Quality Initiatives
The Nation's Top 100 Hospitals Named for 1997
The 1997 list of the nation's top 100 hospitals were released earlier this month by William M. Mercer, an Atlanta-based human resource consulting firm and HCIA Inc., a Baltimore-based health information content company.
The collaborative study, "100 Top Hospitals-Benchmarks for Success." Found that despite industrywide performance improvements, $24 billion of annual hospital expenses could be avoided if all U.S. hospitals performed as well as the top 100 organizations highlighted.
The study is based on objective, quantitative data focusing on nine measures of clinical quality practices, operations and financial management which ranged from a risk-adjusted mortality index and severity adjusted average length of stay to long-term growth in equity and productivity (total asset turnover ratio).
The five categories ranked includes hospitals with 25-99 beds, hospitals with 100-249, non-teaching hospitals with 250+ beds, teaching hospitals with 250+ beds and major teaching hospitals with 400+ beds.
In the major teaching category (400+ beds) the top 5 hospitals are:
- UCSF Stanford Health Care (San Francisco)
- St. Joseph Hospital (Denver)
- St. Francis Hospital (Hartford, Conn.)
- Hartford Hospital (Hartford)
- Northwestern Memorial Hospital (Chicago)
To order the study, contact Jean Chenoweth at HCIA (http://www.hcia.com) at 410/895-7498 or Stephanie Poe at William M. Mercer (http://www.mercer.com) at 202/785-9080.
DTC Marketing
Snagging Seldane from Rx Shelf Won't Hurt Market Presence
Though the widely sold Seldane and Seldane-D allergy drugs are being snatched by the FDA, Hoechst Marion Roussel is taking an "oh well" nonchalant approach to the news since its safer alternative drug (Allegra-D) has received the green light. "There is no need to keep Seldane on the market, says Hoechst's executive Charles Rousse, "we can treat a broader range of patients [with the new product]."
But earlier this year the drug manufacturer sang a different tune, protesting the FDA's move to ban Seldane while Allegra's approval hung in the balance. In September, Hoechst gave in to the FDA's stance by adding language to its Seldane product labels warning against its use with other prescription drugs.
In addition, the company worked with the drug watchdog group on ways prescription drug ads could better explain product indications on the air, according to Julie Gladman, senior communications specialist at Hoechst.
Although Allegra-D's marketing clearance comes more than a year after Allegra was cleared for marketing (July 1996), Hoechst will now be able to beef up its marketing efforts to switch Seldane users to the Allegra brands. Allegra holds a 13% market share in the non-sedating antihistamines marketplace, according to Hoechst. (Hoechst, 816/966-4274)
Managed Care Campaigns
Blue Cross Announces New Ageless Heroes Campaign
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina (BCBSNC) has launched a nationwide search for inspirational senior citizens (65+) through it "Ageless Heroes Awards Program." The community-based recognition program is a healthy aging promotional effort that will be supported by BCBS's 56 independent affiliates.
"Ageless Heroes" encourages communities to nominate senior heroes aged 65 and over. Five national winners will be selected from categories that include vitality, community involvement, love of learning, creativity and new beginnings.
The winners will be announced March 31 and invited to attend a special screening of a new television special, "Ageless Heroes," sponsored by the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. The special will air on PBS nationwide. (Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, 919/489-7431)
Hot Tools
Claritas Updates Its Marketing/Demographic Databases
Claritas Inc, has updated several of the databases available via Claritas Connect's marketing Windows-based software that users can access around the clock and pay only for the data used.
The Arlington, Va.-based provider of precision marketing solutions has beefed up its most recent demographic, consumer and business information to include:
- Workplace Population: a database that provides estimates of the daytime working population (including private sector, public sector and persons working at home);
- American Medical Information's list of physicians members; and
Connect applications also include locating competitors, understanding market trends, and quantifying market share. For a complimentary Claritas Connect starter kit, call 1-800-234-5973 or email [email protected].