Rural Spotlight

Recent Reports

PubHub has made the following reports available:

Transparency and Public Reporting Are Essential for a Safe Health Care System

Compares three approaches to spurring hospitals to improve patient safety and argues that public reporting of performance and feedback to providers is more effective than regulation and accreditation or financial incentives.

Chronic Care: Making the Case for Ongoing Care

Updates RWJF's 2002 chart book with 2010 data on and projections for the prevalence of chronic conditions, by condition, demographics, and insurance type; their impact on individuals and caregivers; their costs; and implications for the healthcare system.

Chronic Disease and the Internet

Compares survey data on access to and use of the Internet and social media by chronically ill and healthy adults, sources and topics of health information, and impact of online information. Examines the information gap by health status and demographics.
 
Operations Improvement Methods: Choosing a Path for Hospitals and Clinics

Provides an overview of the Lean, Six Sigma, management engineering, and other methods of improving staffing, patient flow, and utilization of resources. Compares pros and cons and issues of training and certification, data collection, and implementation.  

CAH Funding

The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) has announced that funding will be available for Critical Access Hospitals to receive technical assistance from the HIT Regional Extension Centers (RECs) for the adoption and meaningful use of electronic health records.  They have announced that $12,000 per Critical Access Hospital will be available to the RECs to provide the needed technical assistance.  Additional information will be provided as it becomes available.

For more information on the RECs, click here.

HVP (Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein) Recall

Basic Food Flavors of Las Vegas, Nevada has recalled all of the hydrolyzed vegetable protein (HVP) it has produced in powder and paste form it has produced since September 17, 2009, due to potential contamination with salmonella.  HVP goes into many other products such as dips, dressings, sauces, gravies, chili, soups, seasonings, hot dogs, seasoned snack foods, and seasoning mixes to enhance flavor and texture of processed foods.  For some processed foods that contain HVP, they also receive a thorough cook, and thus an adequate “kill step” for salmonella.  For some foods such as dip mixes containing HVP, or seasoned snack foods containing HVP, there is no kill step, and thus a potential for consumers being exposed to salmonella in the food.  Various companies have begun issuing recalls because their products contain HVP produced by Basic Food Flavors, Inc.  FDA is also recommending recalls of certain products containing HVP that might be eaten by consumers without any processing or cooking steps to address the potential risk. There is the potential for this to continue for an extended time due to the vast number of products containing HVP.  There is a searchable database of recalled products on FDA’s website at www.fda.gov  which will be updated as new products are added to the recall.  We suggest that agencies review the list of products a couple of times a week and to be aware of the potential for illness related to consumption of products with HVP produced by Basic Food Flavors, Inc.  At this time there are no reported illnesses associated with this contamination. 

If the situation changes dramatically, and DHSS is aware of illnesses associated with products containing contaminated HVP and distributed in Missouri, we will issue a recall about these specific products and the most complete distribution information that we receive. 

Please visit our websites for further information regarding food safety.
http://www.dhss.mo.gov/
http://www.dhss.mo.gov/EHOG_manual/
http://www.dhss.mo.gov/EnvironmentalChildCare/
http://www.dhss.mo.gov/FoodSafety/
http://www.dhss.mo.gov/Lodging/
http://www.dhss.mo.gov/Lead/
http://www.dhss.mo.gov/Onsite/

K2 Synthetic Marijuana Use Among Teenagers and Young Adults in Missouri

Updated information is available on the synthetic marijuana product, K2. Information includes signs and symptoms that present with the use of K2, and recommendations by the Missouri Regional Poison Center.

Click here for more information.

H1N1 Response Summary

The Department of Health and Senior Services' Center for Emergency Response and Terrorism has a newly updated response summary for the recent H1N1 outbreak. The six page brief is an overview of Missouri’s response effort during the H1N1 pandemic.  This updated version captures the broader public health and partner contributions to the overall response to the H1N1 pandemic. 

Read the response summary by clicking here.

Rural Kids Participating in Dangerous Game

New research suggests kids in rural settings are more likely to play a dangerous choking game that has become popular in recent years.  Around 8,000 eighth graders in Oregon were surveyed for the study.  More than a quarter of them admitted to participating in the act of choking in order to get a feeling of euphoria. 

Read more about the research here. 

Rural Versus Urban in the Health Care Debate

Researchers have determined there is a discrepancy between health insurance among rural citizens and their urban counterparts. That topic has been made a part of Washington's discussion about health care reform and what needs to be done to make sure all citizens have an equal opportunity to be insured. Read this article.

Antiviral Medication and Flu Testing

In a continued effort to keep individuals up to date on the status of diagnosis and treatment for the H1N1 virus, the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services has released the latest in a series of health updates.  This one highlights various aspects of using antiviral medication, such as Tamiflu and the frequent questions that come with it. Find the health update here.

Click here for information from the Medical Learning Network on resources available for health care professionals working with seasonal flu sufferers.

CDC Annnounces Guidelines for Handling H1N1

EMS workers and other medically trained individuals don't always have time in the field to get a patient's medical history before making decisions about their care. The Centers for Disease Control has set up guidelines they suggest be followed in situations that involve suspected H1N1 flu. Read more here.

Update on H1N1 in Pregnant Women

The H1N1 flu virus continues to spread. The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services will update information related to this virus as it becomes available. Recent information was released regarding precautions that are suggested for pregnant women to take to avoid getting sick. Read the current information here.