Happiness: It’s Contagious

By Barbara Ficarra, RN, BSN, MPA If you’re happy chances are your friends will be happy and their friends will be happy… and so on and so on and so on. When was the last time you felt really happy? Maybe it was this morning, yesterday or last week. Those feelings of joy, cheer, elation, euphoria or whatever you want to call it not only made you feel great, but it affected the people around…

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Increased Nurse Staffing Leads to Greater Patient Satisfaction

Increased Nurse Staffing Leads to Greater Patient Satisfaction By Debra Wood, RN, contributor AMN Healthcare [Barbara Ficarra is quoted as an expert in this article about nurse staffing.] American patients generally express satisfaction with their hospital stays, and those treated in facilities with a high ratio of nurses to patient days feel more positively about their experience than other patients, according to a new study published in the New England Journal of Medicine. “Whenever there…

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Bacteria Risks and Pregnancy

By Alan Greene, MD There are certain microscopic bacteria that can pose special health risks to pregnant women and to their babies. Although most people can safely eat food containing a type of bacteria called Listeria, pregnant women are ten times more likely to get sick if they eat those same foods. And if they do get sick, the infection can be devastating for the baby. The tricky thing about Listeria is that, unlike many…

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29th Annual AMA Medical Communications Conference

I hope you’ll join me at the 29th Annual Medical Communications Conference presented by the American Medical Association. The meeting takes place April 1 – 3, 2009 at the Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort and Spa in Santa Ana Pueblo, New Mexico. Conference Overview Whether you are a medical spokesperson, a physician on the front lines delivering health care messages, or a public relations professional pitching stories behind the scenes, the conference will provide a platform…

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Who Are the Uninsured?

Look around. The person sitting next to you on the bus, the person walking down the street, the person pushing a baby stroller, your family member, your friend, your neighbor: Any of them could be the uninsured. They are people in desparate need of health care coverage. According to the American Medical Association, 1 out of 7 Americans–or 45 million people–have no health insurance. But with everyone taking a stand, with everyone speaking up for…

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