Katie Adams, MedCity News Journalist Profile

Articles

Virtual Nursing Saves Hospitals Money on Turnover Costs, Ardent Health CMO Says

2 weeks ago | medcitynews.com | Katie Adams

In this day and age, hospitals can no longer afford to overlook workflow improvement, according to FJ Campbell, chief medical officer at Ardent Health (Opens in a new window). He pointed this out during an interview last month at the Reuters Digital Health conference (Opens in a new window) in Nashville, noting that the pandemic highlighted just how overwhelming hospital workflows can be.
Hospitals See Financial Gains Due to Higher Volumes & Improved Throughput

3 weeks ago | medcitynews.com | Katie Adams

Hospitals’ financial performance improved during the first four months of the year, outperforming the same period in 2024, according to research (Opens in a new window) released this week by Kaufman Hall (Opens in a new window). The consulting firm analyzed data from 1,300 hospitals across the nation. The report found that hospitals’ average operating margin was 3.3% from January to April, up from 1.4% in May of last year.
INVEST Pitch Perfect Spotlight: How Pear Suite Makes Sure Community Health Workers Get Paid

3 weeks ago | medcitynews.com | Katie Adams

In the past decade, the healthcare industry has finally started to acknowledge the vital role of community health workers. For instance, about half of states (Opens in a new window) now reimburse community health worker services through Medicaid, and Medicare added community health worker services to its physician fee schedule for the first time ever last year. But without the right tools, community health workers are often unable to secure these new payments.
The GOP’s Budget Plan Is a Crisis in the Making for Hospitals

3 weeks ago | medcitynews.com | Katie Adams

The Trump administration’s flagship budget package (Opens in a new window) — which includes the biggest Medicaid funding cuts ever proposed in the history of the program — is currently awaiting a Senate vote, having already made it through the House of Representatives last month.
How One Startup Is Aiming to Replace Surgery with Its Endometriosis Diagnostic

3 weeks ago | medcitynews.com | Katie Adams

The World Health Organization estimates that about 10% of women and girls of reproductive age around the world — roughly 190 million people — suffer from chronic pain as a result of endometriosis. Take this estimate with a grain of salt, though — it’s likely too low. The average diagnostic delay for endometriosis patients is eight years, driven in large part by the fact that the standard method used to diagnose the disease is an invasive surgical procedure.
Allina Health Sees Early Success From Voice AI in Call Centers

3 weeks ago | medcitynews.com | Katie Adams

Less than six months after rolling out voice AI in its call centers, one nonprofit health system is already seeing signs that the technology is successful in improving the patient experience. Allina Health — a Minnesota-based health system with 12 hospitals and more than 80 clinics — began rolling out SoundHound AI’s call center tool across its enterprise in January.
Why Is Medtronic Spinning Off Its Diabetes Business?

4 weeks ago | dealbreaker.com | Katie Adams

Medtronic’s decision to spin out its diabetes division into a separate entity marks a major shift — one that allows the medical device giant to shed a lower-margin, consumer-facing business, while also giving the diabetes business an opportunity to refine its focus in a competitive market. Last week, Medtronic announced the intent to separate its diabetes business into a new standalone company. The new company, which remains unnamed, is expected to launch within 18 months.
Why Is Medtronic Spinning Off Its Diabetes Business?

4 weeks ago | medcitynews.com | Katie Adams

Medtronic’s decision to spin out its diabetes division into a separate entity marks a major shift — one that allows the medical device giant to shed a lower-margin, consumer-facing business, while also giving the diabetes business an opportunity to refine its focus in a competitive market. Last week, Medtronic announced the intent to separate its diabetes business into a new standalone company. The new company, which remains unnamed, is expected to launch within 18 months.
Why Sanford Health Is All-In on Virtual Care

1 month ago | medcitynews.com | Katie Adams

As rural providers continue to face workforce shortages and access challenges, Sanford Health is doubling down on virtual care — not just as a service offering, but as an integrated model for training, retention and community health. This month at the Reuters Digital Health conference in Nashville, Jeremy Cauwels, Sanford’s chief medical officer, explained what this looks like at the Sioux Falls, South Dakota-based system, which operates in several states across the Midwest.
Why One Leader Is Calling Out Insurers’ Inaction on Prior Authorization

1 month ago | medcitynews.com | Katie Adams

The healthcare system’s reliance on prior authorization is wasting clinicians’ time, delaying care and worsening public distrust — and yet, payers show little urgency in fixing it, according to Dr. Jesse Ehrenfeld, immediate past president of the American Medical Association. He made this observation during an interview last week at MedCity News’ INVEST conference in Chicago.