Proton therapy is a type of stereotactic radiosurgery that uses proton beams instead of X-rays. In proton therapy, a beam of protons is used to blast diseased tissue precisely. It extracts positively charged protons from hydrogen gas and accelerates them through a cyclotron, or particle accelerator, up to nearly two-thirds the speed of light. The protons are guided to the tumor site by powerful magnetic and electrical fields, and carry just enough charge to reach a precise point in the tumor.
Facility Components
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Fluctuating Demand for Hospital Beds
Starting in the 1980s, healthcare strategists and policy experts encouraged hospitals to reduce their surplus inpatient bed capacity in response to declining admissions, use rates, and lengths of stay — as a result of the advent of Medicare’s diagnosis related groups (DRG) payment methodology in the public sector and managed care in the private sector. Hospitals responded to changes in demand by shifting their resources. Between 1980 and 2003, community hospitals in the United States took 175,000 inpatient beds out of service — an 18 percent reduction — through downsizings, consolidations, and closures. At the same time, skilled nursing and subacute care facilities were developed to provide a less expensive and less resource-intensive alternative for patients requiring a lengthy recuperation. Home health agencies also proliferated. Since 2003, the number of hospital beds has declined less dramatically — a reduction of another 12,700 beds. Although, nationally, inpatient admissions rose from 1992 to 2012, both the rate of inpatient admissions per 1,000 population and the average length of stay have declined to an all time low — resulting in an overall decline in the demand for inpatient beds.
Vending Machines Control Medical Supply Costs
With today’s focus on lowering costs while improving outcomes, medical supplies — which account for 30% to 40% of a hospital’s total costs — are a prime target. Automated point-of-use systems for hospital supply chain management offer quick, convenient access to supplies, extensive reporting tools, and can be customized by size, security, and configuration. Inventory and supply usage are recorded, by patient, making charge capture consistent and accurate. With better control over inventory, the risk of running out of essential items is reduced and the clinical staff spend less time looking for supplies when they need them.
For example, the Omnicell® supply management system offers flexible, scalable cabinets that are either stand-alone systems or an adjunct to a medication management system. These cabinets use biometric identification, barcoding technology, and verbal confirmation for log-on, expired products, and latex warnings. A single cabinet can store seven years of data. They can be customized for the surgical suite, the cardiac catheterization lab, and other key clinical areas of the hospital. A two-cell cabinet measures 52” wide by 24” deep by 78” high.
Use of Observation Status is Increasing
Observation was meant to be a short period of time for healthcare providers to assess patients and decide whether a patient requires admission for inpatient care or can be discharged. Typically this was meant to last less than 24 hours and only rarely spanned longer than 48 hours. Over the past ten years, however, the incidence and duration of observation status stays has increased significantly as a result of changes in Medicare reimbursement.
New Standard for Residential Care Facilities
The Facility Guidelines Institute (FGI) has developed a new standard titled Guidelines for Design and Construction of Residential Health, Care, and Support Facilities. This document provides minimum recommendations for new construction and renovation of nursing homes, hospice facilities, assisted living facilities, independent living settings, adult day care facilities, wellness centers, and outpatient rehabilitation centers. According to the FGI website, the new standard has been developed in response to the widespread adoption of person-centered care and deinstitutionalization in the residential care industry. Based on Part 4 (Residential Care Facilities) of the 2010 edition of the FGI Guidelines for Design and Construction of Health Care Facilities and public proposals submitted on that text in fall 2011, the book is divided into a section on planning and predesign, a section on design and construction elements common to all facility types in the book, and sections grouped by facility type. This document was first published in early in 2014 and was updated in 2018.
This article is an update of a previous post.
Pharmacy Automation Used Throughout the Healthcare Facility
Pharmacy automation is becoming commonplace in many healthcare facilities including point-of-care medication dispensing devices located on nursing units Pyxis Machineand in other acute care areas, controlled substance dispensing and tracking systems, centralized robotic dispensing devices, and similar devices to support ambulatory care.