Data Quantify Value of Physician Ed in Reducing Antibiotic Prescriptions

Data Quantify Value of Physician Ed in Reducing Antibiotic Prescriptions

Kaiser Permanente in Southern California reports that using computer alerts to inform physicians when antibiotics may not be the best course of treatment for sinusitis reduced the chance of an antibiotic being prescribed—with some qualifiers. The study, published recently in the American Journal of Managed Care, tracked nearly 22,000 cases of acute sinusitis in adults in primary care and urgent care offices. Researchers found that clinical decision support was associated with a 22% decrease in …

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The Role of Urgent Care in an Integrated Care Delivery System: Insights from Kaiser Permanente

The Role of Urgent Care in an Integrated Care Delivery System: Insights from Kaiser Permanente

Urgent message: As the Affordable Care Act encourages greater integration of health insurers, hospitals, and physicians, urgent care will play an important role in increasing patient access, improving clinical outcomes and reducing health care costs. ALAN A. AYERS, MBA, MAcc, Experity Hospitals across the country are partnering with doctors and health insurers—linked by an electronic health record (EHR)—to form accountable care organizations (ACOs) as a way to control health care expenditures by coordinating patient care. …

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