- Congress Passes Health
Professions Reauthorization, Appropriates Funds
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In the final days prior to adjournment, Congress passed bill S
1754, the Health Professions Education Partnerships Act of 1998. The
legislation is critical to family medicine and other primary care education
programs, because it authorizes funds for these programs. The measure, crafted
by Sen. William Frist (R-Tenn.), consolidates 44 individual health professions
training programs into seven general authorities. However, the measure contains
a mandatory amount of not less than $49.3 million to be set aside each year for
family medicine training programs of which at least $8.6 million must be used
to fund family medicine academic administrative units in medical schools. The
bill also establishes an Advisory Committee on Training in Primary Care
Medicine and Dentistry. Additionally, in its massive omnibus funding bill,
Congress appropriated funds of $51.5 million for family practice training
programs, an increase of $1.5 million from last year. These measures recognize
the important role that family medicine programs have in training physicians to
care for the American people.
- 'Assisted Suicide' Provision
Withdrawn
-
Legislation that would have allowed the Drug Enforcement
Administration (DEA) to investigate physicians when high doses of narcotic
painkillers are utilized in end-of-life care was not approved by Congress. Sen.
Don Nickles (R-Okla.) decided not to pursue his amendment to provide this
authority to the DEA, but he has announced that this subject will be an issue
for him when Congress returns in 1999. The American Academy of Family
Physicians (AAFP), the American Medical Association and many other health
organizations have actively opposed this further imposition into medical
practice.
- Awards Recognize Crucial Role of
Primary Care in America
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The Pew Health Professions Commission has honored leaders of the
nation's health care system who have made significant contributions to the
field of primary care. The awards are bestowed on individuals and
organizations. The 1998 Primary Care Achievement Awards were presented in a
ceremony at the "Primary Care Education for the 21st Century: Lessons from
National Initiatives" meeting, held in Baltimore. The University of New Mexico
School of Medicine Primary Care Curriculum received an award in the education
category. The school initiated its world-renowned primary care curriculum long
before other medical schools adopted a problem-based, student-centered approach
to teaching primary care. The Pediatric Research in Office Settings (PROS)
network received an award in the research category for the contributions of
over 1,500 practitioners who are producing studies of primary care as it is
delivered in pediatric practices. John W. Runyan Jr., M.D., Memphis, Tenn.,
received the patient care award for creating a system of neighborhood health
clinics that made primary care accessible and affordable; Joel J. Alpert, M.D.,
president of the American Academy of Pediatrics, received an award in the
education category. Bernard Ewigman, M.D., M.S.P.H., University of
Missouri-Columbia, received an award in the research category. He has
emphasized translating groundbreaking research into effective care for
underserved populations as a researcher, educator and practicing physician.
- Jane E. Henney, M.D., Is
Confirmed as Commissioner of the FDA
-
Jane E. Henney, M.D., vice president for health sciences at the
University of New Mexico, has been confirmed by the Senate as the commissioner
of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Dr. Henney, a native of
Indiana, has worked at the FDA and the National Cancer Institute (NCI). A
cancer specialist, she spent nine years at the NCI and was deputy director from
1980 to 1985. From 1992 until 1994, she was deputy commissioner for operations
of the FDA. Dr. Henney will focus on attracting top scientific talent to the
FDA and on implementing FDA reform. Dr. Henney's husband, Robert Graham, M.D.,
is executive vice president of the AAFP.
- Continuous Quality Improvement
Tool Released by AHCPR
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The Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (AHCPR) has made
available a free computer software tool for routine self-assessments of
inpatient care and evaluation of community access to primary care. The
Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project Quality Indicators (HCUP QIs) are
designed to help hospitals assess inpatient outcomes by screening discharge
data and identifying clinical areas appropriate for analysis. The 33 clinical
performance measures in HCUP QIs are designed to produce comparable statistics
at the hospital, community or state levels along the following three dimensions
of care: potentially avoidable adverse outcomes, potentially inappropriate use
of hospital inpatient procedures and potentially avoidable hospital admissions.
The software is available as part of a kit: Outcome, Utilization, and Access
Measures for Quality Improvement. Included in the kit are two software
diskettes, a fact sheet, a user's guide, and a methods manual. The kit may be
obtained by calling 800-358-9295 or writing the AHCPR Publications
Clearinghouse at P.O. Box 8547, Silver Spring, MD 20907. Internet users can
download the software, manuals and fact sheet from the data and surveys section
of the AHCPR Web site at http://www.ahcpr.gov.
Copyright © 1998 by the American Academy of
Family Physicians.
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