In Brief: Henry Ford Redesigns Patient Gowns; Mental Health Services For Teens Falling Short
Henry Ford Redesigns Patient Gowns
Henry Ford Hospital has introduced a new patient gown officials say restore their dignity and help them stay warm.
The gown, which resembles a wraparound robe, does not have the traditional opening in the rear. It is made of a thick polyester/cotton blend that is thicker than what is typically utilized in medical facilities. It is also designed to cover a wide variety of body types.
The robe was the brainchild of students from the nearby College of Creative Studies who interned at the Henry Ford Innovation Institute, an affiliate of the Detroit-based Henry Ford Health System.
“Our number one goal was to close the backside of the gown with our design,” said Michael Forbes, a product designer at the HenryFord Innovation Institute and graduate of the College for Creative Studies (CCS).“A simple change can have a large impact on the patients’ stay at a hospital. By creating a hospital gown that is safe, stylishand comfortable, we’ve made the patient feel more at home, like they’re wearing their own garments.”
Hospital officials say they hope to license the design to it can be manufactured and sold to other hospital.
Mental Health Services For Teens Falling Short
A new study by University of Michigan researchers concluded that the available mental health services available to adolescents are falling short.
The survey, by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation's National Voices Project, polled more than 2,300 adults in 48 states. Overall, only 30% of those polled said they believed there were significant mental health services for teenagers – about half the percentage of those who said there was abundant hospital and primary care services.
“These findings indicate low availability of mental health care for children and teens in the majority ofcommunities across the U.S.,” said Matthew M. Davis, M.D., director of the National Voices Project, associate professor of Pediatrics and Communicable Diseases at the University of Michigan Medical School and associate professor of Public Policy at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy. “Even in communities where there are lots of opportunities forchildren and teens to get primary care or hospital care, access to mental healthcare is lacking.”
In addition, in communities where respondents perceived racial/ethnic inequities, they consistently reportedless access to all healthcare services, including mental health.
Wisconsin Program Cutting Costs For Dual-Eligibles
FamilyCare – a Wisconsin program that cares for dual-eligible Medicaid and Medicare enrollees in a coordinated manner – has resulted in reducing the per-patient costs over the past three years.
According to data compiled by the not-for-profit private organizations that treat the enrollees, costs for FamilyCare has dropped from $2,997 per month in 2010 to $2,887, a drop of 3.7%.
FamilyCare's coordinated care initiative tries to keep enrollees out of nursing homes in lieu of less expensive care in community settings.
Champions of the FamilyCare, which only operates in portions of Wisconsin, are urging Gov. Scott Walker, a Republican, to expand it statewide. But some GOP lawmakers have expressed skepticism of the program's actual savings to taxpayers.
