Workforce

Healthcare added 17,000 jobs to the nation's economy in August, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today.

Ascension Health Alliance in St. Louis signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) Wednesday with Marion Health System to acquire the system's 36 affiliated hospitals in three regional divisions based out of Tulsa, Okla.

The Marquette General Health System (MGHS) board of trustees and Duke LifePoint Healthcare announced Tuesday that they have finalized the transaction for Marquette General to be acquired by Duke LifePoint.

Global medical device company St. Jude Medical, Inc. announced last week that the realignment of its product divisions will result in the loss of 300 jobs.

An American Hospital Association (AHA)-sponsored webinar on Wednesday highlighted findings from a study on the diversity in hospitals and featured successful practices tips from two hospitals recently honored for promoting overall diversity and creating strategies for disparities reduction at their facilities.

Hays Green, healthcare policy practice lead at WPC, a Nashville-based company that provides consulting solutions, has outlined five preparatory actions that providers can kickstart today to create a solid infrastructure to achieve long-term ACO goals. "These steps can help organizations enter the commercial realm of accountable care models on level footing," Green said.

Last week, the Jackson Health System, a six-hospital network based in Miami, announced it will be considering proposals for outsourcing physicians, physician assistants and advance nurse practitioners in its emergency departments.

Mergers and acquisitions generally occur because organizations want to become bigger or they want to acquire capabilities that will make them more effective, but no matter what the reasons for the transactions, they aren't simple.

Health information exchange. It creates a free-flow of clinical information between IT systems, enhancing patient care and connecting hospitals that have different EHRs. And for CFOs and CIOs, it can lead to big revenue returns.

With an increasing demand for home care services, home care businesses have been springing up in communities across the country. And with the rapid expansion of these largely unregulated businesses questions about the industry's hiring practices have begun to surface.