September 2011

Due to its complexity, heart failure is the most common reason for rehospitalizations in the U.S., leading to hefty overall costs. Thus, providers and payors are seeking better management strategies for this patient population to reduce preventable rehospitalizations and mortality through improved, protocol-driven coordinated care from the inpatient to the outpatient settings.

Hospital administrators may have to learn this proactive business approach from the former CEO and Chairman of General Electric, Jack Welch.

As automated contrast injectors are increasingly utilized in cardiology departments, administrators are establishing protocols to lessen the incidence of contrast-associated adverse events, as well as improving the bottom line. Both goals, it seems, are interrelated.

Recent data have shown that using both PET and SPECT may have the potential to provide clinically useful data to enable better stratification and favorable treatments for patients with heart failure.

Paul N. Casale, MD, recommends that providers prepare for a new healthcare payment model in the U.S. that rewards value over volume.

ASNC President Leslee J. Shaw, PhD, reflects on how this months annual conference focuses on three aspects of patient-centered care: appropriate use criteria, comparative effectiveness research and radiation safety.

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