Category: Hospitals

Financial Status a Barrier to Organ Transplantation But Not Donation.

It is easier to give than to receive in the transplant world.

organ donationIn a comment added to a recent article about the current financial status of Catholic Health Initiatives (the parent company of KentuckyOne Health) it was alleged that Jewish Hospital in Louisville did not accept Medicaid patients for organ transplantation. Because of the seriousness of this allegation, I was reluctant to allow it to stand without further comment. I therefore did some research and elicited comments from involved parties. The results trouble me and highlight yet another major example of the disparity of access to health care in our inherently unfair non-system, dividing Americans as it does by socio-economic status. In the case of transplantation, the operational result is particularly ugly, because the weight of government regulation and community has given us a morally indefensible result analogous to the rich stealing organs from the poor. I call this an example of the “Reverse Robin Hood” nature of America’s National Health System! Neither Jewish Hospital nor UofL are responsible for this situation, but have benefited from it. Continue reading “Financial Status a Barrier to Organ Transplantation But Not Donation.”

UofL Hires New Director for Bone Marrow Transplant Program.

One program or two?

I had not planned on writing quite so soon about bone marrow transplantation, but in doing my background work on U.S. News & World Report’s designation of the James Graham Brown Cancer Center as a regional high-performing cancer program, I learned that the Center has just recruited a new director for their bone marrow transplant program. Dr. William Tse is an experienced clinician and academician, was recruited from West Virginia University, and will begin in Louisville in early November. This was a fast, high-priority recruitment for the University of Louisville and the Brown Cancer Center following the loss of several clinical and research faculty faculty to the University of Kentucky, and a requirement for a minimal number of specifically-trained physicians to retain essential accreditation. Bone marrow transplantation, part of the growing field of cellular or stem-cell therapy, currently plays important part in the treatment of leukemia and other malignant diseases, and of inherited genetic disorders. Cellular therapy comprises a prominent part of the University’s commercial research portfolio.

Things looking up?
I had the opportunity to speak with one of the program’s current physicians who is optimistic about the future of the program. Although I was not given the updated procedure numbers for the two programs, I am told that they are on the way back up, as are are the numbers of clinical research protocols planned. Here is a chart updated with numbers of bone marrow transplants in 2013 as reported to the state. Continue reading “UofL Hires New Director for Bone Marrow Transplant Program.”

University of Louisville Hospital Designated as Best Regional Hospital for Cancer in Louisville.

Kudos to my colleagues at University Hospital.

jgbcancercenterI recently wrote about the disappointing representation of Kentucky’s hospitals in this year’s 2015 version of US News & World Reports list of Best Hospitals. Of Kentucky’s approximately 130 acute-care hospitals for adults, not a single one achieved national ranking in any of 16 different specialties. Nine Kentucky Hospitals were designated as a “Best Regional Hospital” by having one or more of 16 specialty services considered “high-performing” as defined by scoring in the top quarter of all eligible hospitals for that specialty nationally.

I went on to discuss what are in my opinion some of the difficulties and shortcomings of current attempts to rank hospitals for quality and safety. I reinforced US News’s stated intent that their program was designed to identify hospitals best suited for the most difficult cases where the services of large, high-volume teaching hospitals with abundant in-house technology might make a difference. Hospitals not on their lists may still provide high quality routine care. With a focus on cardiology and cardiac surgery, I also discussed how the mix of data elements examined can boost or diminish a given hospitals standing [and perhaps even add fuel to the current technology arms-race among hospitals]. Continue reading “University of Louisville Hospital Designated as Best Regional Hospital for Cancer in Louisville.”

Recent Court Decisions Impact University of Louisville Hospital.

Same-sex marriage advances– hospital secrecy recedes.

While I am sure it is coincidental, I find it ironic that on the same weekend the Supreme Court refused to take on the same-sex marriage issue in Washington– thus making such marriages legal in 11 additional states– the Kentucky Court of Appeals ruled that University Medical Center Inc. is indeed a public agency. I wondered what was happening to that lingering litigation. I will try to assemble and post the various briefs from the trial and appeals courts and try fill in the gaps. The opinion gives a useful overview of hospital history. Read it here. Continue reading “Recent Court Decisions Impact University of Louisville Hospital.”