In the News

Nurse Practitioners Slowly Gain Autonomy - According to The Pew Charitable Trusts on July 19, 2013 some states are trying to fill the primary care physician shortage with nurses who have advanced degrees in family medicine. Advocates for patients, hospitals and insurers agree that allowing nurse practitioners (NPs) to fill in for doctors makes sense when it comes to basic services. But physician groups vigorously oppose the changes, arguing that nurses lack the training to safely diagnose, treat, refer to specialists, admit to hospitals and prescribe medications for patients, without a doctor’s oversight.But for the nursing profession, the gold standard is full independence. That is the only way, advocates argue, that NPs will be able to make a dent in patients’ access to care. TO READ MORE CLICK HERE




Is GME Snubbing Rural America - According to Media Health Leaders on June 19, 2013-The U.S. Census for 2010 says that one in five people —19.3% of the population, about 59.4 million people—live in rural America. Unfortunately, a new report this month from George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services says that only 4.8% of new physicians plan to establish a practice in rural areas, despite the critical need. It's a topic that's been predicted and discussed for decades. We know what the problem is but we can't fix it.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Shortage of primary care doctors forces groups to adapt - According to News telegram.com on July 25, 2013-Since the state passed a health reform law in 2006 mandating health insurance coverage, demand for internal medicine and family practice physicians to manage office-based patient care has soared. Not only has the Reliant medical group hired seven more advanced-practice clinicians, such as nurse practitioners and physician assistants, who provide primary care under a physician's supervision, but it also employs nurses and medical assistants in innovative ways. Medical assistants work with Reliant's database to contact high-risk patients with chronic diseases, including depression, who may be overdue for an appointment or need a check-in on medication.TO READ MORE. CLICK HERE

In the News

Study Predicts 5.6 Million New Health Care Jobs by 2020, with Demand Highest for Nurses - According to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation on June 27,2013 the United States health care workforce will have to expand by almost 30 percent between 2010 and 2020 to meet growing demand for care. Nursing will grow the fastest among healthcare occupations. The estimated 5.6 million health care job vacancies created over the next ten years is expected to be the most dramatic growth in any job sector in the country during that time period.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE




How Can We Expand the Primary Care Workforce? - According to the Robert Wood Johnson Founduation on January 1, 2012 - Primary care is vital to disease prevention yet the United States has a deficit of nearly 40,000 primary care physicians. Because of this shortage, many people have little access to primary care and increasingly are turning to hospital emergency rooms for care—or going without. How Can We Expand the Primary Care Workforce?TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Doctors working in fast-food restaurants - According to CNN Health on July 4, 2013 in Southern California alone, there are an estimated 3,000 medically trained Latino immigrant doctors who aren't practicing medicine. Instead of treating patients many doctors spend years cleaning houses or working on construction sites and in fast-food chain restaurants. Latino immigrant doctors have a harder time transitioning into the U.S. health system. The IMG program has helped 66 Latino immigrant doctors pass the board exams and get placed into residency programs.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE

In the News

Top U.S. States Where Doctors Go Digital - According to a Bloomberg.com article on June 25th, 2013: What's your family's health history? Imagine not having to recount any of that. That's one benefit of electronic medical records. Depending where you live in the U.S., your medical records may still be stuck in the 20th century. In 2012, 29.7 percent of South Carolina's office-based doctors used basic electronic medical records. That's lower than the national average of 39.6 percent. TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Southern states have too few dentists for residents, Pew study finds - According to the Post and Courier on June 28th, 2013: Several Southern states have some of the most severe dentist shortages in the country. Tony Keck, director of South Carolina’s Department of Health and Human Services, said South Carolina’s Medicaid program doesn’t face the same financial problems plaguing Louisiana. Mississippi ranked at the top of the list with 36.3 percent of its population underserved by dentists, and Louisiana and Alabama tied for second at 24.4 percent. TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Perspective: Envy-A Strategy for Reform - According to a perspective written by Drs. Nick Seddon and Thomas Lee in The New England Journal of Medicine on June 13, 2013, they believe that envy has an appropriate place in health policy, if in this case it means health systems struggling to address specific weaknesses by identifying strengths in other systems that they could emulate. For starters, the United States should envy the United Kingdom's commitment to universal access to health care, not because it suggests moral superiority but because it confers a strategic advantage. Character traits may be hard to change, but the English could do with a bit of American optimism, whereas the Americans would benefit from a bit of English stoicism.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



In the News

Redefining Leadership and Medical Teams - The June issue of the AMA Journal of Ethics takes a look at the ethical impact of team-based care in clinical practice, medical education and administrative leadership. Read the editor's overview here.In clinical practice, responsibility for patient care is shifting from individual physicians to groups comprising different specialists who, together, are accountable for “episodes” of care.The “team” challenge, so to speak, is that doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and others, e.g., physical therapists, working as a clinical team must provide integrated, coordinated patient-centered care, despite the specific competencies that each possesses and spheres of practice that each represents.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Medical Schools Not Graduating Enough Primary Care Docs - According to Physicians News Digest on June 13th, 2013: The nation’s medical education system — and the graduate medical education funding that supports it — are failing to produce the primary care physician workforce needed by Americans, particularly those who live in rural areas. The percentage of graduates going into primary care overall was less than 25 percent. Fewer than 5 percent practiced in rural areas.Primary care physician production of 25.2 percent and rural physician production of 4.8 percent will not sustain the current workforce, solve problems of maldistribution or address acknowledged shortages.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Adequate and Stable Nurse Staffing Is Key to Improving Care for Heart Failure Patients - According to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation on May 1st, 2013: A new study, funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Interdisciplinary Nursing Quality Research Initiative (INQRI), in the current issue of Medical Care found that rural hospitals with lower nurse turnover are more likely to implement all four measures that are central to optimal care for heart failure patients. The four measures are providing smoking cessation counseling; providing adequate instructions to patients being discharged from the hospital; assessing how well the heart pumps; and making sure the patient receives medication to help blood vessels relax. The results of this study really speak to the central role nurses play in almost any quality improvement effort.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE

In the News

What Can Be Done to Encourage More Interprofessional Collaboration in Health Care? - According to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation in the September 2011, our health care system today is fraught with errors. Both the human and financial costs are enormous. In 2011, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reported that, at any given time, about one in every 20 patients has an infection related to their hospital care. Most health care providers today were educated in silos with only those from their own profession. Few were trained to work as part of integrated teams. Research has long suggested that collaboration improves coordination, communication and, ultimately, the quality and safety of patient care.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



How can nurses help improve access to primary care? - According to Robert Wood Johnson Foundation in the September 2011 issue, the Accountable Care Act will bring some 30 million uninsured Americans into a health care system already grappling with an acute need for primary care providers and an aging population with more complex, chronic health problems. The nation's 3.1 million nurses—who comprise the largest health care profession—play an integral role. Given the demands on the system for primary care and for health care in underserved communities, advanced practical registered nurses (APRNs) are especially critical.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Lower Nurse Turnover Linked to Higher Quality Care in Rural Hospitals - According to NurseZone.com on May 8, 2013 - They found that the rural hospitals with low nursing turnover were more likely to implement four core measures for the care of heart failure patients: (1) providing adequate discharge instructions; (2) providing smoking cessation counseling; (3) assessing how well the heart pumps; and (4) ensuring the patient receives medication to relax blood vessels. What nurses do makes a difference,” said Newhouse, chair and professor of organizational systems and adult health at the University of Maryland School of Nursing.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE

In the News

Lower Nurse Turnover Linked to Higher Quality Care in Rural Hospitals - According to NurseZone.com on May 8, 2013 - They found that the rural hospitals with low nursing turnover were more likely to implement four core measures for the care of heart failure patients: (1) providing adequate discharge instructions; (2) providing smoking cessation counseling; (3) assessing how well the heart pumps; and (4) ensuring the patient receives medication to relax blood vessels. What nurses do makes a difference,” said Newhouse, chair and professor of organizational systems and adult health at the University of Maryland School of Nursing.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



A New Approach to Recruitment and Retention - According to AAFP on May 1, 2013 - We invest years of time and energy into our more than 460 family medicine residencies -- selecting, training and preparing our bright new family doctors. What if there was a program for newly minted family doctors looking to find their ideal practice? Let's call it FamilyDocMatch.com.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



8 trends for a changing healthcare workforce - According to Healthcare IT News on February 17, 2012 - Clinton Wingrove, EVP and principal consultant at Pilat HR Solutions, thinks, though, lessons can be learned from the various issues industry leaders are facing. Whether its recruiting or training, or dealing with the incoming millennial workers, he outlines eight trends concerning the changing healthcare workforce.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE

In the News

How Can We Expand the Primary Care Workforce? - According to RWJF on January 1st, 2012 the United States has a deficit of nearly 40,000 primary care physicians—a situation that is expected to worsen as the population continues to age and as millions more Americans become insured through health reform.The shortage of primary care providers is especially dire in many rural and urban areas. Nurse practitioners and physician assistants can play a key role in improving access to quality primary care. TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Rural hospitals apply lean patient care - According to Charleston Regional Businesss Journal on February 6th, 2013 recently, Newberry County Memorial Hospital was selected to participate in the Carolinas Rural Hospital Lean Culture Transformation Collaborative. The collaborative is a four-year initiative funded in part by a $5 million grant from The Duke Endowment. Over the next three years, Newberry and the other three S.C. hospitals will concentrate on implementing “lean,” a business improvement philosophy with practices first applied in manufacturing and now used in all segments of industry, including health care. CLICK HERE



From a Young Doctor: A Tribute to Nurses - According to Huffpost Healthy Living on May 13th, 2013 As we celebrate this year's Nurses Week, I am reminded of the Hippocrates saying that the goal of medicine is "to cure sometimes, to relieve often, to comfort always." This, too, I learn through daily example from the amazing nurses I work with. Thank you, Leana Wen M.D. TO READ MORE CLICK HERE

In the News

VA Drive to Hire 1,600 Mental Health Professionals Hits Community Clinics' Supply - According to Kaiser Health News, on April 7, 2013 The Department of Veterans Affairs, trying to cope with a surge in psychological needs of veterans, has vowed to hire 1,600 additional mental health care professionals by the end of June, but some experts say the pool of qualified candidates is too small and the federal effort could jeopardize already-understaffed community health organizations. "Being a clinician in the mental health field is not a very lucrative profession," Rudd said. "Often the cost of education has driven people into other fields where they are better able to pay off their loans." VA officials have been under intense pressure to improve services for veterans and the White House promised Friday to increase funding for veterans' mental health services by 7.2 percent to $7 billion in the fiscal year starting in October.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Rural Healthcare Workforce Shortages Defy Easy Solutions - According to Health Leaders Media, on February 27th 2013 With the clock ticking on sequestration and its cuts to healthcare funding, it seems callous to pile onto rural providers with more gray news. The Association of American Medical Colleges issued its annual report, Physician Education Debt and the Cost to Attend Medical School, and found that while the average debt load for medical school graduates in 2012 was $170,000—up 5% over 2011—those new doctors did not prioritize debt as the driving force in their decisions to seek a particular specialty. In fact, "education debt" placed 11th—dead last—on the list of "influence of various factors on the specialty choice of 2012 graduating medical students."TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Men in Nursing Occupations - According to Random Samplings, on February 25th, 2013 In 2011, there were 330,000 men employed as nurses in the United States – about 9 percent of all nurses. As the need for nurses expanded during the Civil War along with a shortage of men to provide nursing care, women were allowed to fill the gap. As such, men’s representation in nursing experienced significant decline in the 1900s. However, men’s representation in nursing has been growing since the 1970s. Schools are now actively pursuing higher male enrollment in their nursing programs. The relatively high wages and expanding job opportunities makes this field attractive, offering stability even during recessions.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE

In the News

Men in Nursing Occupations - According to Random Samplings, on February 25th, 2013 In 2011, there were 330,000 men employed as nurses in the United States – about 9 percent of all nurses. As the need for nurses expanded during the Civil War along with a shortage of men to provide nursing care, women were allowed to fill the gap. As such, men’s representation in nursing experienced significant decline in the 1900s. However, men’s representation in nursing has been growing since the 1970s. Schools are now actively pursuing higher male enrollment in their nursing programs. The relatively high wages and expanding job opportunities makes this field attractive, offering stability even during recessions.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE


Shortage of health IT workers hits home with physicians - According to amednews.com, on March 25th, 2013 Evidence is mounting that the health information technology work force shortage predicted several years ago is happening and that it’s affecting physician practices, even though many don’t have in-house IT staff. As hospitals scramble to meet their staffing needs, they are hiring professionals from boutique consulting practices and bringing them in-house, said John Edwards, director of PwC’s Health Industries Advisory Practice. Physician practices can use some of the same remedies that hospitals can employ to combat the shortage, Edwards said.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Telemedicine bill moves to full Senate - According to GreenvilleOnline.com, on April 19th, 2013 The Senate Medical Affairs Committee unanimously approved a telemedicine bill Thursday and sent it to the full Senate. The bill, S.290, provides a framework for a large-scale telemedicine test run. It requires the state employee health plan -- but not all insurance plans -- to reimburse doctors for diagnosis or treatment of patients in another location using interactive audio, video, or data communications starting in January 2014.
That means if a child at a physician's office in Spartanburg has a serious heart problem, the physician can consult with one of the pediatric heart experts at MUSC in Charleston via teleconference, and the state health insurance will pay for the service.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE

In the News

 

Generational Diversity: Implications for Nurse Staffing - According to Advance for Nurses on April 5th, 2013 The healthcare environment and the nursing workplace has become more complex than ever and is increasingly dependent upon contributions from each team member to ensure that patients receive the care they require in an efficient and cost effective manner. Generational diversity is apparent as there are currently four generations in the workplace: the traditionalists (aka: the greatest generation/silent generation/veterans), baby boomers (aka: boomers), Generation X (aka: X'ers) and the millennials (aka: Generation Y, Y'ers, echo boomers). This staffing situation is not unique to nursing, or even to healthcare, and it is present in all industries. That span of six decades includes a very diverse group of people, all with different attitudes, expectations, morals, beliefs, values, desires and life experiences. TO READ MORE CLICK HERE


America's Fastest Growing Job Pays Poorly - According to Yahoo Finance, on March 11th, 2013 Meet home health care aides. These nearly 2 million workers do everything from prepare meals and clean homes, to bathe and change bedpans for elderly and disabled patients. But even though there are plenty of job opportunities, many of these people make the same wage as teenagers flipping burgers or selling clothes at the mall. The average hourly wage is just $9.70 an hour, according to the Labor Department. TO READ MORE CLICK HERE


Interprofessional Education-Reflecting Upon the Past, Scanning the Future - According to the Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation, on March 1st, 2013 Dr. Scott Reeves has witnessed an impressive expansion in the use of interprofessional education (IPE) across the globe.From countries geographically spread as far apart as Japan, Sweden, Australia, the U.K. and Canada, he has seen a range of impressive IPE activities during this time period (e.g. online learning, teamwork simulation, IPE competencies). For colleagues based in the U.S., it has also been encouraging to be experiencing a renaissance of interest in IPE with the leadership of the Macy Foundation, the growth of funding, recent IPE workshops at the Institute of Medicine and a newly forming National Center.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE

In the News

North Charleston nursing grad struggles to find work in changing healthcare industry - According to the Post and Courier, April 8 2013, Report after report suggests that jobs in the health care industry are booming. However, nurses with two-year degrees are being passed over for those with four-year degrees. Marilyn Schaffner, the chief nursing officer at the Medical University of South Carolina’s Medical Center, said close to 60 percent of nurses at the hospital there have bachelor’s degrees. The Future of Nursing Initiative by the Institute of Medicine recommends that 80 percent of all registered nurses should have bachelor’s degrees by 2020.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE


Grants bring needed doctors to rural South Carolina - According to the Post and Courier, March 30th 2013, Just one doctor serves as many as 10,000 people in some rural parts of South Carolina. Most rural communities in South Carolina can't attract doctors if they try. Wade Lamb knew from the moment he began studying medicine that he would return to his rural home here in the heart of Pee Dee farming country to open his medical practice. Lamb received a lot of help to make sure that happened. Lake City Community Hospital offered to pay off his medical tuition and books if he returned to practice.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE


Nurses for poor mothers linked to healthy births in SC - According to The State, April 3 2013, When Brittany Rogers of Greenville found out she was pregnant, she was terrified. Now, because of a program called Nurse Family Partnership that provides low-income women in their first pregnancies with home visits from registered nurses, Rogers’ confidence in motherhood has grown. Available in limited areas of the state since 2008, the partnership’s goal is to reduce premature and low-weight births and costly stays in neo-natal intensive care units, specifically among first-time mothers who qualify for Medicaid – the joint federal and state health insurance program for the poor and disabled.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE

In the News

Cigna Continues Expansion of Collaborative Accountable Care to Improve Health Outcomes and Lower Costs - According to the Fort Mill Times on January 16, 2013 Cigna continues to expand its collaborative accountable care (CAC) program through 10 new initiatives with physician groups in nine states, including the company’s first CACs in Florida, Indiana, Louisiana and South Carolina. These programs focus on expanding patient access to health care, improving care coordination, and achieving the “triple aim” of improved health outcomes (quality), affordability and patient satisfaction.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Congratulations to the 2013 Hastings Center Cunniff-Dixon Physician Awardees - According to GeriPal on January 15, 2013 the recipients for the 2013 Hastings Center Cunniff-Dixon Physican Awards are Charles G. Sasser, M.D., FACP, FAAHPM director of palliative care services at Conway Medical Center, Daniel C. Johnson, M.D., FAAHPM, national physician lead for palliative care at Kaiser Permanente's Care Management Institute, Drew Rosielle, M.D., a palliative care physician and program director for the Hospice and Palliative Medicine Fellowship, Jane de Lima Thomas, M.D., a palliative care physician and associate director of the Harvard Palliative Medicine Fellowship Program, and Alen Voskanian, M.D., regional medical director, VITAS Innovative Hospice Care. This one of a kind national award recognizes excellence in the care of patients at the end of life.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Charleston doctor honored for overseas work - According to The Post and Courier on January 17, 2013 Dr. Robert Clifford has been named a recipient of the Save the Children Federation’s REAL Award, a distinction “designed to develop greater respect and appreciation for health workers and the lifesaving care they provide globally, as well as in the United States.” Clifford, a Charleston native, said he was humbled by the nomination and overwhelmed to learn that he won. Clifford graduated from the Medical University of South Carolina in 1996 and serves as a faculty member there.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



In the News

For nursing jobs, new grads need not apply - According to CNN Money, on January 14th, 2013 Registered nurses fresh out of school are coming across thousands of job postings with an impossible requirement: "no new grads." About 43% of newly licensed RNs still do not have jobs within 18 months after graduation, according to a survey conducted by the American Society of Registered Nurses. The recession is to blame, says Peter Buerhaus, a registered nurse and economist who teaches at the Vanderbilt University School of Nursing.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Francis Marion University to Introduce Two New Graduate Nursing Programs in January - According to SCNOW.com on December 1, 2012 January will mark the start of two new graduate nursing programs at Francis Marion University and, according to the faculty orchestrating them, a move toward better health care in the Pee Dee. Though it took two years to get the tracks up and running, according to nursing department chair Dr. Ruth Wittmann-Price, there were virtually not obstacles to get the degrees in place. “The area is in such dire need,” Wittmann-Price said. CLICK HERE



Rural Physician Honored by South Carolina Office Of Rural Health - According to TheTandD.com on November 30, 2012 Bamberg physician Dr. Danette McAlhaney has been named the 2012 Outstanding Rural Practitioner of the Year by the South Carolina Office of Rural Health. The award, presented at the organization’s annual conference in Hilton Head, is awarded to a rural primary health care provider whose services and community commitment have resulted in significant improvement in the delivery of primary health care service.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE

In the News

Francis Marion University to Introduce Two New Graduate Nursing Programs in January - According to SCNOW.com on December 1, 2012 January will mark the start of two new graduate nursing programs at Francis Marion University and, according to the faculty orchestrating them, a move toward better health care in the Pee Dee. Though it took two years to get the tracks up and running, according to nursing department chair Dr. Ruth Wittmann-Price, there were virtually not obstacles to get the degrees in place. “The area is in such dire need,” Wittmann-Price said. CLICK HERE



Rural Physician Honored by South Carolina Office Of Rural Health - According to TheTandD.com on November 30, 2012 Bamberg physician Dr. Danette McAlhaney has been named the 2012 Outstanding Rural Practitioner of the Year by the South Carolina Office of Rural Health. The award, presented at the organization’s annual conference in Hilton Head, is awarded to a rural primary health care provider whose services and community commitment have resulted in significant improvement in the delivery of primary health care service.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Doctors describe pressures driving them from independent practice - According to amednews.com, November 19, 2012, Some physicians, facing daunting business costs, decide the price of autonomy isn’t worth it. Only about one in three is expected to hold a practice ownership stake in 2013. Consultants say there will continue to be a place for small, independent practices, but it might be like small businesses in other industries, where large players have taken the majority of the market. TO READ MORE CLICK HERE

In the News

Doctors describe pressures driving them from independent practice - According to amednews.com, November 19, 2012, Some physicians, facing daunting business costs, decide the price of autonomy isn’t worth it. Only about one in three is expected to hold a practice ownership stake in 2013. Consultants say there will continue to be a place for small, independent practices, but it might be like small businesses in other industries, where large players have taken the majority of the market. TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Patients form center of med school training - According to Greenville Online, November 25, 2012, It’s part of a new model of medical education called competency-based training that’s aimed at producing doctors who give STEEEP — or safe, timely, efficient, effective, equitable and patient-centered — care, Dr. Carol Aschenbrener, chief medical education officer at the Association of American Medical Colleges, told GreenvilleOnline.com. In traditional medical education, George, a first-year med student at the school, typically wouldn’t get any time with a patient until his third year. This early simulation is designed to help medical students apply what they are learning as they’re learning it.



TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Revised Medicare Penalties Hit Some States Hard - According to Kaiser Health News, on October 22nd, Medicare revised its penalties from the new Readmissions Reduction Program at the end of September after discovering it had made small errors in its calculations affecting more than 1,400 hospitals. A total of 2,217 hospitals, or 71 percent of those eligible, are receiving penalties for having too many patients with heart attacks, heart failure or pneumonia return within 30 days. Only hospitals with at least 25 heart failure, heart attack or pneumonia cases for Medicare to evaluate were eligible.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE

In the News

Revised Medicare Penalties Hit Some States Hard - According to Kaiser Health News, on October 22nd, Medicare revised its penalties from the new Readmissions Reduction Program at the end of September after discovering it had made small errors in its calculations affecting more than 1,400 hospitals. A total of 2,217 hospitals, or 71 percent of those eligible, are receiving penalties for having too many patients with heart attacks, heart failure or pneumonia return within 30 days. Only hospitals with at least 25 heart failure, heart attack or pneumonia cases for Medicare to evaluate were eligible.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Home Health Aides: In Demand, Yet Paid Little - According to NPR, on October 16th, the home care workforce — some 2.5 million strong — is one of the nation's fastest growing yet also worst paid. Right now, many home health aides get no training at all. There's little path to advancement. And with a median wage less than $10 an hour, it's hard to call this a career. Advocates say one big problem is a decades-old law that exempts home care workers from federal minimum wage and overtime.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Health care students seek edge in new charter school - According to The TandD, on October 13th, Orangeburg Consolidated School District Five’s new charter school is giving 68 local ninth and tenth graders a chance to prepare for careers in the health care field. The mission of the High School for Health Professions(HSHP)is to give students a competitive edge throughout high school and college and their professional careers, Principal Angel Hightower reported at Tuesday night’s OCSD 5 board meeting. Hightower also reported that HSHP students will be able to take dual course credits at Orangeburg-Calhoun Technical College and Claflin University.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE

In the News

Home Health Aides: In Demand, Yet Paid Little - According to NPR, on October 16th, the home care workforce — some 2.5 million strong — is one of the nation's fastest growing yet also worst paid. Right now, many home health aides get no training at all. There's little path to advancement. And with a median wage less than $10 an hour, it's hard to call this a career. Advocates say one big problem is a decades-old law that exempts home care workers from federal minimum wage and overtime.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Health care students seek edge in new charter school - According to The TandD, on October 13th, Orangeburg Consolidated School District Five’s new charter school is giving 68 local ninth and tenth graders a chance to prepare for careers in the health care field. The mission of the High School for Health Professions(HSHP)is to give students a competitive edge throughout high school and college and their professional careers, Principal Angel Hightower reported at Tuesday night’s OCSD 5 board meeting. Hightower also reported that HSHP students will be able to take dual course credits at Orangeburg-Calhoun Technical College and Claflin University.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



SC legislator calls for routine dental office inspections - According to DrBicuspid.com, October 15th, 2012 South Carolina lawmakers say the state should consider routine inspections of dental offices. Some 15 states conduct regular inspections of dental offices; South Carolina currently only does routine inspections of barbershops and hair salons. The VA notified 535 veterans that they may have been exposed to hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and HIV by Dwight Pemberton, DDS, the dentist who allegedly failed to properly sterilize dental instruments between patients between 1992 and 2010.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE

In the News

Health care students seek edge in new charter school - According to The TandD, on October 13th, Orangeburg Consolidated School District Five’s new charter school is giving 68 local ninth and tenth graders a chance to prepare for careers in the health care field. The mission of the High School for Health Professions(HSHP)is to give students a competitive edge throughout high school and college and their professional careers, Principal Angel Hightower reported at Tuesday night’s OCSD 5 board meeting. Hightower also reported that HSHP students will be able to take dual course credits at Orangeburg-Calhoun Technical College and Claflin University.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



SC legislator calls for routine dental office inspections - According to DrBicuspid.com, October 15th, 2012 South Carolina lawmakers say the state should consider routine inspections of dental offices. Some 15 states conduct regular inspections of dental offices; South Carolina currently only does routine inspections of barbershops and hair salons. The VA notified 535 veterans that they may have been exposed to hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and HIV by Dwight Pemberton, DDS, the dentist who allegedly failed to properly sterilize dental instruments between patients between 1992 and 2010.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Nearly half of physicians struggle with burnout - According to American Medical News, September 3rd, 2012 the many rigors and stresses of medical practice mean that physicians experience burnout at higher rates than the general population. They work an average of 10 hours more per week and are nearly twice as likely to be dissatisfied with their work-life balance, according to an Archives of Internal Medicine study published online Aug. 20. TO READ MORE CLICK HERE

News from September 25th through October 15th

In the News

SC legislator calls for routine dental office inspections - According to DrBicuspid.com, October 15th, 2012 South Carolina lawmakers say the state should consider routine inspections of dental offices. Some 15 states conduct regular inspections of dental offices; South Carolina currently only does routine inspections of barbershops and hair salons. The VA notified 535 veterans that they may have been exposed to hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and HIV by Dwight Pemberton, DDS, the dentist who allegedly failed to properly sterilize dental instruments between patients between 1992 and 2010.TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Nearly half of physicians struggle with burnout - According to American Medical News, September 3rd, 2012 the many rigors and stresses of medical practice mean that physicians experience burnout at higher rates than the general population. They work an average of 10 hours more per week and are nearly twice as likely to be dissatisfied with their work-life balance, according to an Archives of Internal Medicine study published online Aug. 20. TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Luring Students Into Family Medicine - According to The New York Times, September 9th, 2012, Most students going into medicine imagine that they will have daily contact with their patients; but the reality is that only a minority will end up as primary care physicians, causing what some experts say could be a critical shortage in the United States, where there are long waits in both doctors’ offices and emergency rooms. TO READ MORE CLICK HERE

News from September 7th through the 25th 2012

In the News

Nearly half of physicians struggle with burnout - According to American Medical News, September 3rd, 2012 the many rigors and stresses of medical practice mean that physicians experience burnout at higher rates than the general population. They work an average of 10 hours more per week and are nearly twice as likely to be dissatisfied with their work-life balance, according to an Archives of Internal Medicine study published online Aug. 20. TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Luring Students Into Family Medicine - According to The New York Times, September 9th, 2012, Most students going into medicine imagine that they will have daily contact with their patients; but the reality is that only a minority will end up as primary care physicians, causing what some experts say could be a critical shortage in the United States, where there are long waits in both doctors’ offices and emergency rooms. TO READ MORE CLICK HERE



Nurse practitioners an underused resource - According to Star-Telegram, September 13th, 2012 nurses are crucial to the future of healthcare in our state. Texas ranks 47th of 50 states in supply of primary care physicians, and 185 of the state's 254 counties are designated as medically underserved. Texas does not have enough first-year residency slots to train Texas medical school graduates. TO READ MORE CLICK HERE