The University of Texas Medical Branch Dermatology Interest Group (UTMB DIG) is a resource for medical students interested in Dermatology as well as for dermatologists and residents.
Editors
Current Editors: Jane Onyemachi and Madelyn Schmidt
(Please email editors if there is blog-worthy news that you would like to see shared)
Past Editors: Fareen Momin, Andrea Francis, Renat Ahatov, Michael Phan, Elise Weisert, Michael Ryan, Keith Wagner, Tim Allen, Kristyna Gleghorn, Dung Mac, Alex Acosta, William Tausend, Sheila Jalalat, Rebecca Philips, Chelsea Altinger, Lindsey Hunter, Alison Wiesenthal, Leslie Scroggins, Mara Dacso, Ashley Group, Fadi Constantine, Emily Fridlington, Joslyn Witherspoon, Tasneem Poonawalla.
Tuesday, September 02, 2014
UTMB Penalized $900,000?
According to Galveston County Daily News Reporter Laura Elder (“UTMB to pay penalties under federal program to fight hospital infections,” Sunday, August 31, 2014, pages A1, A11), UTMB may be required to pay $900,000 in penalties due to patient infections and injuries. Hospitals are graded by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services and need a score of 7 or less to avoid financial penalties. UTMB scored 7.4. Parkland (Dallas) rated 8.675 and UT Southwestern University Hospital was 7.375. Data was compiled during 2012 and 2013. According to this news report, since over half of US teaching hospitals may be subject to this penalty, it may not be a fair comparison with other hospitals. This is because US teaching hospitals may be providing care for patients with more severe illnesses and more likely to develop complications such as infections.