Today’s NewsStand

Today’s NewsStand

By Iowa Hospital Association|
|August 3, 2022

Iowa news

VA of Central Iowa to celebrate opening of new primary care clinic

VA of Central Iowa announced the opening of its new primary care clinic in Southridge Mall in Des Moines. VA of Central Iowa has been transitioning patients into the new 42,000-square-foot clinic through July and continuing this month. The current VA Medical Center in Des Moines will continue to provide specialty care to the more than 32,000 active, registered patients in the Central Iowa VA area. Also, the VA’s Community-Based Outpatient Clinics in Mason City, Fort Dodge, Carroll, Marshalltown and Knoxville will continue to operate normally as primary care locations. The move will vacate 19,000 square feet of space in the Beaverdale VA Medical Center to be upgraded, modernized and used for other medical services. (Business Record)

Donation aims to boost stroke care

Iowa is getting more than $9 million to improve its system of care for stroke patients, and to address staffing issues among public-health workers in rural areas. The money was donated by the Helmsley Charitable Trust, with $6 million of it going to the American Heart Association’s “Mission: Lifeline Stroke initiative” statewide. The program strives to bring more coordination and efficiency to hospitals, first responders and rehabilitation centers when delivering this kind of care. (KIOW-FM)

Nurse earns scholarship from hospital education, research foundation

Kylee Sweenie, a nurse at MercyOne Clinton Medical Center, has been awarded a $3,500 scholarship from the Iowa Hospital Education and Research Foundation, which is supported by the Iowa Hospital Association. She is among 60 students from Iowa who have received assistance this year from the IHERF Health Care Careers Scholarship Program. Sweenie is studying at St. Ambrose University pursuing her Bachelor of Science degree in nursing. (WHBF)

National news

Three COVID-19 forecasts to know

CDC models are forecasting an uncertain trend for COVID-19 admissions, as the highly transmissible omicron subvariant BA.5 spreads nationwide. The nation’s seven-day average of new hospital admissions was 6,298 as of July 29, up from 6,181 a week prior. During last winter’s omicron surge, this figure topped 20,000. Nationwide, daily COVID-19 hospital admissions are projected to remain stable or have an uncertain trend over the next four weeks, with 3,500 to 14,700 new admissions likely reported on Aug. 19, according to the CDC’s ensemble forecast from 18 modeling groups. The cloudy forecasts come as many health experts say it’s still too early to fully understand whether BA.5 will fuel a COVID-19 surge that puts pressure on U.S. hospitals. (Becker’s Hospital Review)

Millions of Americans have long COVID-19. Many of them are no longer working

As the number of people with post-COVID-19 symptoms soars, researchers and the government are trying to get a handle on how big an impact long COVID-19 is having on the U.S. workforce. It’s a pressing question, given the fragile state of the economy. For more than a year, employers have faced staffing problems, with jobs going unfilled month after month. Now, millions of people may be sidelined from their jobs because of long COVID-19. Katie Bach, a senior fellow with the Brookings Institution, drew on survey data from the Census Bureau, the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis and the Lancet to come up with what she says is a conservative estimate: 4 million full-time equivalent workers out of work because of long COVID-19. (Iowa Public Radio)

National Committee for Quality Assurance emphasizes health equity in updated guidelines

The National Committee for Quality Assurance has announced new and revised quality measures for the Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set for 2023. Race and ethnicity stratifications were introduced and revisions were made to acknowledge and affirm member gender identity. Five measures were added for pediatric dental care, safety and appropriateness, diabetic care, and social needs screenings and interventions. Five measures were removed, with others receiving “modest” revisions. (Becker’s Hospital Review)

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