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Healogics Names New Chief Nursing Officer
Healogics Inc., Jacksonville, FL, has announced Deborah Leblanc, BSN, RN, BSN, MM, NEA-BC, has been hired as chief nursing officer (CNO).
“I’m excited to have Deborah Leblanc join our leadership team,” said Jeff Nelson, president and chief executive officer of Healogics. “Deborah’s leadership and clinical capabilities will complement the Healogics mission to deliver wound care expertise everywhere we can, by the best means available.”
Leblanc most recently served as CNO at Sinai-Grace Hospital in Michigan. She has extensive experience managing nursing care and leading clinical excellence, according to Healogics officials. She also has a proven track record of driving company-wide nursing care initiatives that have resulted in streamlined work processes and improved patient outcomes. In addition to her nursing leadership experience, Leblanc is a certified nurse executive, a LEAN Healthcare Executive, and holds a master’s degree in management.
“Deborah is committed to the nursing profession and to creating leadership development programs for the nursing teams,” Nelson said. “She brings a great deal of knowledge and leadership with her and will be of great benefit to Healogics.”
Clinical Case Series Demonstrates Effective Limb Salvage Approach
Officials with MiMedx Group Inc., Marietta, GA, have announced that a recent peer-reviewed, independent clinical case series of EpiFix® allografts has been published. The paper, “Bone and Tendon Coverage via Dehydrated Human Amniotic/Chorionic Membrane and Split-Thickness Skin Grafting,” discusses a novel limb-salvage technique using dehydrated human amnion/chorion membrane (dHACM) that generates granulation tissue over critical structures with exposed bone and tendon, and then definitively closes the wounds with split-thickness skin grafts (STSGs). During the case series period from Nov. 5, 2014, through March 30, 2015, seven patients underwent dHACM plus STSG limb salvage, officials said. Patients ranged from 8-64 years of age. Wounds included two with exposed tendons, three with exposed bone, and two with exposed bone and tendon. One of the seven patients was lost during follow up, and no outcome results could be collected and measured for that patient.
The paper appears in the Journal of Reconstructive Microsurgery. Highlights of this case series include:
- dHACM and STSGs were successful in all six patients with data collected and measured;
- none developed infection during dHACM treatment, STSG, or in the postoperative phase, even in the cases where initial antibiotic treatment was inadequate due to bacterial resistance;
- all wounds remain stably closed; and
- authors conclude dHACM plus STSG is a viable, low-cost alternative to free-flap reconstruction.
Survey Shows ACA Could Cause Physicians to Quit
Not all physicians think highly of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). In fact, many are considering the possibility of quitting their practice, according to a recent survey by CompHealth, Salt Lake City, UT, one of the country’s largest healthcare staffing firms. According to the survey, which included feedback from nearly 1,000 physicians from different specialties across the United States, 36% of all respondents said they were more inclined to leave medicine because of the ACA. That number was higher among private practice physicians (45%), according to company officials. The ACA is least favorable among private-practice physicians (20% favorable), followed by group-practice physicians (26%) and hospital-based physicians (35%). Additionally, 68% of respondents claim they spend too much time at work entering data into electronic health records and 59% said they spend too much time doing paperwork. Also, 64% of private-practice physicians took on a secondary job to compensate for reduced income they claim the ACA caused. The most common second jobs are moonlighting, locum tenens, and consulting.
Electric Currents Quicken Wound Healing, Report Says
A recently published report claims small electrical currents could activate certain immune cells to jumpstart or speed wound healing. According to the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology, the discovery could aid people living with illnesses that cause wounds to heal slowly or prevent them from healing.
“In instances where there is a lack of macrophages present, the application of ‘synthetic’ electric fields using clinical devices would assist the repair process, not only by attracting macrophages to damaged sites to support healing but also by changing their properties to facilitate wound repair and, importantly, to reduce infection,” said Heather M. Wilson, PhD, senior lecturer at the University of Aberdeen (United Kingdom). The report appears in the Journal of Leukocyte Biology.
For the research, Wilson and colleagues exposed microphages, which originate from human blood, to electrical fields of a similar strength to those generated in injured skin. When they applied the current they found the macrophages moved directionally and enhanced phagocytosis. The electric fields also “enhanced the uptake and clearance of a variety of targets” that promote inflammation and impair healing, including latex beads, expended white blood cells, and the fungal pathogen Candida albicans, according to the report. In addition, the electric fields selectively augmented the production of protein modulators associated with the healing process, which showed the response of macrophages to naturally generated electrical signals can boost their healing ability.
“The field of bioelectromagnetics is beginning to reveal how we might use intentionally directed electrical or magnetic fields to provoke specific biological responses,” said John Wherry, PhD, deputy editor of the journal. “This new work identifies previously unappreciated opportunities to tune immune system function with electrical fields and has potentially wide-reaching implications for wound repair for a variety of diseases where macrophages play a role, including infectious disease, cancer, and even obesity.”
Manufacturer Gets Funding For Product Development
CollPlant Ltd., a regenerative medicine company headquartered in Israel that utilizes its proprietary plant-based rhCollagen technology for tissue-repair products, has received authorization from the chief scientist of Israel’s Ministry of Economy for funding that will help support advanced product technology in 2016. According to company officials, approximately 50% of a $12 million development project has been secured for the development of programs related to the production of human collagen-based medical products. Of note, the chief scientist authorized support of the development of collagen and cell-based formulations intended for use as BioInk for 3D printing of tissues and organs. The authorized development plans also include support for the completion of the development process of Vergenix™STR, a product to heal tendons and inflammation, officials said.
“We are delighted to receive the chief scientist’s authorization for funding of CollPlant’s development programs,” said Yehiel Tal, chief executive officer. “CollPlant is also working diligently to expand its pipeline products through the development of innovative new products addressing significant market needs, and which will contribute meaningfully to the value of the company.”
Electric Currents Quicken Wound Healing, Report Says
Those healthcare providers affiliated with fraudulent companies could face tougher governmental scrutiny if a bill recently introduced in the House gets passed.
The “Fighting Medicare Fraud Act of 2016” initiated by Reps. Lois Frankel (D-FL) and William Keating (D-MA) would give the Department of Health and Human Services greater ability to exclude individuals linked to companies penalized for fraud from participating in federal healthcare programs, according to a report by McKnight’s. The bill’s authors claim that increased ability would close a “loophole” that allows employees to resign before a company receives a penalty and “potentially launch a new Medicare fraud scheme.” Current laws only exclude individuals who are still employed by the company. The bill would expand the Office of Inspector General’s exclusion abilities to individuals who had ownership, control interest, or an officer or managing position with a fraudulent company who knew or “should have known” about fraudulent conduct.
“We need to ensure taxpayer dollars are committed to providing vital services for our seniors, not lining the pockets of fraudulent businesses and [chief executive officers],” said Keating in a statement on the bill. “This common-sense legislation stops the cycle of deceit amongst the worst actors — toughening the consequences felt by those who illegally exploit our elderly population while strengthening the Medicare system in the process.”
The proposed legislation would also make stealing Medicare, Medicaid, or Children’s Health Insurance Plan numbers a federal offense carrying a possible prison sentence of up to 15 years. Medicare Advantage and Part D organizations would also be required to report incidents of potential fraud and abuse within 60 days of identification under the bill. Research has indicated that instances of fraud and abuse in those programs “may be unreported,” according to Keating and Frankel.
The bill has been referred to the House Energy and Commerce and Ways and Means committees as of late May. Similar legislation was introduced in 2013, but never received a full House vote, according to the McKnight’s report.
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