H1N1 – Don’t Let Your Guard Down Just Yet

According to data polled from across the country, the facts are beginning to suggest that the H1N1 virus is at long last on the wane. Currently, only four states – Delaware, New Jersey, Maine and Virginia – are reporting widespread H1N1 activity. Still, as history has shown, flu epidemics tend to come in waves, and the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases strongly urges continued vigilance and vaccination during this quiet period. “I am concerned that people may think this is all over,” said Anne Schuchat, the Center’s Director, at a recent press conference. “I would hate for people to make decisions thinking there is no risk and then get sick or severely ill.”

The H1N1 vaccine has been made readily available throughout California, and it is important that we as healthcare providers continue to stress the need for continued vaccination among the general public so that a potentially severe third wave is nipped in the bud. Furthermore, even as the Swine Flu wanes, more cases of general flu activity are being reported than usual for this time of year. It is in everyone’s best interest to stay focused on limiting the spread of airborne germs until the season has passed. For the benefit of yourselves and those around you, please follow the required guidelines when dealing with patients or visitors who exhibit flu-like symptoms.

 “Meaningful Use” Criteria Updated

HHS has recently issued two sets of much-anticipated federal regulations that seek to further the government’s healthcare information technology adoption agenda. The first group lists all pertinent “meaningful use” criteria that healthcare providers must meet in order to qualify for federal IT subsidies based on their usage of electronic health records (EHRs). The second focuses on the standards and certification criteria that those EHRs must meet for their users to collect their money.

Under the proposed meaningful use regulations, eligible healthcare providers must use their EHRs to: improve the quality, safety and efficiency of healthcare services; reduce healthcare disparities; engage patients and their families; improve the coordination of care; improve population and public health; and ensure the privacy and security of personal medical information.

Under the interim final EHR regulations, EHRs must be able to securely exchange information among providers and between providers and patients using standardized data elements and technologies. The regulations outline standardized formats for such things as clinical summaries; medical descriptions of clinical conditions and test results; and how that information is exchanged over the internet. For better or worse, Electronic Health Records are the future of medical documentation, and we must all do our part to ensure that Coast Plaza is prepared to meet governmental regulation in the months to come.

 Measles Alert

As if the H1N1 pandemic weren’t enough, the CDHP is now warning all California hospitals to be on the lookout for cases involving the measles. Since many people travel internationally over the holidays to countries in which measles cases are currently circulating, similar cases are to be expected in our area in the near future.

Should a member of our staff suspect measles in a patient who presents with a febrile rash illness after having recently traveled overseas or been in contact with someone who has, he or she is requested to alert the local health department immediately.

 Podiatric Residency Program

For more than fifteen years Coast Plaza has participated in the education of Podiatrists across the country. Coast Plaza’s Podiatric Residency Program has graduated doctors now practicing Podiatric Medicine from Coast to Coast, including Norwalk, California at the Coast Plaza Podiatry Center, one of the area’s most comprehensive treatment centers for foot and ankle ailments and disorders. The Podiatry Center is equipped with some of the most advanced technology in the field, including digital X-Rays, MRI, muscular ultrasound, vascular testing and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy. Holding the academic torch in 2010 are Drs. Kibrom Asrat and Jessica Chong, the Hospital’s two current Podiatric Residents.

 Perioperative Services – Orthopedic Specialty – 360

This week’s Hospital Highlight centers on the Coast Plaza Orthopedic Center’s state-of-the-art 360 procedure. Also known as Anterior-Posterior Spinal Fusion, this is a specialized surgery appropriate for patients with a high degree of spinal instability as a consequence of fractures resulting from injury or scoliosis. The anterior approach is performed through the abdomen, with placement of the bone graft into the disc space, while posterior entry is through the back where fusion is accomplished in the vertebrae with metal implants. This procedure is accomplished with the help of the state-or-the-art OSI Jackson Spine table, which offers surgeons the capability of 180 degree rotation to safely and accurately change the patient’s position from supine (back) to prone (abdomen) without the need to transfer the patient from one bed to another. The Center’s new instrumentation systems offer immediate stability and improved spine fusion, allowing patients to recover quickly and without complications. For more information or to schedule a 360 please call 562-868-3751, ext. 2299.

In closing, it is important to remember that vigilance is the watchword for January. As we shift gears and enter a calmer period for flu and other airborne diseases, we must continue to show the same professionalism that has enabled us to weather this winter so successfully, with health intact so that we may effectively serve the residents in and around Norwalk in their times of need. When fighting invisible airborne intruders, preparation is half the battle.