Data suggests patients in veterans' hospitals receive inadequate osteoporosis evaluation, treatment.

MedWire reported, "Few elderly people with hip fracture receive adequate evaluation and treatment for osteoporosis, a study of patients attending US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) hospitals shows." For the study, published in the journal Osteoporosis International, researchers "reviewed the medical records of 3347 patients treated for hip fracture between 2004 and 2006." They found that "only 42 (1.2%) fracture patients underwent" bone mineral density testing; and "only 487 (14.5%) received osteoporosis therapy within 12 months of fracture."

Many painkiller prescription errors caused by similar looking, sounding monikers.

HealthDay reported, "Confusion caused by look-alike and sound-alike names contributes to a large number of the painkiller prescription errors that occur in hospitals," according to a study published in the January issue of The Journal of Pain. Researchers reviewed "714,290 orders for painkillers in a large database of pharmacist-detected-and-

prevented prescribing errors." The researchers found that "the overall error rate was 2.87 per 1,000 prescriptions (2,044 cases) and the rate of potentially serious prescribing errors was 0.63 per 1,000 (449 cases)."

Patients with dementia often subjected to aggressive treatments, transfers.

The New York Times  "The New Old Age" blog reported that "dementia patients are often subjected to aggressive treatments and transfers, even though studies show little benefit," according to a study published online Jan. 10 in the Archives of Internal Medicine. In a study involving "more than 300 patients with advanced dementia in Boston-area nursing homes over a period of 18 months," researchers also found that the majority of "hospital trips occurred when patients developed respiratory infections, particularly pneumonia, a common and recurring problem when dementia progresses to its final stages." The study's lead author estimated that approximately three-quarters of hospitalizations could be avoided.

Patients in hospitals where nurses work long hours may be more likely to die of pneumonia, heart attack.

HealthDay reported that "patients in hospitals where nurses work long hours are much more likely to die of pneumonia and heart attack," according to a study published in the journal Nursing Research. Investigators "looked at patient outcomes and staffing information at 71 acute care hospitals in Illinois and North Carolina, along with survey responses from 633 nurses who worked at the hospitals." Nursing professor and study author Alison Trinkoff explained, "Alertness and vigilance required for providing good nursing care depend upon having an adequate duration of quality sleep and rest, and long work hours can impact the quality of nursing care and can increase the potential for error."

Many at high heart risk don't get enough drugs

Reuters reports on a new study that found patients hospitalized after suffering a heart attack are missing the kind of intensive cholesterol-lowering drugs that could save their lives. It is recommended that people who have survived a heart attack be placed on intensive lipid-lowering therapy, but those guidelines are often not followed, according to data from the new study. Study author Dr. Gregg Fonarow said because physicians are not advising treatments based on what has proven effective, "there are patients that are having coronary events that could have been prevented."

Many Americans struggling with medical bills sent in error to collection agencies.

In "Patient Money," the New York Times reported that "an estimated 14 million Americans are struggling with medical bills that they believe were sent in error to collection agencies, according to the Commonwealth Fund, a nonprofit healthcare research group." What's more, "nearly half of all collection accounts that appear on consumer credit reports are unpaid medical bills, according to a study by the Federal Reserve." Notably, "when medical bills do go unpaid, doctors, hospitals or other medical providers rarely report the debts directly to the big three credit reporting agencies -- Experian, TransUnion and Equifax -- as most creditors would," but instead "sell unpaid bills to collection agencies for pennies on the dollar."

Patient Safety Is Not Improving in Hospitals, Study Finds

Study finds that medical malpractice attorneys are needed now more than ever as patient safety in hospitals continues to decline.

Editorial: Preventable medical mistakes take an intolerable toll

From the editorial page of the USA Today, comes an excellent editorial raising many valid concerns about hospital safety.  In the midst of a recent study showing that 1 in every 7 Medicare patients hospitalized suffer serious injuries due to medical negligence, USA Today offers several solutions to combat these senseless injuries.  Some solutions offered include creating medical checklists and providing more transparency. 

Study: Treatment mistakes for 1 in 7 hospitalized Medicare patients

In a study released Tuesday, the Department of Health and Human Services concluded that one in every seven hospitalized Medicare patients are harmed by treatment mistakes.  The report cites a variety of "adverse events" or causes for treatment errors, including excessive bleeding after surgery, urinary tract infections linked to catheters and incorrect medications.  Researchers estimate that these types of adverse events contribute to 15,000 deaths per month or 180,000 deaths each year, according to the report. 

Needless to say, many patient rights groups find these new statistics quite alarming.  Patients concerned about hospitals making harmful mistakes are suggested to bring someone with them to the hospital, be knowledgable about medications taken, and be cautious of catheters. 

US Dialysis patients face one of the highest death rates outside third world

A recent study has shown that Dialysis patients in the United States have a death rate comparable to those seen in developing nations even as U.S. taxpayers spend $20 billion a year on dialysis.  The study states "Over the course of more than a year, ProPublica reviewed thousands of inspection reports and interviewed more than 100 patients, advocates, doctors, policy makers, researchers and industry experts to get a grasp on American dialysis. The findings were bleak: At clinics from coast to coast, patients commonly receive treatment in settings that are unsanitary and prone to perilous lapses in care. Regulators have few tools and little will to enforce quality standards. Industry consolidation has left patients with fewer choices of provider. The government has withheld critical data about clinics' performance from patients, the very people who need it most. Meanwhile, the two corporate chains that dominate the dialysis-care system are consistently profitable, together making about $2 billion in operating profits a year."

Medical errors cost $20 billion a year

A recent study has shown that medical errors cost the health industry upwards of $20 billion dollars a year.  The study also shows that medical errors caused 2,500 avoidable deaths and over 10,000 missed days of work in 2008. 

Study finds that many doctors don't report incompetency

A recent study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association has found that many doctors fail to report incompetent colleagues.  The study surveyed 3,000 doctors and concluded that doctors who practice in small offices are the least likely to report an incompetent colleague while those who work in hospitals are more likely to report incompetence. 

There is an excellent article entitled "Combating Abusive Arbitration Clauses in Nursing Home Contracts" written by Leslie A. Bailey, Matthew S. Melamed and F. Paul Bland that should be must reading for anyone facing such an arbitration clause. A copy of

If you are facing an arbitration clause in a nursing home contract that bars you from seeking redress in a court of law than you owe it to yourself to read this article which is contained in the library section.