor were any of the hospitals management laws breached.
“Mercy values the dignity and privacy of all our patients and we are very sorry that this incident occurred. While our privacy compliance staff has confirmed that this physician’s comments did not represent a breach of privacy laws, they were inappropriate and not in line with our values of respect and dignity. Mercy holds its physicians and other co-workers to high standards in ensuring the protection of patient information. We cannot comment on specific disciplinary actions, but we will use this as an opportunity to reinforce our standards through additional education of our physicians and co-workers, including appropriate use of social media.”
And therein lies the problem. Many physicians and other medical employees are not given strict rules of engagement for social media networks. It is no wonder that mistakes are made if hospitals are providing their staff with guidelines that can be interpreted in more ways than one. Hospital executives need to be giving their employees strict rules and regulations about how to use social media sites to help them avoid any mistakes. It may take time to implement, but it could save an expensive and damaging PR campaign to rectify the damage caused in the long run.
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