Page 8 - February 2017

Cover Story: A Message from the President

of the Palm Beach County Medical Society

Continued from page 1
failed to grow at the same rate as the rate They reduce the competition among
of creation of new medical treatments. would be competitors. Manufacturers
The government, rather than embracing can’t afford to get into a market when the
new medical technologies, tries to restrict first drug will go generic in a few years.
them with misplaced costs and regula- Mickey Mouse is still copyright protected
tions. We should utilize these innovations and he is almost 100 years old. A cure for
to help raise the GDP. The issue is the cancer must be given to India and China
delivery of health care. I want to make it in a few years and puts our employees out
very clear that the practice of medicine is of work. American intellectual informa-
great. It is the delivery system that doesn’t tion in medicine is given away quickly, but
work. The high cost of medications, hard- all other industries do not. The EpiPen is
ware, defensive medicine and insurance a perfect example of how the government
does not reflect the values of physicians. makes things worse then blames the man-
Physicians’ salaries are only about 5% of ufacturer - but does that mess up the con-
the U.S. health care dollar. The higher text? The FDA rejected 3 generic versions
numbers that you see quoted in the press of the EpiPen recently. The FDA killed the
for physician’s payments include a physi- competition. The FDA allows “regreen-
cian’s every growing overhead. Physicians ing” of generic medications. Plaza Health Network Implements
are disproportionately regulated. It seems Currently we are left with a healthcare
that there are fewer attempts to reduce delivery system that is in poor balance. We T elemedicine and T elemetry for
many other causes of health care costs. need an American solution to an
There is a tendency in the public to American problem. Hopefully in the Faster Clinical Interventions and
blame the high cost of health care on doc- future with new physician leaders, we will
tors and the pharmaceutical industry. No see more choices, and more competition
one however, does the deep dive to see among insurers, manufacturers, and prod- Reduced Hospital Readmissions
where high costs truly originate. The FDA ucts, so that we can see the lower prices.
has been a pay or play system since the This can be accomplished, if many of the Plaza Health Network’s seven South Florida
1990’s. Drug developers pay steep fees to government induced costs and burden- rehabilitation and skilled nursing facilities
the FDA. It now costs over 1.8 billion dol- some rules and regulations are scaled
lars to get a drug on market. Startup com- back. are rolling out interactive technology that
panies, should get help with innovative Best wishes for a healthy and prosper- allows rapid, real-time, remote monitoring of
ideas by the FDA. Instead they are over- ous new year. patients. It links patients, physicians,
whelmed with high costs that force them advanced registered nurse practitioners,
to sell their ideas to large corporations. For more information about the Palm nursing staff and remote medical specialists
Short drug patents contribute to high Beach County Medical Society, through collaborative virtual care, including
costs. They force initial higher prices. visit www.pbcms.org.
video conferencing.
In this Q&A, Ann-Lynn Denker, PhD,
ARNP, Chief Clinical Officer at Plaza Health
Dr. Ann-Lynn Denker,
Network, explains how telemedicine and
Chief Clinical Officer,
telemetry improves the quality of patient care Plaza Health Network
and reduces costs for hospitals by decreasing
unnecessary hospital readmissions.

Q: How does telemedicine work?

A: The technology continuously collects and monitors patient vital signs, condi-
tions and clinical information. When blood pressure, oxygen saturation, glucose
levels or another measure leaves a normal range, when an EKG shows immediate
changes – or varies from values set by a resident’s primary care physician -- an
intervention can start immediately .
The cutting-edge technology is HIPAA compliant, uses a secured connection and
is portable for use at the patient’s bedside or during rehabilitation therapy , making
it an essential feature of care in Plaza Health Network’s seven rehabilitation and
skilled nursing facilities: Arch Plaza, Aventura Plaza, Jackson Plaza, Ponce Plaza,
Sinai Plaza, South Pointe Plaza and University Plaza.

Q: What are advantages for your patients?

A: Patients gain quicker, expanded access to specialty medical expertise through
videoconferencing and other features any time of day or night. This is particularly
important for patients admitted for sub-acute care following surgery or related to a
serious injury or major illness. If insurance allows, it can also be used for observa-
tion purposes, less costly than in a hospital.

Q: How can telemedicine save time and money?

A: Traditionally , a primary care physician would order transfer of a resident
reporting chest pain to a hospital for further evaluation. Now an onsite nursing
professional can connect the patient to a portable electrocardiogram (ECG) device
and immediately share results with the primary care doctor or remote specialist,
allowing for the opportunity to treat in place.
Through this new cutting-edge technology , we now offer a greater level of high-
quality care with the goal of quicker evaluations, reduced hospital readmissions,
enhanced outcomes, and better overall health for our patients going forward.
For more information, visit plazahealth.org/telemedicine.

8 February 2017 southfloridahospitalnews.com South Florida Hospital News