Recent Posts in Healthcare News Category
Posted on Mar 30, 2012 By Dr. Bruce Fagel
Just how much does it cost to visit the emergency room? What about for something as simple as a stomach ache? You may be surprised to find that it could cost over $5,000. A March 24, 2012 article in ...
Continue reading "Patients Being Charged Too Much for Emergency Room Visits" »
Posted on Mar 16, 2012 By Dr. Bruce Fagel
Cancer is a broad group of various diseases, which involve unregulated cell growth. Normal cells grow and multiply when the body needs them to grow and multiple, and die when the body no longer ...
Continue reading "Cancer Misdiagnosis and Delay in Diagnosis of Cancer" »
Posted on Mar 14, 2012 By Dr. Bruce Fagel
The "wrongful birth, wrongful life" lawsuit legislation passed the Republican controlled Senate in Arizona, with a 20-9 vote Tuesday, March 6, 2012. This legislation if it becomes law would ...
Continue reading "Wrongful Birth Bill - New Abortion Legislation Preventing Parents from Filing Medical Malpractice Lawsuits Passes Arizona Senate" »
Posted on Mar 9, 2012 By Dr. Bruce Fagel
The American Medical Association released a study which finds more medical malpractice liability claims stem from events that occurred in ambulatory settings than anywhere else. The study titled, ...
Continue reading "AMA Study Shows 52% of Medical Liability Claims Occur in Ambulatory Settings, Including Doctor's Offices and Clinics" »
Posted on Mar 7, 2012 By Dr. Bruce Fagel
Although the new federal healthcare reforms won't be enacted until 2014, that is not stopping many California hospitals from making many efficiency changes now. Hospitals must adapt quickly to a ...
Continue reading "The 2014 Federal Healthcare Reform is Causing Many State Hospitals to Improve Efficiency Now" »
Posted on Mar 2, 2012 By Dr. Bruce Fagel
MICRA or the Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act was enacted in California to limit the amount of non-economic damages victims of medical malpractice could be awarded. In 1975 MICRA was passed, ...
Continue reading "How the Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act (MICRA) Affects California Medical Malpractice Victims" »
Posted on Jan 16, 2012 By Dr. Bruce Fagel
Hospital employees are not reporting most errors, accidents, and events that lead to serious harm to Medicare patients. The study released by the inspector general of the Department of Health and ...
Continue reading "Most Errors and Adverse Events at Hospitals Not Reported" »
Posted on Jan 3, 2012 By Dr. Bruce Fagel
In 1975, with the help of strong lobbying effort by doctors and medical professionals, the Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act or MICRA was passed. Prior to the passing of this legislation, doctors ...
Continue reading "Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act - How MICRA Affects Victims of Medical Malpractice" »
Posted on Dec 23, 2011 By Dr. Bruce Fagel
Bilirubin is a substance found in the bile of infants. Bile is produced by the liver and released into the small intestine where it is used to help with digestion. Bilirubin is produced by the liver ...
Continue reading "Elevated Bilirubin Levels and Kernicterus in Infants" »
Posted on Dec 21, 2011 By Dr. Bruce Fagel
During gestation, an unborn baby's brain is susceptible to a wide variety of threats. One vulnerability is hypoxia or asphyxia , which is a lack of oxygen to the brain. Although the birthing ...
Continue reading "Brain Cooling for Infants with HIE / Hypoxic-ischemic Encephalopathy" »
Posted on Dec 19, 2011 By Dr. Bruce Fagel
Each year thousands of Americans suffer unnecessary pain, injuries, and even death from cancer misdiagnosis or delays in diagnosing cancer. Failure to diagnose a cancer , allows the cancer to spread ...
Continue reading "Cancer Diagnosis Delay and Cancer Misdiagnosis" »
Posted on Nov 11, 2011 By Dr. Bruce Fagel
Test communication failures for diagnostic testing are placing doctors at an increased risk of medical malpractice claims, as stated in an article selected as the "CME Activity of the Month" ...
Continue reading "Medical Malpractice Claims for Diagnostic Physicians Risk Increasing for Communication Failures" »
Posted on Nov 9, 2011 By Dr. Bruce Fagel
After years of public service announcements and medical agencies touting the benefits of regular cancer screenings for cervical, prostate, and breast cancers, expert medical groups are now ...
Continue reading "Medical Experts Recommend Less Cancer Screening" »
Posted on Nov 7, 2011 By Dr. Bruce Fagel
Most people who visit hospitals or medical centers probably never worry whether the medical facilities are clean and sanitary. But that is exactly what the problem is with Harbor-UCLA Medical Center ...
Continue reading "Harbor-UCLA Medical Center Fails to Keep Operating Rooms Clean and Safe" »
Posted on Oct 14, 2011 By Dr. Bruce Fagel
Hundreds of hospital workers went on a 24 hour strike Wednesday outside the USC Keck Medical Center. X-ray technicians, certified nursing assistants, and housekeeping staff could be seen picketing in ...
Continue reading "Southern California Hospital Workers Go On Strike at USC Keck Medical" »
Posted on Oct 12, 2011 By Dr. Bruce Fagel
California outpatient surgery centers that perform liposuction surgeries, Lap-Band surgeries, and other related procedures will be facing tougher regulations, as Governor Jerry Brown signed a new law ...
Continue reading "California Passes New Law Requiring Stricter Regulations for Outpatient Surgery Centers" »
Posted on Oct 10, 2011 By Dr. Bruce Fagel
A recent survey conducted by John Hopkins titled, "Survey Reveals Reasons Doctors Avoid Online Error-Reporting Tools" concludes medical professionals in radio therapy do not report ...
Continue reading "Most Near-Misses or Errors Never Get Reported by Radiation Staff" »
Posted on Oct 5, 2011 By Dr. Bruce Fagel
Prior to 1975, doctors and medical professionals were creating a public perception issue that medical malpractice lawsuits were skyrocketing out of control. In response to this and with a strong ...
Continue reading "How MICRA Affects Victim's Recovery for Medical Malpractice" »
Posted on Sep 30, 2011 By Dr. Bruce Fagel
If a newborn baby is asphyxiated before or during birth, it is being starved of necessary oxygen. A lack of oxygen to the brain can cause a condition called HIE or hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy . ...
Continue reading "Brain Cooling Information for Newborns with HIE / Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy" »
Posted on May 5, 2011 By Dr. Bruce Fagel
In a recent Los Angeles Times article , the state of California's medical regulation system is brought into question. A series of budget cuts and loss of staff have left the Medical Board of ...
Continue reading "Greater risk of California medical malpractice with failing regulation system" »
Posted on May 2, 2011 By Dr. Bruce Fagel
A new regulation issued by the Obama administration will reward hospitals that provide superior care as a part of an initiative to change the way the United States government funds healthcare. With ...
Continue reading "New strategy to reward hospitals for better care" »
Posted on Feb 18, 2011 By Dr. Bruce Fagel
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced that it recommends that clinicians not use the injectable drug terbutaline for the prevention of preterm labor or treatment beyond 48 to 72 ...
Continue reading "FDA warns of risks in use of Terbutaline for treatment and prevention preterm labor" »