Hospital Mergers Raise Concerns Over Patient Costs

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Yale-St. Ray's Hospital

Hospital administrators in Connecticut who have been involved in the unprecedented streak of mergers and consolidations often tout the financial benefits and efficiencies of such moves.

But as the number of independent hospitals in the state dwindles – with more than half of the 29 acute-care hospitals now operating in networks with other hospitals or out-of-state partners – experts and advocates worry that the consolidations will reduce competition in the market and give hospitals more leverage to raise prices.  Adding to their concerns is a proposal by a private company to convert four non-profit hospitals to for-profit entities.

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Filed under: I-Team In-Depth, Bristol Hospital, Eastern Connecticut Health Network, Ellen Andrews, Frances Padilla, House Speaker Brendan Sharkey, Larry Scanlan, Lawrence & Memorial Hospital

Hypertension: Disparities Widen For Black Women

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Hypertension

Hypertension rates among women in all eight Connecticut counties increased from 2001 to 2009, with disparities widening for African American women compared to whites and Hispanics, according to a C-HIT analysis of data from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington.

In fact, nearly one out of every two African American women living in Connecticut suffers from hypertension, a life-threatening condition that can lead to heart attack, stroke and kidney disease, research shows.

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Filed under: Disparities, I-Team In-Depth, Women's Health, Connecticut Health Foundation, Dr. Antia Lelsey, Dr. Edward Schuster, Fairfield County, Hartford County

Restraints, Seclusions Target Students With Autism, New Report Shows

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Restraint graphic

Children with autism were the most frequently subjected to restraint or seclusion in Connecticut schools in the 2012-13 school year, according to a new state report that tallied more than 33,000 incidents of physical restraint or seclusion in public schools and private special education programs.

The report from the state Department of Education shows that autism was the primary disability among special education students subject to “emergency” restraint or seclusion, with 40.4 percent of all such incidents involving a child with autism. Autism also accounted for nearly half of all cases in which children were put in seclusion as part of their individualized education plans, or IEPs.

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Filed under: I-Team In-Depth, Autism, Autism Speaks, Behaven Schol, Connecticut Center for Child Development, Connecticut Department of Education, CREC, Darien

Over-The-Counter Drugs: A Prescription For Confusion

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DrugTeaser

At Able Care Pharmacy & Medical Supplies in Enfield, Ashraf Moustafa often tries to avert disasters involving drugs displayed on his store’s shelves.

Moustafa, the pharmacy manager, recently spoke to an elderly woman seeking ways to treat dark blue patches on her arms. Instead of suggesting any remedies, he asked the woman what medicines she was taking and discovered that she was dangerously mixing over-the-counter anti-inflammatory drugs with aspirin and the prescription blood thinner, Plavix. He sent the woman to the hospital, fearing that she was suffering from internal bleeding.

“People have the impression that if a drug is approved for over-the-counter use, then it must be much safer than prescription medicine,” Moustafa says. “That’s when trouble happens.”

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Filed under: I-Team In-Depth, Able Care Pharmacy & Medical Supplies, acetaminophen, American Journal of Preventive Medicine, Ashraf Moustafa, Beverly Schaefer, Connecticut Pharmacy Association, Consumer Healthcare Products