Today’s NewsStand

Today’s NewsStand

By |
|July 27, 2021

Iowa news

State Democrats call on Gov. Reynolds to fill state Board of Health vacancies

State Democrats are calling on Gov. Kim Reynolds to fill the vacant seats on the Iowa State Board of Health. The board oversees state health department policy and advises the governor on public health issues, including the COVID-19 pandemic. But it was unable to meet earlier this month because seven of its eleven seats are vacant. The board is made up of a bipartisan mix of 11 medical professionals, public health experts and members of the general public, but it currently has seven vacancies and no Democrats. (Iowa Public Radio)

UnityPoint Health — Des Moines partners with Qventus to deliver improved patient experience

UnityPoint Health–Des Moines has partnered with Qventus, the first real-time clinical operations system for health care, to use innovations in artificial intelligence, machine learning and behavioral science to optimize patient flow and help manage discharge planning more effectively. (Folsom Local News)

University of Iowa Health Care offering ‘success’ payout to workers who lost compensation amid pandemic

As it promised, University of Iowa Health Care plans to reward more than 12,000 employees it required over the last year to either forfeit raises, absorb pay cuts, shed earned vacation time or take unpaid leave to ease its budget woes in the worst throes of COVID-19. The one-time lump sum payments — coming Sept. 1 if approved next week by the Board of Regents — will vary in amount depending on the eligible worker’s base salary as of June 30, 2021, according to documents made public this week. (The Gazette)

National news

COVID-19 surge will peak in mid-October, new model predicts 

The nationwide surge in COVID-19 cases will accelerate through the summer and autumn before peaking in mid-October, according to projections shared July 21 by the COVID-19 Scenario Modeling Hub, a consortium of researchers helping the CDC track the pandemic’s trajectory. (Becker’s Hospital Review)

COVID-19 telehealth patient satisfaction high, in person still preferred

Although 87% of respondents reported high telehealth patient satisfaction rates during the pandemic, 82% still prefer in-person doctor’s visits, according to a Harris Poll conducted on behalf of Neurocrine Biosciences. (Patient Engagement Hit)

Baby booms hit some US hospitals after historic drop in births

Amid the pandemic, births in the US fell by 4% in 2020. Now that trend is reversing as some hospitals experience baby booms. In June, staff at Baylor Scott and White All Saints Medical Center-Fort Worth’s Andrews Women’s Hospital delivered 107 babies during a 91-hour period — a “rare and exceptional” influx for the hospital, which usually averages 16 deliveries per day. (Becker’s Hospital Review)

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