Search Tag: Editorial
2022 29 Apr
The COVID-19 pandemic has triggered several changes in how healthcare systems are run globally. The focus has shifted from relying exclusively on brick-and-mortar healthcare facilities to digital avenues that could help deliver care virtually. Telemedicine, remote patient monitoring and out-patient care are some of the avenues that have been explored....Read more
2019 14 Mar
The burden of critical illness is a major concern in healthcare. This burden is expected to continue to increase as our population ages. Our cover story Innovation highlights the growing problem of critical illness and the need to develop improved practices and implement new and advanced solutions to meet the expected challenges. Our contributors...Read more
2018 22 Sep
People are the backbone of healthcare systems. With staff costs up to three-quarters of the total budget one wonders why healthcare leaders are not looking for different, unorthodox, innovative approaches. When did we notice the last time anything groundbreaking in human resources? Perhaps the potential of robotisation in healthcare to automate...Read more
2018 23 May
The financial crisis was a blessing for our health systems. It forced European policymakers and politicians to take more decisive action on key issues. It became clear that healthcare is not only about money (I strongly believe that there is still a potential of up to 30% in gains/savings) but about sincere structural problems in our foundations, and...Read more
2017 20 Nov
“The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically” Martin Luther King Worldwide there is still much variation in type and duration of intensive care medicine training programmes (Amin et al. 2016). What is clear is that training programmes need to cover the ‘basics’ as well as adapt to accommodate new skills,...Read more
2017 21 Aug
Despite that in general health spending is growing slowly, according to a recent OECD report European countries lag behind. Balancing the service demands against available resources is a key function of management. With increasing demand and reduction in resources it is meanwhile a real challenge for most of our European health colleagues to fill vacancies...Read more
2017 28 May
The “chain of survival” metaphor for improving outcomes from sudden cardiac arrest (CA) was first coined in the 1980s. Since adopted by the American Heart Association and the International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation amongst others, it is a useful tool to concentrate efforts on how to optimise every link in the chain to improve survival and...Read more
2017 16 Feb
Porter and Teisberg introduced value-based healthcare (VBHC) in their seminal 2006 book, Redefining Health Care. At the time, several sceptics raised questions about the evidence and practicality of its prescriptions. One reviewer noted, “There are few data to support their concepts. … no one has tried anything like the approaches they suggest.” A...Read more
2016 30 Nov
An emphasis on quality of care has always underpinned healthcare, but in recent years quality measurement has come to the fore, as countries around the world seek to provide the best outcomes for patients while facing ever-increasing healthcare costs. In intensive care, despite the heterogeneity of the patient population, great strides have been made...Read more
2016 13 Nov
Dear Reader, As the world’s largest representative body for senior healthcare executives, the European Association of Hospital Managers (EAHM) has a big responsibility in advancing the healthcare enterprise. Modern communication is key in sharing best practices, gathering new ideas and interacting with other disciplines. The EAHM has selected...Read more
2016 25 Aug
Any healthcare leader surveying the healthcare situation in Europe today would have the same observation; the demands on the sustainability of healthcare systems across the continent are weighing heavy on hospital finances, personnel resources and ultimately on the wellbeing of patients. With improving patient outcomes the first and foremost objective,...Read more
2016 01 Jul
On the first day of a new project, I often discover that many of my colleagues in healthcare haven’t worked with designers before, which is why I’m introduced as “an IT guy.” While I was initially startled to be stereotyped as “IT ”, I have come to realise that IT is exactly the right place for a designer to be. We’ve entered a new age where technology...Read more