Attorney General Maura Healey Leads Healthcare Reform
As a member of the Advisory Council to the Health Policy Commission in Massachusetts, I was very interested in following the internet broadcast of the annual HPC Cost Trends Hearings early in October. At the core of the presentations was a debate about healthcare...
Learning from South Africa
Several years ago I was fascinated by Dr. Atul Gawande’s discussion of ignorance and  incompetence. He argued that we in healthcare are no longer ignorant. We know quite a bit about pathology, pharmacology, diagnostics, and various therapeutic techniques. On my visit...
Sustainable Universal Coverage
Last month CMS announced the results of the efforts of the Pioneer and MSSP (Medicare Shared Savings Program) ACOs for 2014. The headline made for compelling reading: Medicare ACOs Provide Improved Care While Slowing Cost Growth in 2014. This suggests that sustainable...
D. F. Wallace, Burnout, and Healthcare
What does David Foster Wallace have to tell us about burnout? More than most healthcare professionals might think. The publicity for The End of the Tour, a new film starring Jason Segel as Wallace, has reminded me of the message I took away from the first Wallace book...
The Older Americans Act
Recently the New England Journal of Medicine published a great article in the “Perspective” section, “The Older Americans Act at 50”.  Unfortunately the article is available online only to those who are subscribers, so I will try to give a very brief overview of its...Case Study – Elizabeth Mcarthy
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