Data Stream
The Reviews Are In …
MCATs
Under Examination
The Association of American Medical Colleges has retooled the MCAT, making it both broader and longer compared with the previous version:
Number of questions:
144 VS. 230
Number of sections:
3 VS. 4
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has awarded the first of its “star
ratings” to hospitals, in an effort to make comparing hospitals easier for patients. The new
rating system is based on 11 facets of patient experience, including how well doctors and
nurses communicated, how well patients believed their pain was addressed, and whether
they would recommend the hospital to others. How did the 3,553 hospitals do?
HHHHH 7%
HHHH 34%
HHH 40%
HH 16%
H 3%
(251 hospitals)
(1,205 hospitals)
(1,414 hospitals)
(582 hospitals)
(101 hospitals)
Small specialty hospitals received the highest ratings overall, with larger hospitals receiving
middling ratings. CMS graded on a curve, essentially, meaning that a 1-star rating doesn’t
mean a patient will receive poor-quality care, but compares less favorably to a 5-star hospital.
Many in the hospital industry, however, worry that patient reviews may weigh too heavily into
the rating system and oversimplify the complexity of care.
Source: Kaiser Health News, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
Suggested prerequisite courses:
8
VS.
11
Total time, including breaks:
4 hrs. 10 min.
VS.
7 hrs. 33 min.
Location, Location, Location
For cancer patients on Medicare, the amount of care they receive may be driven more by location than by patient needs, according to a study of 1,534 U.S. medical oncology practices. In
the study, certain practices recouped thousands more per patient in Medicare dollars (based
on a greater number of treatments and tests given to patients). Compared with practices in
the 25th percentile, those in the 75th percentile recouped:
3,866
$1,872
$439
$
more for chemotherapy
more for hospitalizations
The new test contains more subjects than the previous version (including
psychology, sociology, and biochemistry) and focuses more on interdisciplinary medicine. The first in 25 years, the major revision is a response to the evolution of health-care delivery. “One hundred years ago, all you really needed
to know was the science,” said Catherine Lucey, member of the MCAT review
committee. “Now we have problems that require doctors to form therapeutic
alliances with patients and convince them to change their lifestyles.”
This doesn’t mean patients were treated inappropriately or unnecessarily, though; the
study did not look at how spending on tests and treatments affected outcomes.
Source: Association of American Medical Colleges
Source: Clough JD, Patel K, Riley GF, et al. Health Aff. 2015;34:601-8.
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ASH Clinical News
more for advanced imaging
May 2015