Paul Keckley, the healthcare-sector analyst, looks at the implications of the  21st Century Cures Act for hospitals.

Among his recommendations for hospital executes for living in the Cures Act world:

• “Formulary design and medication management policies and procedures need constant review so that competing compounds can find their way readily into a hospital’s prescribing patterns. And the hospital’s interaction with retail pharmacies should enable shared knowledge about new and emerging classes and compounds that offer the same efficacy and effectiveness at a lower rate.”
• “Medical device utilization, purchasing, and measures of effectiveness and safety need closer scrutiny. Of particular note are two areas where compliance risk is quite strong: the financial relationships between physicians and hospitals and manufacturers, and the safety associated with devices.”
• “Medical directors must be proactive. Pharmacists should be included in care coordination teams across the organization.”
• ”Mental health professionals should be recruited to the clinical community.”
• The diagnostic tests inclusive of mental and physical health signs, symptoms, risk factors, and co-morbidities should be updated and hardwired into clinical decision support systems that prompt, alert and remind clinicians to make definitive diagnoses.”

To read his article, please hit this link.