Book Description

The most important techniques available for longitudinal data analysis are discussed in this book. The discussion includes simple techniques such as the paired t-test and summary statistics, but also more sophisticated techniques such as generalized estimating equations and random coefficient analysis. A distinction is made between longitudinal analysis with continuous, dichotomous, and categorical outcome variables. This practical guide is especially suitable for non-statisticians and all those undertaking medical research or epidemiological studies. ... Read more

Book Description

In an easy-to-follow, general outline format, this review focuses on passing coding certification exams. It has been completely updated for 2005 and covers anatomy and terminology for each body area, reimbursement issues, and an overview of CPT, ICD-9-CM, and HCPCS Coding. The accompanying CD-ROM contains a timed, scored, 150-question practice exam that is modeled on the actual certification exams and is designed to be taken twice - once as a pre-test and once as a post-test. An additional final exam must be taken with paper and pencil, to simulate the experience of the actual examinations. * The companion CD-ROM allows users to track their learning through Pre- and Post-tests. * A basic outline format provides figures for reference as needed, making the text easy to use and understand. * Essential information for both the AAPC (CPC) and AHIMA (CCS-P) exams is provided, with important aspects of physician coding highlighted throughout the text. ... Read more

Book Description

America spends more than twice as much for health care as any other nation. So why are Americans among the sickest people in the industrialized world?

Introducing a new way of thinking about health, public health experts Tom Farley and Deborah A. Cohen show that the answer does not lie in our medical care system or in our lifestyle choices but rather in the world around us. As they explain, the leading killers of our time fall almost entirely into two categories: injuries and chronic diseases (like heart disease, lung and breast cancer, diabetes, and stroke). For all of its inspiring, high-tech cures, modern medicine just is not very effective at combating these illnesses. And injuries, despite the images of emergency room heroics on television, tend to either kill you quickly or not at all.

These major killers are by-products of the way we live (obesity, for instance, leads to heart disease, diabetes, and stroke), and the way we live is shaped much more than we would like to believe by our everyday environment.

Taking us step by step through the real causes of death in our time and the factors that influence them, Prescription for a Healthy Nation is at once an exposé of how various industries influence our health for the worse, a paradigm-shifting argument about health and disease, and a positive blueprint for how to create a healthier society. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Great writing, good ideas - best quick read in public health
There have been a number of recent books about health habits and the environment, but this is by far the most enjoyable read. The writing is outstanding and not the clunky prose you often encounter in books written by academics- I wish I could write like them. Although written for a general audience, with (good) human interest anecdotes, the book nevertheless covers some deeper ideas, such as "curve shifting". The idea is that how often we encounter extreme outcomes, whether severe obesity, alcoholism, HIV, depends on "normal" or average behavior in the population. The early chapters that elaborate on those ideas alone are worth reading the book. I don't care too much about "passionate advocacy" and while the authors do fall into the advocacy camp, there is very little of the whining or scolding that has turned me off in other related books. Instead, arguments are generally well balanced even if you know on which side the authors are going to come down. It made a great read for a long flight. ... Read more

Book Description

"A powerful, true story of life and death in a major metropolitan hospital...Harrowing... An important book."
THE NEW YORK TIMES
What is life worth? And what is a life worth living? At a time when America faces vital choices about the future of its health care, former NEW YORK TIMES correspondent Lisa Belkin takes a powerful and poignant look at the inner workings of Hermann Hospital in Houston, Texas, telling the remarkable, real-life stories of the doctors, patients, families, and hospital administrators who must ask--and ultimately answer--the most profound and heart-rendng questions about life and death.
... Read more

Reviews (5)

The Humanity of Doctors
I could hardly put this book down until I was finished with it. It was not just eye-opening about how some of the ethical choices in medicine must be made, including the all-too necessary financial considerations. It showed how human doctors are and how difficult it can be for them to have to make heart-wrenching decisions in which there is no right answer, especially when it is clear that, no matter which choice they make, there is not going to be a good outcome for the patient. In spite of their training and attempt to insulate themselves emotionally from their cases in order to remain objective and professional, it's not always possible. Ms. Belkin's descriptions of doctors in tears was very moving, and proved to me that those people chose the right profession, because they really do care about their patients.
I found, by searching for them on the AMA web site, that a lot of the doctors in this book are still in practice in Houston (one is in Albuquerque). This search gave absolute credence to the fact that these stories are not fiction but about real people.

A Jerky look into the TRUE CARE of the Modern Hospital
This book will keep your interests suspended in a state where bed time no longer matters, reading it until it is done and the re-skimming the chapters. Based in my home town of HOUSTON, TX. It gives you perspective on the true heros of the health care system.

This book has confirmed my interests in becoming a doctor and it will serve as a symbol of my ability to serve and my longing to be the best in the field of my choice.

Thank you Lisa, for being fair
Having a child featured in this book, I have read it several times. Lisa did a fantastic job when she wrote this book. You will find it to be a very insightful book. Having lived through this ordeal myself, I know that Lisa tried very hard to make sure that her facts are real and accurate. If you enjoy stories about the medical field I trully believe that you will find this one hard to put down until you have finished it.

Goodmedical novel
I love books about the problems of the Medical community. This one was very good. The author included factual information along with true like human interest stories of real people in Houston, Texas in the 80's. I left this book at a book exchange at The Plaza Las Glorias in Cozumel, Mexico on 10-28-00 around 9:00am and it was gone by 11:00am. I would love to know where it went. I hope Amazon prints this.

An excellent book!
Ms. Belkin follows the work of the ethics commitee at Hermann Hospital. For anyone who enjoys true medical stories and difficult biomedical ethics problems, this is a great novel. Ms. Belkin does not present solutions, since in most cases there are no "right" solutions. Instead she provides an objective account of the cases from the point of view of all parties involved. This would also be an excellent book to use for discussion in a biomedical ethics clas ... Read more

Reviews (1)

HIGHLY RECOMMEND
This was the best $50 that I spent to get my practice started. I was an employee at a large group for 5 years, but I had no idea where to start for certain licenses and regulations. The chapter "Managing Personnel" was especially helpful. This book is concise and clearly written. It has excellent resources listed, such as helpful websites. This book would be helpful to someone just finishing residency and someone who has been an employee of a group for several years. JMMD ... Read more

Book Description

Practical suggestions for reducing paperwork and stress while increasing profit. This practical, strategy-filled book provides readers with information on the basics of private practice: how to cut overhead costs, simplify insurance paperwork, manage appointments, handle billing, and implement client policies. Essential reading for new and seasoned therapists alike, no practitioner in private practice should be without the advice offered here. ... Read more

Book Description

Insurance Handbook for the Medical Office is a key text for Medical Administrative Assisting, Medical Front Office programs, or those who wish to become insurance billing specialists, claims assistance professionals, or electronic claims processors for physicians' practices and hospital outpatient clinics.Those already practicing in this area will also find this text beneficial, as will health claims examiner programs.The goal of this extremely up-to-date text is to increase efficiency and streamline administrative procedures for the most exasperating aspect of the doctor's office routine - insurance billing. This text offers guidance for all aspects of submitting, tracing, appealing, and transmitting claims for today's full range of health plans.Important coverage of diagnostic coding, procedural coding, office and insurance collection strategies, Medicare, Managed Care, and more is presented. Additionally, a free CD-ROM featuring the HCFA-1500 claim form is included with the book. The CD-ROM contains 10 scored patient case studies with related insurance information so that the student can practice completing the HCFA-1500 claim form in a fun, interactive format. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

7th Edition pulls itself into the 21st Century
Having had to wait many weeks for the new, revised 7th Edition I was very pleased to note the improvements made from the 6th Edition. The color examples, universal legend symbols and easy paragraph read for the student are excellent. Another long awaited addition is the expanded Medi-Cal section (applicable to California only). Having been in the industry for 25 year I can say that this is the best Billing book on the market that I have been able to find. The only down side to this book is that it is not written for the "new" biller, but more for an intermediate to experienced biller. As long as the instructor can "dumb down" some of the excellent explanations, students will learn a tremendous amount from this book. I use it in my classroom along with my own material and the students are leaving the class with a well rounded knowledge base. Over all, I am pleased with the new Edition and it's contents.

Lots of info, perhaps too much.
I felt a little bogged down by all the information contained inthis book. It seemed too detailed and included a lot of stuff thatdidn't really apply to just medical insurance (for example thecomplete hypocratic oath which doctors take)! Overall, it was a pretty good book. It would have been a great book if they had cut out about a third or even half of the information. I thought Guide to Medical Billing, by a company called ICDC was much better. A lot of the pertinent data without too much extra. I also liked a book called The Medical Billing Handbook by Jason Cummings.

An excellent overview of the medical billing task.
This is an appropriate text for the medical biller. Although written for the office-based biller, home-based billers will find most (but not all) the information of practical benefit. Used in our homestudy course as a standard text. ... Read more

Book Description

The health care sphere we inhabit would unquestionably be more satisfying if everyone adopted the cooperative techniques taught in this book.
--New England Journal of Medicine

Renegotiating Health Care presents pragmatic and effective tools for understanding conflict, negotiating differences, and creating a workable balance among those who deliver, receive, administer, and oversee health care. The authors present practical methods and techniques giving all the players the knowledge and skills they need to put their work in perspective and create workable solutions.

... Read more

Reviews (2)

Must Reading for Health Care Executives
This book is essential reading for any leader in the world of health care. Health care execs are confronted with complex, highly charged negotiation challenges, internal and external, nearly every day. Many of these conflicts can damage lives and corporate finances. The book gives you very practical, results-oriented advice on how to resolve conflicts and move forward.

Dr. Marcus is the nation's leading expert in health care negotiations and conflict resolution, having helped numerous high-profile organizations overcome conflicts and reach mutually productive agreements. This book thoughtfully conveys this valuable expertise.

Excellent principles for conflict resolution
Marcus presents a broad spectrum of options for getting through tough times in the healthcare industry. The personable style and ongoing case history make this a very readable presentation.

Marcus teaches us that conflict is not only always present and unavoidable but can be used as a catalyst for good change. He describes differences in types of negotiation, mediation, and arbitration. He is a proponent of interest-based negotiation which is an attempt to improve the lot of the whole by improving the parts. He advocates active listening.

As witness to his sincerity, he dedicates a chapter each to four of the healthcare stakeholders: policymakers, healthcare management, physicians, and nurses. Each of these chapters speaks loudest to its own stakeholder, at once representing them and persuading them to enter into negotiation.

Postitional bargaining is also explored. Marcus does not advocate being a sacrificial lamb.

This book serves as an excellent introduction to the topic of conflict resolution and negotiation. However, in order to engage into the fray, one would also need to continue to study and practice the principles presented.

Although Marcus seems preachy at times and overhopeful at others, he is at least starting to draw the diverse and strong healthcare industry into one place to sit and talk. Hooray for that. ... Read more

Book Description

Clinical Policies and Procedures for Home Health Care Organizations provides home health, hospice, and private duty care organizations with clinical policies and procedures that can be individualized and supplemented to meet each organizations unique needs. Clinical policies and procedures are intended to reflect the organizations mission and values and to enhance the organizations administrative policies. The policies and procedures in this manual serve as a guide that, when implemented appropriately and in conjunction with other required practices, will advance the organization in the pursuit of quality care. The policies and procedures reflect the acceptable clinical practices prevalent within the home care setting. Chapters are provided on general medical surgical topics, as well as on specialty program areas, including: maternal/newborn, pediatric, psychiatric, home infusion, terminal condition care (hospice), personal care (aide/companion), and complementary/integrative modalities. Newly developed organizations and established organizations find Clinical Policies and Procedures for Home Health Care Organizations to be useful in maintaining compliance with acceptable standards of practice and regulatory and accreditation requirements. For Orders and Inquiries, please call: 1-888-427-5800. ... Read more

Book Description

Designed especially for hospital coders, hospital billers and insurance claim examiners. Includes ICD-9-CM Volumes 1 & 2 diagnosis codes and Volume 3 procedure codes in a single, compact, space-saving, thumb-indexed and color-coded book, with a comprehensive diagnosis coding tutorial and full-color anatomical charts.

-Improve your diagnosis code accuracy with color coding and symbol notation system
-Locate ICD-9-CM diagnosis codes faster with thumb indexing
-Book lays flat on your desk and stays open during use
-Anatomical illustrations help relate diagnosis codes to organ system
-Includes a comprehensive diagnosis coding tutorial
-Save valuable desk space with our compact 6" x 9" book ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Putting health issues into perspective
I have repeatedly dipped into the book over the last few years as I am a health care worker with an interest in anthropology and health. The book reflects the key interest areas in the health care arena and uses anthropological interpretations to uncover new meaning and understanding. The topics covered include reproductive health, new technologies in health care, gender issues and places the interpretation of culture as the cornerstone to real understanding. I heartily recommend it to all my colleagues as well as my students. ... Read more

Book Description

Risk management for health care institutions involves the protection of the assets of the organizations, agencies, and individual providers from liability. A strategic approach can result in significant cost savings. Risk Management in Health Care Institutions: A Strategic Approach offers governing boards, chief executive officers, administrators, and health profession students the opportunity to organize and devise a successful risk management program. Experts in risk management have contributed comprehensive, up-to-date syntheses of relevant topics to assist with practical risk management strategies. ... Read more

Book Description

"A well organized and readable text on evaluating health programs. It covers the essentials of choosing an evaluation design, planning and conducting the evaluation, and using the results of the evaluation. It is a book that should be on the shelf of persons doing and teaching health program evaluation and should be seriously considered as a text for evaluation classes."

— RONALD ANDERSEN, Wasserman Professor in Health Services, UCLA"I found many instances where I thought students would get key concepts and ideas more quickly than they would from other texts. I was thrilled to see a discussion of ethics and culture in the text! The author provides clear explanations of important concepts and uses examples throughout the text, a strength of the book. I especially appreciate the author's detailed descriptions of program models and how they can be used in Chapter 3."

— ROBIN LIN MILLER, University of Illinois at Chicago

"This book is useful because it keeps the main concepts of program evaluation in an easy-to-follow format. The way the parts of a program evaluation were put together to resemble the parts of a play allowed me to review familiar material in detail, but at the same time remind me of the structure of an evaluation. This was useful for me to reintegrate, as sometimes when one is involved in particular "scenes" of an evaluation, they lose sight of the "act" or the "play." It gave me a great reminder of the big picture."

University of Alabama, BirminghamAs more and more money is spent developing programs and services to solve health problems, how can one know if a specific health program works or what it would take to improve it? Aimed at addressing this issue, The Practice of Health Program Evaluation provides readers with the methods to evaluate health programs and the expertise to navigate the political terrain so as to work more effectively with decision makers and other groups. To convey these principles, Grembowski uses the metaphor of evaluation being a three-act play with a variety of actors and interest groups, each having a role that involves entering and exiting the "stage" at different points in the evaluation process. The first section (Act I) shows evaluators how to work with decision makers and other groups to define the question they want answered about a program and how to develop evaluation questions. Act II covers the methods for selecting among one or more evaluation designs (experimental and quasi-experimental designs, program implementation, sample size, measurement, and cost-effectiveness analysis) to answer questions about the program. And, Act III covers the use of the answers, including methods for developing formal dissemination plans, factors that influence whether evaluation findings are used or not, and major challenges facing the discipline in the next decade. Through the use of relevant examples and the explanation of each step, this book will enable readers to apply research methods in the practice of health evaluation.

Book Description

A patient's personal view of long term care.Seen through the eyes of a patient totally paralyzed with Guillain-Barré syndrome, this moving book takes you through the psychological and physical pain of an eleven month hospital stay. BED NUMBER TEN reads like a compelling novel, but is entirely factual.You will meet:The ICU staff who learned to communicate with the paralyzed woman - and those who did not bother.The physicians whose visits left her baffled about her own case.The staff and physicians who spoke to her and others who did not recognize her presence.The nurse who tucked Sue tightly under the covers, unaware that she was soaking with perspiration.The nurse who took the time to feed her drop by drop, as she slowly learned how to swallow again.The physical therapist who could read her eyes and spurred her on to move again as if the battle were his own.In these pages, which reveal the caring, the heroism, and the insensitivity sometimes found in the health care fields, you may even meet people you know. ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Bed number Ten
This was one of the best books I have read in a long time. I ordered this book by mail and recieved it on Friday afternoon and started reading it instantly. It is now sunday afternoon and I just finished it. I want so badly to talk to this lady to see how she is today!! To read how uncaring so many people were is so heart breaking to me. There were the few that took the time to be more attentive but everyone should have been that way!! I am a nurse at a Houston hospital and I see nurses and other staff act like that everyday and it breaks my heart because I am a very caring nurse and go above and beyond to help my patients. Every nurse needs to read this book to see how people can be feeling when you treat them that way!! I would recommend this book to everyone I work with and know!!

A real tearjerker!
I am an RN and all too often, patients are faced with uncaring caregivers who perceive meeting patient's needs as "too much trouble". If there is a medical person who perceives Sue as a "whiner", I would not want that person to enter my room! The book is a compelling novel, I could not put it down! It included wonderful stories of her travels and family. I wished the book was longer, I hated for it to end. I cried throughout the last portion of the book because it was so touching. The one thing I think it lacks is getting its point across to caregivers. Some caregivers are too uncaring to fully comprehend the torture Sue went through lying there day after day, unable to move or speak, being at the mercy of others. I put it on my list as one of the best books I have ever read!

I can relate as a "Fellow Comrade"
I read this book after spending five weeks in ICU, followed by four months in a Rehab Center...recuperating from Guillain Barre Syndrome. I can relate to how she had favorite nurses...so did I, and being totally paralyzed it may be hard for others to understand just how much that extra little fluff of the pillow makes after laying for eight hours in the same position. My body was very sensative, and any movement was painful...I can imagine how much more painful it was with her. The things I found hard to understand in the book were the thoughts she had in her day to day activities....oh, I would be driving by the supermarket now, on my way to pick up my best friend Bonnie...these thoughts are just hard for me to believe. I know my thoughts were like "when will these leg spasms quit...when will I walk again...when will the aching in my legs get better...when will I get out of here....how much is this costing....when is my next therapy" these were my thoughts. The book does give a good view of just how devastating GBS can be. For me....It will be 4 years this Christmas since my GBS attack, and I am still not well. From the waist up I am about 95%, and from the waist down I am about 50% which includes leg and feet numbness, muscle spasms/cramps,joint pain, and stiffness. But I feel blessed to have back as much as I do, and I pray that God will give me the strength and courage to continue my recuperation from this catastrophic illness.

Disappointing...
As an RN with an interest in medical-related writing, I started this book thinking I would be reading an inspirational account of a woman overcoming a terrifying illness.

Instead I was treated to a whine-fest of gargantuan proportions.

Yes, Sue was very ill and frightened, but instead of devoting more energy to fighting the _illness_, she seemed to focus almost entirely on separating the staff who cared for her into "good guys" and "bad guys" and presumed to project her personal judgments of insensitivity onto the staff she didn't care for.

As an RN with over ten years' experience, I felt a chilling familarity while reading this author's words. I have known many patients like this who "play favorites" with staff, and who turn against anyone who doesn't devote his/her entire shift to satisfying their every whim.

I wish I had the book right at hand to quote some of its more embarrassing passages, but it basically boils down, paraphrased, to things like,

"Oooh... why doesn't she come sooner when I call?" "Ohhhh, how come he's so rough with me..? Why can't he be like so-and-so [other therapist]?" "Waaaah! If only all these insensitive people knew what it was like to be as sick as I am!"

The perpetual whining destroyed for me any pleasure I could have derived from the knowledge that this lady got well and left the hospital almost fully recovered.

And she is (or was) traveling the country giving speeches to health care workers on how to treat patients? Please, spare me.

A page-turner
This was one I couldn't put down. It really made me think about the environment I work in, and how the residents are treated. I am a certified nursing assistant at a long-term care facility (nursing home). I really enjoy the residents there. If you're in a hurry, and you just want to get the work done, how do you think the patients feel? I try to imagine myself in the position of one of my residents,and it helps me to think more openly. I have also tried to imagine myself in Sue's position, and its difficult. Reading this book has made me a better employee, and a better person. ... Read more

Book Description

This clear, readable reference explores the full range of contemporary issues in health care ethics from a practical philosophical perspective. Ethical principles are applied directly to cases, and many examples are used to illustrate issues.Avoids medical and philosophical jargon. Offers up-to-date material on today's critical issues like genetic screening and therapy, testing and screening, and biomedical research. Covers institutional ethics and professional standards. Presents alternative views to show readers the diversity of the field.An excellent reference for nurses, doctors, or anyone involved in heath care fields. ... Read more

Book Description

Putting Patients First is a complete guide to patient-centered care — the highly successful philosophy that has been championed and refined by the renowned Planetree Institute. This important volume explains the origins and uses of patient-centered care and provides a practical approach to implementing it in any health care organization. Step by step, the book clearly outlines the elements of the highly successful Planetree patient-centered care model and includes the validating research.
This much-needed resource shows how to apply these methods to the larger issues of health care delivery such as managed care, workforce shortages, patients; "right to know" legislation, and hospital marketing and branding efforts. Putting Patients First is filled with illustrative case examples drawn from hospitals and health care organizations that have successfully implemented the Planetree model.

... Read more

Book Description

Since its publication in 1987, Methods for the economic evaluation of health care programmes has become the standard textbook in this field world-wide Over the past ten years, the field of economic evaluation in health care has expanded considerably, with a rapid rise in the number of published studies, and wider recognition of their use in health care decision-making. Developments in economic evaluation have also led to the publication of several guidelines for study methodology, most recently those proposed by the United States Public Health Services Panel. The new edition of Methods for the economic evaluation of health care programmes follows the same basic structure as the first edition. The key methodological principles are outlined using a critical appraisal checklist that can be applied to any published study. The methodological features of the basic forms of analysis (cost analysis, cost-effectiveness analysis, cost-utility analysis, and cost-benefit analysis) are then explained in more detail. The book has been greatly revised and enlarged, especially with respect to cost-utility and cost- benefit analysis, where major methodological developments have taken place. New to this edition are chapters on collecting and analysing data, and presenting and using economic evaluation results. The new edition will be required reading for anyone commissioning, undertaking, or using economic evaluations in health care, and will be popular with health service professionals, health economists, and health-care decision makers.Reviews of the first edition:'An important contribution to studies on the economic evaluation of medical care...' (British Medical Journal)'This is essential reading. Only if all managers are aware of the powers of economic techniques will they be used sensibly' (The Health Service Journal (UK)'The methodological chapters on cost analysis and cost utility analysis are gems... should become the standard text on the subject at the intermediate level at which it is aimed.' (Medical Decision Making) 'It leaves nothing important in economic evaluation analysis untouched.' (Health Policy and Planning) ... Read more